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TOGETHER WITH 

PORTRAITS AND BIOGRAPHIES OF ALL THE GOVERNORS OF ILLINOIS, 
AND OF THE PRESIDENTS OF THE UNITED STATES. 



ALSO CONTAINING A HISTORY OF THE COUNTY, FROM ITS EARLIEST SETTLEMENT 

TO THE PRESENT TIME. 



CHICAGO : 

CHAPMAN BROTHERS. 

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E HAVE completed our labors in writing and compiling the Pob rE u r and Biograph- 
ical Album of De Kalb County, and wish, in presenting it to our patrons, to speak 
briefly of the importance of local works of this nature. It is certainly the duty 
of the present to commemorate the past, to perpetuatethe names of the pioneers, 
Jjp to furnish a record of their early settlement, and to relate the story of their progress. 
V The civilization of our day, the enlightenment of the age, and this solemn duty which 
v *• ^> men of the present time owe to their ancestors, to themselves and to their posterity, 
demand that a record of their lives and deeds should be made. In local history is found a power 
to instruct man by precedent, to enliven the mental faculties, and to waft down the river of time a safe 
vessel in which the names and actions of the people who contributed to raise this region from its 
primitive state may be preserved. Surely and rapidly the noble men, who in their vigor and prime 
came to De Kalb County and claimed the virgin soil as their heritage, are passing to 
their graves. The number remaining who can relate the history ol the first days of settlement is 
becoming small indeed, so that an actual necessity exists for the collection and preservation of his- 
torical matter without delay, before the settlers of the wilderness are cut down by time. Not only 
is it of the greatest importance to render history of pioneer-times full and accurate, but it is also essen- 
tial that the history of the county, from its settlement to the present day, should be treated through its various 
phases, so that a record, complete and impartial, may be handed down to the future. The present the age 
of progress, is reviewed, standing out in bold relief over the quiet, unostentatious olden times; it is abrilliant 
record, which is destined to live in the future; the good works of men, their magnificent enterprises, their 
lives, whether commercial or military, do not sink into oblivion, but, on the contrary, grow brighter with 
and contribute to build up a record which carries with it precedents and principles that will be advanced and 
observed when the acts of soulless men will be forgotten, and their very names hidden in obscurity. 

In the preparation of the personal sketches contained in this volume, unusual care and pains were 
taken to have them accurate, even in the smallest detail. Indeed, nothing was passed lightly over or treated 
indifferently, and we flatter ourselves that it is one of the most accurate works of its nature ever published. 
As one of the most interesting features of this work, we present the portraits of numerous representa- 
tive citizens. It has been our aim to have the prominent men of to-day, as well as the pioneers, represented 
in this department; and we congratulate ourselves on the uniformly high character of the gentlemen whose 
portraits we present. They are in the strictest sense representative men, and are selected from all the call- 
ings and professions worthy to be represented. There are others, it is true, who claim equal prominence with 
those presented, but of course it was impossible for us to give portraits of all the leading men and pioneers 
of the county. We are under great obligation to many of the noble and generous people of De Kalb 
County for kindly and material assistance in the preparation of this Album. 

CHAPMAN BROTHERS. 



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HE Father of our Country was 
born in Westmorland Co., Va., 
Feb. 22, 1732. His parents 
were Augustine and Mary 
(Ball) Washington. The family 
to which he belonged has not 
been satisfactorily traced in 
England. His great-grand- 
father, John Washington, em- 
igrated to Virginia about 1657, 
and became a prosperous 
planter. He had two sons, 
Lawrence and John. The 
former married Mildred Warner 
and had three children, John, 
Augustine and Mildred. Augus- 
tine, the father of George, first 
married Jane Butler, who bore 
him four children, two of whom, 
Lawrence and Augustine, reached 
maturity. Of six children by his 
second marriage, George was the 
eldest, the others being Betty, 
Samuel, John Augustine, Charles 
and Mildred. 
Augustine Washington, the father of George, died 
in 1743, leaving a large landed property. To his 
eldest son, Lawrence, he bequeathed an estate on 
the Patomac, afterwards known as Mount Vernon, 
and to George he left the parental residence. George 
received only such education as the neighborhood 
schools afforded, save for a short time after he left 
school, when he received private instruction in 
His spelling was rather defective. 




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Remarkable stories are told of his great physical 
strength and development at an early age. He was 
an acknowledged leader among his companions, and 
was early noted for that nobleness of character, fair- 
ness and veracity which characterized his whole life. 

When George was i4years old he had a desire to go to 
sea, and a midshipman's warrant was secured for him, 
but through the opposition of his mother the idea was 
abandoned. Two years later he was appointed 
surveyor to the immense estate of Lord Fairfax. In 
this business he spent three years in a rough frontier 
life, gaining experience which afterwards proved very 
essential to him. In 1751, though only 19 years of 
age, he was appointed adjutant with the rank of 
major in the Virginia militia, then being trained for 
active service against the French and Indians. Soon 
after this he sailed to the West Indies with his brother 
Lawrence, who went there to restore his health. They 
soon returned, and in the summer of 1752 Lawrence 
died, leaving a large fortune to an infant daughter 
who did not long survive him. On her demise the 
estate of Mount Vernon was given to George. 

Upon the arrival of Robert Dinwiddie, as Lieuten- 
ant-Governor of Virginia, in 1752, the militia was 
reorganized, and the province divided into four mili- 
tary districts, of which the northern was assigned to 
Washington as adjutant general. Shortly after this 
a very perilous mission was assigned him and ac- 
cepted, which others had refused. This was to pro- 
ceed to the French post near Lake Erie in North- 
western Pennsylvania. The distance to be traversed 
was between 500 and 600 miles. Winter was at hand, 
and the journey was to be made without military 
escort, through a territory occupied by Indians. The 



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GEORGE WASHINGTON. 







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trip was a perilous one, and several times he came near 
losing his life, yet he returned in safet) and furnished 
a full and useful report of his expedition. A regiment 
of 300 men was raised in Virginia and put in com- 
mand of Col. Joshua Fry, and Major Washington was 
commissioned lieutenant-colonel. Active war was 
then begun against the French and Indians, inwhii h 
Washington took a most important part. In the 
memorable event of July 9, 1755, known as Brad- 
dock's defeat, \\ ashington was almost the only officer 
of distinction who escaped from the calamities of the 
day with life and honor. The other aids of Braddock 
were disabled early in the action, and Washington 
alone was left in that capacity on the field. In a letter 
to his brother he says : "I had four bullets through 
my coat, and two horses shot under me, yetl escaped 
unhurt, though death was leveling my companions 
on every side." An Indian sharpshooter said he was 
not born to be killed by a bullet, for he had taken 
direct aim at him seventeen times, and failed to hit 
him. 

After having been five years in the military service, 
and vainly sought promotion in the royal army, he 
took advantage of the fall of Fort Duquesne and the 
expulsion of the- French from the valley of the Ohio, 
to resign his commission. Soon after he entered the 
Legislature, where, although not a leader, he took an 
active and important part. January 17, 1759, he 
married Mrs. Martha (1 >andridge) Custis, the wealthy 
widow of John Parke Custis. 

When the British Parliament had closed the port 
of Boston, the cry went up throughout the provinces 
that "The cause of Boston is the cause of us all." 
It was then, at the suggestion of Virginia, that a Con- 
gress of all the colonies was called to meet at Phila- 
delphia.Sept. 5, 1774, to secure their common liberties, 
peaceably if possible. To this Congress Col. Wash- 
ington was sent as a delegate. On May 10, 1775, the 
Congress re-assembled, when the hostile intentions of 
England were plainly apparent. The battles of Con- 
cord and Lexington had been fought. Among the 
first acts of this Congress was the election of a com- 
mander-in-chief of the colonial forces. This high and 
responsible office was conferred upon Washington, 
who was still a member of the Congress. He accepted 
it on June 19, but upon the express condition that he 
receive no salary. He would keep an exact account 
of expenses and expect Congress to pay them and 
nothing more. It is not the object of this sketch to 
trace the military acts of Washington, to whom the 
fortunes and liberties of the people of this country 
were so long confided. The war was conducted by 
him under every possible disadvantage, and while his 
forces often met with reverses, yet he overcame every 
icle, and after seven years of heroic devotion 
and matchless skill he gained liberty for the greatest 
nation of earth. On Dec. 23, 1783, Washington, in 
a parting address of surpassing beauty, resigned his 



commission as commander-in-chief of the army to 
to the Continental Congress sitting at Annapolis. He 
retired immediately to Mount Vernon and resumed 
his occupation as a farmer and planter, shunning all 
connection with public life. 

la February, 1 7.S9, Washington was unanimously 
elected President. In his presidential career he was 
subject to the peculiar trials incidental to a new 
government ; trials from lack of confidence on the part 
of other governments; trials from want of harmony 
between the different sections of our own country; 
trials from the impoverished condition of the country, 
owing to the war and want of credit; trials from the 
beginnings of party strife. He was no partisan. His 
clear judgment could discern the golden mean; and 
while perhaps this alone kept our government from 
sinking at the very outset, it left him exposed to 
attacks from both sides, which were often bitter and 
very annoying. 

At the expiration of his first term he was unani- 
mously re-elected. At the end of this term many 
were anxious that he be re-elected, but he absolutely 
refused a third nomination. On the fourth of March, 
1797, at the expiraton of his second term as Presi- 
dent, he returned to his home, hoping to pass there 
his few remaining years free from the annoyances of 
public life. Later in the year, however, his repose 
seemed likely to be interrupted by war with France. 
At the prospect of such a war he «.i- again urged to 
take command of the armies. He chose his sub- 
ordinate officers and left to them the charge of mat- 
ters in the field, which he superintended from his 
home. In accepting the command he made the 
reservation that he was not to be in the field until 
it was necessary. In the midst of these preparations 
his life was suddenly cut off. December 1 2, he took 
a severe cold from a ride in the rain, which, settling 
in his throat, produced inflammation, and terminated 
fatally on the night of the fourteenth. On the eigh- 
teenth his body was borne with military honors to its 
final resting place, and interred in the family vault at 
Mount Vernon. 

Of the character of Washington it is impossible to 
speak but in terms of the highest respect and ad- 
miration. The more we see of the operations of 
our government, and the more deeply we feel the 
difficulty of uniting all opinions in a common interest, 
the more highly we must estimate the force of his tal- 
ent and character, which have been able to challenge 
the reverence of all parties, and principles, and na- 
tions, and to win a fame as extended as the limits 
of the globe, and which we cannot but believe will 
be as lasting as the existence of man. 

The person of Washington was unusally tall, erect 
and well proportioned. His muscular strength was 
great. His features were of a beautiful symmetry. 
He commanded respect without any appearance of 
haughtiness, and ever serious without being dull. 



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OHN ADAMS, the second 
President and the first Vice- 
President of the United States, 
was born in Braintree ( now 
•Quincy ) ) Mass., and about ten 
*^ miles from Boston, Oct. 19, 
1735. His great-grandfather, Henry 
Adams, emigrated from England 
about 1640, with a family of eight 
sons, and settled at Braintree. The 
parents of John were John and 
Susannah (Boylston) Adams. His 
father was a farmer of limited 
means, to which he added the bus- 
iness of shoemaking. He gave his 
eldest son, John, a classical educa- 
tion at Harvard College. John 
graduated in 1755, and at once took charge of the 
school in Worcester, Mass. This he found but a 
"school of affliction," from which he endeavored to 
gain relief by devoting himself, in addition, to the 
study of law. For this purpose he placed himself 
under the tuition of the only lawyer in the town. He 
had thought seriously of the clerical profession 
but seems to have been turned from this by what he 
termed " the frightful engines of ecclesiastical coun- 
cils, of diabolical malice, and Calvanistic good nature,'' 
of the operations of which he had been a witness in 
his native town. He was well fitted for the legal 
profession, possessing a clear, sonorous voice, being 
ready and fluent of speech, and having quick percep- 
tive powers. He gradually gained practice, and in 
1764 married Abigail Smith, a daughter of a minister, 
and a lady of superior intelligence. Shortly after his 
marriage, (1765), the attempt of Parliamentary taxa- 
tion turned him from law to politics. He took initial 
steps toward holding a town meeting, and the resolu- 




tions he offered on the subject became very popular 
throughout the Province, and were adopted word for 
word by over forty different towns. He moved to Bos- 
ton in 1768, and became one of the most courageous 
and prominent advocatesof the popular cause, and 
was chosen a member of the General Court (the Leg- 
lislature) in 1770. 

Mr. Adams was chosen one of the first delegates 
from Massachusetts to the first Continental Congress, 
which met in 1774. Here he distinguished himself 
by his capacity for business and for debate, and ad- 
vocated the movement for independence against the 
majority of the members. In May, 1776, he moved 
and carried a resolution in Congress that the Colonies 
should assume the duties of self-government. He 
was a prominent member of the committee of five 
appointed June n, to prepare a declaration of inde- 
pendence. This article was drawn by Jefferson, but 
on Adams devolved the task of battling it through 
Congress in a three days debate. 

On the day after the Declaration of Independence 
was passed, while his soul was yet warm with the 
glow of excited feeling, he wrote a letter to his wife, 
which, as we read it now, seems to have been dictated 
by the spirit of prophecy. "Yesterday," he says, "the 
greatest question was decided that ever was debated 
in America; and greater, perhaps, never was or will 
be decided among men. A resolution was passed 
without one dissenting colony, ' that these United 
States are, and of right ought to be, free and inde- 
pendent states.' The day is passed. The fourth of 
July, 1776, will be a memorable epoch in the history 
of America. I am apt to believe it will be celebrated 
by succeeding generations, as the great anniversary 
festival. It ought to be commemorated as the day of 
deliverance by solemn acts of devotion to Almighty 
God. It ought to be solemnized with pomp, showa 



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JOHN ADAMS 




games, sports, guns, bells, bonfires, and illuminations 
from one end of the continent to the other, from this 
time forward for ever. You will think me transported 
with enthusiasm, but 1 am not. I am well aware of 
the toil, and blood and treasure, that it will cost to 
maintain this declaration, and support and defend 
these States; yet, through all the gloom, I can seethe 
rays of light and glory. 1 can see that the end is 
worth more than all the means; and that posterity 
will triumph, although you and I may rue, which I 
hope we shall not." 

In November, 1777. Mr- Adams was appointed a 
delegate to France and to co-operate with Bemjamin 
Franklin and Arthur Fee, who were then in Paris, in 
the endeavor to obtain assistance in arms and money 
from the French Government. This was a severe trial 
to his patriotism, as it separated him from his home, 
compelled him to cross the ocean in winter, and ex- 
posed him to great peril of capture by the British cruis- 
ers, who were seeking him. He left France June 17, 
1779. In September of the same year he was again 
chosen to go to Paris, and there hold himself in readi- 
ness to negotiate a treaty of peace and of commerce 
with Great Britian, as soon as the British Cabinet 
might be found willing to listen to such ptoposels. He 
sailed for France in November, from there he went to 
Holland, where he negotiated important loans and 
formed important commercial treaties. 

Finally a treaty of peace with England was signed 
Jan. 21, 17S3. The re-action from the excitement, 
toil and anxiety through which Mr. Adams had passed 
threw him into a fever. After suffering from a con- 
tinued fever and becoming feeble and emaciated he 
was advised to goto England to drink the waters of 
Bath. While in England, still drooping and despond- 
ing, he received dispatches from his own government 
urging the necessity of his going to Amsterdam to 
negotiate another loan. It was winter, his health was 
delicate, yet he immediately set out, and through 
storm, on sea, on horseback and foot, he made the trip. 

February 24, [785, Congress appointed Mr. Adams 
envoy to the Court of St. James. Here he met face 
to face the King of England, who had so long re- 
garded him as a n.iitor. As England did not 
condescend to appoint a minister to the United 
States, and as Mr. Adams felt that he was accom- 
plishing but little, he sought permission to return to 
his Own ntry, where he arrived in June, 1788. 

When Washington was first chosen President, John 
VI. mils, rendered illustiious by his signal services at 
home and abroad, was chosen Vice President. Again 
at the second election of Washington as President, 
Adams was chosen Vice President. In 1796, Wash- 
ington retired from public life, and Mr. Adams was 
nt, though not without much opposition. 
Serving in this office four years.he was succeeded by 
Mr. Jefferson, his opponent in politics. 

While Mr. Adams was Vice President the great 




French Revolution shook the continent of Europe, 
and it was upon this point which he was at issue with 
the majority of his countrymen led by Mr. Jefferson. 
Mr. Adams felt no sympathy with the French people 
in their struggle, for he had no confidence in their 
power of self-government, and he utterly abhored the 
classof atheist philosophers who he claimed caused it. 
On the other hand Jefferson's ij mpathieswere strongly 
enlisted in behalf of the French people. Hence or- 
iginated the alienation between these distinguished 
men, and two powerful parties were thus soon organ- 
ized, Adams at the head of the one whose sympathies 
were with England and Jefferson led the other in 
sympathy with Franc e. 

The world has seldom seen a spectacle of more 
moral beauty and grandeur, than was presented by the 
old age of Mr. Adams. The violence of party feeling 
had died away, and he had begun to receive that just 
appreciation which, to most men, is not accorded till 
after death. No one could look upon his venerable 
form, and think of what he had done and suffered, 
and how he had given up all the prime and strength 
of his life to the public good, without the deepest 
emotion of gratitude and respect. It was his peculiar 
good fortune to witness the complete success of the 
institution which he had been so active in creating and 
supporting. In 1824, his cup of happiness was filled 
to the brim, by seeing his son elevated to the highest 
station in the gift of the people. 

The fourth of July, 1826, which completed the half 
century since the signing of the Declaration of Inde- 
pendence, arrived, and there were but three of the 
signers of that immortal instrument left upon the 
earth to hail its morning light. And, as it is 
well known, on that day two of these finished their 
earthly pilgrimage, a coincidence so remarkable as 
to seem miraculous. For a few days before Mr. 
Adams had been rapidly failing, and on the morning 
of the fourth he found himself too weak to rise from 
his bed. On being requested to name a toast for the 
customary celebration of the day, he exclaimed " In- 
[11 11 \i'i \ 1 p M 1 \ ik." When the day was ushered 
in, by the ringing of bells and the firing of cannons, 
he was asked by one of his attendants if he knew 
what day it was? He replied, "O yes; it is the glor- 
ious fourth of July — God bless it — God bless you all." 
In the course of the day he said, "It is a great and 
glorious day." The last words he uttered were, 
"Jefferson survives." But he had, at one o'clock, re- 
signed his spiiit into the hands of his God. 

The personal appearance and manners of Mr. 
Adams were not particularly prepossessing. His face, 
as his portrait manifests,was intellectual ard expres- 
sive, but his figure was low and ungraceful, and his 
manners were frequently abrupt and uncourteous. 
He had neither the lofty dignity of Washington, nor 
the engaging elegance and gracefulness whieh marked 
the manners and address of Jefferson. 



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HO MAS JEFFERSON was 

born April 2, 1743, at Shad- 

gPwell, Albermarle county, Va. 

His parents were Peter and 
Jane (Randolph) Jefferson, 
the former a native of Wales, 
and the latter born in Lon- 
don. To them were born six 
daughters and two sons, of 
whom Thomas was the elder. 
When 14 years of age his 
father died. He received a 
most liberal education, hav- 
ing been kept diligently at school 
from the time he was five years of 
age. In 1760 he entered William 
and Mary College. Williamsburg was then the seat 
of the Colonial Court, and it was the obode of fashion 
a.id splendor. Young Jefferson, who was then r7 
years old, lived somewhat expensively, keeping fine 
horses, and much caressed by gay society, yet lie 
was earnestly devoted to his studies, and irreproacha- 
able in his morals. It is strange, however, under 
such influences, that he was not ruined. In the sec- 
ond year of his college course, moved by some un- 
explained inward impulse, he discarded his horses, 
society, and even his favorite violin, to which he had 
previously given much time. Heoften devoted fifteen 
hours a day to hard study, allowing himself for ex- 
en 1 se only a run in the evening twilight of a mile out 
of the city and back again. He thus attained very 
high intellectual culture, alike excellence in philoso- 
phy and the languages. The most difficult Latin and 
Greek authors he read with facility. A more finished 
scholar has seldom gone forth from college halls ; and 




there was not to be found, perhaps, in all Virginia, a 
more pureminded, upright, gentlemanly young man. 

Immediately upon leaving college he began the 
study of law. For the short time he continued in the 
practice of his profession he rose rapidly and distin- 
guished himself by his energy and accuteness as a 
iwyer. But the times called for greater action. 
The policy of England had awakened the spirit of 
resistance of the American Colonies, and the enlarged 
views which Jefferson had ever entertained, soon led 
him into active political life. In 1769 he was chosen 
a member of the Virginia House of Burgesses. In 
1772 he married Mrs. Martha Skelton, a very beauti- 
ful, wealthy and highly accomplished young widow. 

Upon Mr. Jefferson's large estate at Shadwell, there 
was a majestic swell of land, called Monticello, which 
commanded a prospect of wonderful extent and 
beauty. This spot Mr. Jefferson selected for his new 
home; and here he reared a mansion of modest yet 
elegant architecture, which, next to Mount Vernon, 
became the most distinguished resort in our land. 

In 1775 he was sent to the Colonial Congress, 
where, though a silent member, his abilities as a 
writer and a reasoner soon become known, and he 
was placed upon a number of important committees, 
and was chairman of the one appointed for the draw- 
ing up of a declaration of independence. This com- 
mittee consisted of Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, 
Benjamin Franklin, Roger Sherman and Robert R. 
Livingston. Jefferson, as chairman, was appointed 
to draw up the paper, franklin and Adams suggested 
a few verbal changes before it was submitted to Con- 
gress. On June 28, a few slight changes were made 
in it by Congress, and it was passed and signed July 
4, 1776. What must have been the feelings of that 



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THOMAS JEFFERSON. 



man — what the emotions that swelled his breast — 
who was charged with the preparation of that Dec- 
laration, which, while it made known the wrongs of 
America, was also to publish her to the world, free, 
soverign and independent. It is one of the most re- 
markable papers ever written ; and did no other effort 
of the mind of its author exist, that alone would be 
sufficient to stamp his name with immortality. 

In 1779 Mr. Jefferson was elected successor to 
Patrick Henry,:.-, Governor of Virginia. At one time 
the British officer, Tarleton, sent a secret expedition to 
Monticello, to capture the Governor. Scarcely five 
minutes elapsed after the hurried escape of Mr. Jef- 
ferson and his family, ere his mansion was in posses- 
sion of the British troops. His wife's health, never 
very good, was much injured by this excitement, and 
in the summer of 1782 she died. 

Mr. Jefferson was elected to Congress in 17S3. 
Two years later he was appointed Minister Plenipo- 
tentiary to France. Returning to the United States 
in September, 1789, he became Secretary of State 
in Washington's cabinet. This position he resigned 
) Jan. r, 1794. In 1797, he was chosen Vice Presi- 
dent, and four years later was elected President over 
Mr. Adams, with Aaron Burr as Vice President. In 
804 he was re-elected with wonderful unanimity, 
3 and George Clinton, Vice President. 
^5 The early part of Mr. Jefferson's second adminstra- 
= don was disturbed by an event which threatened the 
■ ■ tranquility and peace of the Union; this was the con- 
r spiracy of Aaron Burr. Defeated in the late election 
^ to the Vice Presidency, and led on by an unprincipled 
• ) ambition, this extraordinary man formed the plan of a 
military expedition into the Spanish territories on our 
southwestern frontier, for the purpose of forming there 
a new republic. This has been generally supposed 
was a mere pretext ; and although it has not been 
generally known what his real plans were, there is no 
doubt that they were of a far more dangerous 
character. 

In 1809, at the expiration of the second term for 
which Mr. Jefferson had been elected, he determined 
to retire from political life. For a period of nearly 
forty years, he had been continually before the pub- 
lic, and all that time had been employed in offices of 
the greatest trust and responsibility. Having thus de- 
voted the best part of his life to the service of his 
country, he now felt desirous of that rest which his 
declining years required, and upon the organization of 
the new administration, in March, T809, he bid fare- 
well forever to public life, and retired to Monticello. 

Mr. Jefferson was profuse in his hospitality. Whole 

families came in their coaches with their horses, — 

fathers and mothers, boys and girls, babies and 

nurses, — and remained three and even six months. 

) Life at Monticello, for years, resembled that at a 

1. fashionable watering-place. 

. '. ., The fourth of July, 1826, being the fiftieth anniver- 

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s.uy of the Declaration of American Independence, 
great preparations were made in every part of the 
Union for its celebration, as the nation's jubilee, and 
the citizens of Washington, to add to the solemnity 
of the occasion, invited Mr. Jefferson, as the framer, 
and one of the few surviving signers of the Declara- 
tion, to participate in their ieslivities. But -an ill- 
ness, which had been of several weeks duration, and 
had been continually increasing, compelled him to 
decline the invitation. 

On the second of July, the disease under which 
he was laboring left him, but in such a reduced 
state that his medical attendants, entertained no 
hope of his recovery. From this time he was perfectly 
sensible that his last hour was at hand. On the next 
day, which was Monday, he asked of those around 
him, the day of the month, and on being told it was 
the third of July, he expressed the earnest wish that 
he might be permitted to breathe the airof the fiftieth 
anniversary. His prayer was heard — that day, whose 
dawn was hailed with such rapture through our land, 
burst upon his eyes, and then they were closed for- 
ever. And what a noble consummation of a noble 
life! To die on that day, — the birthday of a nation,- - 
the day which his own name and his -own act had 
rendered glorious; to die amidst the rejoicings and 
festivities of a whole nation, who looked up to him, 
as the author, under God, of their greatest blessings, 
was all that was wanting to fill up the record his life. 

Almost at the same hour of his death, the kin- 
dred spirit of the venerable Adams, as if to bear 
him company, left the scene of his earthly honors. 
Hand in hand they had stood forth, the champions of 
freedom ; hand in hand, during the dark and desper- 
ate struggle of the Revolution, they had cheered and 
animated their desponding countrymen; for half a 
century they had labored together for the good of 
the country; and now hand in hand they depart. 
In their lives they had been united in the same great 
cause of liberty, and in their deaths they were not 
divided. 

In person Mr. Jefferson was tall and thin, rather 
above six feet in height, but well formed; his eyes 
were light, his hair originally red, in after life became 
white and silvery; his complexion was fair, his fore- 
head broad, and his whole countenance intelligent and 
thoughtful. He possessed great fortitude of mind as 
well as personal courage ; and his command of tem- 
per was such that his oldest and most intimate friends 
never recollected to have seen him in a passion. 
His manners, though dignified, were simple and un- 
affected, and his hospitality was so unbounded that 
all found at his house a ready welcome. In conver- 
sation he was fluent, eloquent and enthusiastic; and 
his language was remarkably pure and correct. He 
was a finished classical scholar, and in his writings is 
discernable the care with which he formed his style 
upon the best models of antiquity. 

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AMES MADISON, "Father 
of the Constitution," and fourth 

•^President of the United States, 
was born March 16, 1757, and 
died at his home in Virginia, 

^ June 28, 1836. The name of 




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FOURTH FRKS1DENT. 






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[a, James Madison is inseparably con- 
nected with most of the important 
events in that heroic period of our 
5 ^, country during which the founda- 
tions of this great republic were 
laid. He was the last of the founders 
of the Constitution of the United 
States to be called to his eternal 
reward. 

The Madison family were among 
the early emigrants to the New World, 
landing upon the shores of the Chesa- 
peake but 15 years after the settle- 
ment of Jamestown. The father of 
James Madison was an opulent 
planter, residing upon a very fine es- 
tate called "Montpelier," Orange Co., 
Va. The mansion was situated in 
the midst of scenery highly pictur- 
esque and romantic, on the west side 
of South-west Mountain, at the foot of 
It was but 25 miles from the home of 
Jefferson at Monticello. The closest personal and 
political attachment existed between these illustrious 
men, from their early youth until death. 

The early education of Mr. Madison was conducted 
mostly at home under a private tutor. At the age of 
18 he was sent to Princeton College, in New Jersey. 
Here he applied himself to study with the most im- 



Blue Ridge 





prudent zeal; allowing himself, for months, but three 
hours' sleep out of the 24. His health thus became so 
seriously impaired that he never recovered any vigor 
of constitution. He graduated in 177 1, witli a feeble 
body, with a character of utmost purity, and with a 
mind highly disciplined and richly stored with learning 
which embellished and gave proficiency to his subse- 
quent career. 

Returning to Virginia, he commenced the study of 
law and a course of extensive and systematic reading. 
This educational course, the spirit of the times in 
which he lived, and the society with which he asso- 
ciated, all combined to inspire him with a strong 
love of liberty, and to train him for his life-woik of 
a statesman. Being naturally of a religious turn of 
mind, and his frail health leading him to think that 
his life was not to be long, he directed especial atten- 
tion to theological studies. Endowed with a mind 
singularly free from passion and prejudice, and with 
almost unequalled powers of reasoning, he weighed 
all the arguments for and against revealed religion, 
until his faith became so established as never to 
be shaken. 

In the spring of 1776, when 26 years of age, he 
was elected a member of the Virginia Convention, to 
frame the constitution of the State. The next year 
(1777), he was a candidate for the General Assembly. 
He refused to .treat the whisky-loving voters, and 
consequently lost his election ; but those who had 
witnessed the talent, energy and public spirit of the 
modest young man, enlisted themselves in his behalf, 
and he was appointed to the Executive Council. 

Both Patrick Henry and Thomas Jefferson were 
Governors of Virginia while Mr. Madison remained 
member of the Council ; and their appreciation of his 



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intellectual, social and moral worth, contributed not 
a little to his subsequent eminence. In the year 
17 So, he was elected a member of the Continental 
Congress. Here lie met the most illustrious men in 
our land, and he was immediately assigned to one of 
the most conspicuous positions among them. 

For three years Mr. Madison continued in Con- 
gress, one of its most active and influential members. 
In the year 17 84, his term having expired, he was 
elected a member of the Virginia Legislature. 

No man felt more deeply than Mr. Madison the 
utter inefficiency ot the old confederacy, with no na- 
tional government, with no power to form treaties 
which would be binding, or to enforce law. There 
was not any State more prominent than Virginia in 
the declaration, that an efficient national government 
must be formed. In January, 1786, Mr. Madison 
carried a resolution through the General Assembly of 
Virginia, inviting the other States to appoint commis- 
sioners to meet in convention at Annapolis to discuss 
this subject. Five States only were represented. The 
convention, however, issued another call, drawn up 
by Mi. Madison, urging all the States to send their 
delegates to Philadelphia, in May, 17S7, to draft 
a Constitution for the United States, to take the place 
of that Confederate League. The delegates met at 
the time appointed. Every State but Rhode Island 
was represented. George Washington was chosen 
president of the convention; and the present Consti- 
tution of the United States was then and there formed. 
There was, perhaps, no mind and no pen more ac- 
tive in framing this immortal document than the mind 
and the pen of James Madison. 

The Constitution, adopted by a vote 8j to 79, was 
to be presented to the several States for acceptance. 
But grave solicitude was felt. Should it be rejected 
we should be left but a conglomeration of independent 
States, with but little power at home and little respect 
abroad. Mr. Madison was selected by the conven- 
tion to draw up an address to the people of the United 
Stales, expounding the principles of the Constitution, 
and urging its adoption. There was great opposition 
to it :ii first, but it at length triumphed over all, and 
went into effect in 1789. 

Mr. Madison was elected to the House of Repre- 
sentatives in the first Congress, and soon became the 
avowed leader of the Republican party. While in 
New York attending Congress, he met Mrs. Todd, a 
young widow of remarkable power of fascination, 
whom he married. She was in person and character 
ily, and probably no lady has thus far occupied 
so prominent a position in the very peculiar society 
which lias constituted our republican court as Mrs. 
\1 adison. 

Mr. Madison served as Secretary of State under 
; on, and at the close of his administration 
hosen President. At this time the encroach- 
ments of England had brought us to the verge of war. 



British orders in council destioyed our commerce, and 
our llag was exposed to constant insult. Mr. Madison 
was a man of peace. Scholarly in -his taste, retiring 
in his disposition, war had no charms for him. lint the 
meekest spirit can be roused. It makes one's blood 
boil, even now, to think of an American ship brought 
to, upon the ocean, by the guns of an English 1 ruiser. 
A young lieutenant steps on board and orders the 
crew to be paraded before him. With great nonchal- 
ance he selects any number whom he may please to 
designate as British subjects ; orders them down the 
ships side into his boat; and places them on the gun- 
deck of his man-of-war, to light, by compulsion, the 
battles of England. This right of search and im- 
pressment, no efforts of our Government could induce 
the British cabinet to relinquish. 

On the 1 8th of June, 181 2, President Madison gave 
his approval to an act of Congress declaring war 
against Great Britain. Notwithstanding the bitter 
hostility of the Federal party to the war, the country 
in general approved; and Mr. Madison, on the 4th 
of March, ix 1 3, was re-elected by a large majority, 
and entered upon his second term of office. This is 
not the place to describe the various adventures of 
this war on the land and on the water. Our infant 
navy then laid the foundations of its renown in grap- 
pling with the most formidable power which ever 
swept the seas. The contest commenced in earnest 
by the appearance of a British fleet, early in February, 
1813, in Chesapeake Hay, declaring nearly the whole 
coa^t of the United States under blockade. 

The Emperor of Russia offered his services as me 
ditator. America accepted ; England refused. A Brit- 
ish force of five thousand men landed on the banks 
of the Patuxet River, near its entrance into Chesa- 
peake Bay, and marched rapidly, by way of Bladens- 
burg, upon Washington. 

The straggling little city of Washington was thrown 
into consternation. The cannon of the brief conflict 
at Bladensburg echoed through the streets of the 
metropolis. The whole population fled from the city. 
The President, leaving Mrs. Madison in the White- 
House, with her carriage drawn up at the door to 
await his speedy return, hurried to meet the officers 
in a council of war. He met our troops utterly routed. 
ami he could not go back without danger of being 
( aptured. But few hours elapsed ere the Presidential 
Mansion, the Capitol, and all the public buildings in 
Washington were in flames. 

The war 1 losed after two years of fighting, and on 
Feb. 13, 1815, the treaty of peace was signed at Ghent. 

On the 4th of March, 1S17, his second term of 
office expired, and he resigned the Presidential chair 
to his friend, James Monroe. He retired to his beau- 
tiful home at Montpelier, and there passed the re- 
mainder of his days. On June 28, 1836, then at the 
1 . of 85 years, he fell asleep in death. Mrs. Madi- 
son died July 12, 1S49. 



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FIFTH PRESIDENT. 







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AMES MONROE, the fifth 
.Presidentof The United States, 
was born in Westmoreland Co., 
Va., April 28, 1758. His early 
life was passed at the place of 
nativity. His ancestors had for 
many years resided in the prov- 
ince in which he was born. When, 
at 17 years of age, in tire process 
fe of completing his education at 
William and Mary College, the Co- 
lonial Congress assembled at Phila- 
delphia to deliberate upon the un- 
just and manifold oppressions of 
Great Britian, declared the separa- 
tion of the Colonies, and promul- 
gated the Declaration of Indepen- 
dence. Had he been born ten years before it is highly 
probable that he would have been one of the signers 
of that celebrated instrument. At this time he left 
school and enlisted among the patriots. 

He joined the army when everything looked hope- 
less and gloomy. The number of deserters increased 
from day to day. The invading armies came pouring 
in ; and the tories not only favored the cause of the 
mother country, but disheartened the new recruits, 
who were sufficiently terrified at the prospect of con- 
tending with an enemy whom they had been taught 
to deem invincible. To such brave spirits as James 
Monroe, who went right onward, undismayed through 
difficulty and danger, the United States owe their 
political emancipation. The young cadet joined the 
ranks, and espoused the cause of his injured country, 
with a firm determination to live or die with her strife 





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for liberty. Firmly yet sadly he shared in, the mel- 
ancholy retreat from Harleam Heights and White 
Plains, and accompanied the dispirited army as it fled 
before its foes through New Jersey. In four months 
after the Declaration of Independence, the patriots ( » 
had been beaten in seven battles. At the battle of 
Trenton he led the vanguard, and, in the act of charg- 
ing upon the enemy he received a wound in the left 
shoulder. 

As a reward for his bravery, Mr. Monroe was pro- 
moted a captain of infantry; and, having recovered 
from his wound, he rejoined the army. He, however, 
receded from the line of promotion, by becoming an ( 1) 
officer in the staff of Lord Sterling. During the cam- 
paigns of 1777 and 1778, in the actions of Brandy- 
wine, Germantown and Monmouth, he continued 
aid-de-camp; but becoming desirous to regain his 
position in the army, he exerted himself to collect a 
regiment for the Virginia line. This scheme failed 
owing to the exhausted condition of the State. Upon 
this failure he entered the office of Mr. Jefferson, at 
that period Governor, and pursued, with considerable 
ardor, the study of common law. He did not, however, 
entirely lay aside the knapsack for the green bag; 
but on the invasions of the enemy, served as a volun- 
teer, during the two years of his legal pursuits. 

In 1782, he was elected from King George county, 
a member of the Legislature of Virginia, and by that 
body he was elevated to a seat in the Executive 
Council. He was thus honored with the confidence 
of his fellow citizens at 23 years of age; and having 
at this early period displayed some of that ability 
and aptitude for legislation, which were afterw 
employed with unremitting energy for the public j 



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he was in the succeeding year chosen a member of 
the Congress of the I failed' States. 

Deeplyas Mr. Monroe felt the imperfections of the old 
Confederacy, he was opposed to the new Constitution, 
thinking, with many others of the Republican party, 
that it gave too much power to the Central Government, 
and not enough to the individual Slates. Still he re- 
tained the esteem of his friends who were its warm 
supporters, and who, notwithstanding his opposition 
red its adoption. In 1789, he became a member 
of the United States Senate; which office he held for 
four years. Every month the line of distinction be- 
tween the two great parties which divided the nation, 
the Federal and the Republican, was growing more 
distinct. The two prominent ideas which now sep- 
arated them were, that the Republican party was in 
sympathy with France, and also in favor of such a 
strict construction of the Constitution as to give the 
Central Government as little power, and the State 
Governments as much power, as the Constitution would 
warrant. The Federalists sympathized with England, 
and were in favor of a liberal construction of the Con- 
stitution, which would give as much power to the 
Central Government as that document could possibly 
authorize. 

The leading Federalists and Republicans were 
alike noble men, consecrating all their energies to the 
good of the nation. Two more honest men or more 
patriots than John Adams the Federalist, and 
James Monroe the Republican, never breathed. In 
building up this majestic nation, which is destined 
to eclipse all< '.redan and Assyrian greatness, the com- 
bination of their antagonism was needed to create the 
light equilibrium. And yet each in his day was de- 
nounced as almost a demon. 

Washington was then President. England had es- 
poused the cause of the Bourbons against the princi- 
ples of the French Revolution. All Europe was drawn 
into the conflict. We were feeble and far away. 
Washington issued a proclamation of neutrality be- 
tween these contending powers. France had helped 
us in the struggle for our liberties. All the despotisms 
of Europe were now combined to prevent the French 
from escaping from a tyranny a thousand-fold worse 
than that which we had endured. Col. Monroe, more 
magnanimous than prudent, was anxious that, at 
whatever hazard, we should help our old allies in 
their extremity. It was the impulse of a generous 
and noble nature. He violently opposed the Pres- 
ident's proclamation as ungrateful and wanting in 
tanimity. 

Washington, who could appreciate such a character, 
developed his calm, serene, almost divine greatness, 
by appointing that very James Monroe, who was de- 
nouncing the policy of the Government, as the minister 
of that Government to the Republic of France. Mr. 
Monroe was welcomed by the National Convention 
in France with the most enthusiastic demonstrations. 



Shortly after his return to this country, Mr. Mon- 
roe was elected Governor of Virginia, and held the 
office for three years. He was again sent to France to 
co-operate with Chancellor Livingston in obtaining 
the vast territory then known as the Province of 
Louisiana, which France had but shortly before ob- 
tained from Spain. Their united efforts were suc- 
cessful. For the comparatively small sum of fifteen 
millions of dollars, the entire territory of Orleans and 
district of Louisiana were added to the United States. 
This was probably the largest transfer of real estate 
which was ever made in all the history of the world. 

From France Mr. Monroe went to England to ob- 
tain from that country some recognition of our 
rights as neutrals, and to remonstrate against those 
odious impressments of our seamen. But Eng- 
land was unrelenting. He again returned to Eng- 
land on the same mission, but could receive no 
redress. He returned to his home and was again 
chosen Governor of Virginia. This he soon resigned 
to accept the position of Secretary of State under 
Madison. While in this office war with England was 
declared, the Secretary of War resigned, and during 
these trying times, the duties of the War Department 
were also put upon him. He was truly the armor- 
bearer of President Madison, and the most efficient 
business man in his cabinet. Upon the return of 
peace he resigned the Department of War, but con- 
tinued in the office of Secretary of State until the ex- 
piration of Mr. Madison's adminstration. At the elec- 
tion held the previous autumn Mr. Monroe himself had 
been chosen President with but little opposition, and 
upon March 4, 1817, was inaugurated. Four years 
later he was elected for a second term. 

Among the important measures of his Presidency 
were the cession of Florida to the United States; the 
Missouri Compromise, and the " Monroe doctrine.'' 

This famous doctrine, since k/iown as the " Monroe 
doctrine," was enunciated by him in 1823. At that 
time the United States had recognized the independ- 
ence of the South American states, and did not wish 
to have European powers longer attempting to sub- 
due portions of the American Continent. The doctrine 
is as follows: "That we should consider any attempt 
on the part of European powers to extend their sys- 
tem to any portion of this hemisphere as dangerous 
to our peace and safety," and "that we could not 
view any interposition for the purpose of oppressing 
or controlling American governments or provinces in 
any other light than as a manifestation by European 
powers of an unfriendly disposition toward the United 
States." This doctrine immediately affected the course 
of foreign governments, and has become the approved 
sentiment of the United States. 

At the end of his second term Mr. Monroe retired 
to his home in Virginia, where he lived until 1830, 
when he went to New York to live with his son-in- 
law. In that city he died, on the 4th of July, 1831, 



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» OHN QUINCY ADAMS, the 
fig sixth President of the United 
^States, was born in the rural 
home of his honored father, 
p John Adams, in Quincy, Mass., 
7^7° on the i ith cf July, 1767. His 
mother, a woman of exalted 
worth, watched over his childhood 
during the almost constant ab- 
sence of his father. When but 
eight years of age, he stood with 
his mother on an eminence, listen- 
ing to the booming of the great bat- 
tle on Bunker's Hill, and gazing on 
upon the smoke and flames billow- 
ing up from the conflagration of 
Charlestown. 

When but eleven years old he 
took a tearful adieu of his mother, 
to sail with his father for Europe, 
through a fleet of hostile British cruisers. The bright, 
animated boy spent a year and a half in Paris, where 
his father was associated with Franklin and Lee as 
minister plenipotentiary. His intelligence attracted 
the notice of these distinguished men, and he received 
from them flattering marks of attention. 

Mr. John Adams had scarcely returned to this 
country, in 1779, ere he was again sent abroad. Again 
John Quincy accompanied his father. At Paris he 
applied himself with great diligence, for six months, 
to study; then accom pained his father to Holland, 
where he entered, first a school in Amsterdam, then 
the University at Leyden. About a year from this 
time, in 1781, when the manly boy was but fourteen 
years of age, he was selected by Mr. Dana, our min- 
ister to the Russian court, as his private secretary. 

In this school of incessant labor and of enobling 
culture he spent fourteen months, and then returned 
to Holland tli rough Sweden, Denmark, Hamburg and 
Bremen. This long journey he took alone, in the 
winter, when in his sixteenth year. Again he resumed 
his studies, under a private tutor, at Hague. Thence, 




in the spring of 1782, he accompanied his father to 
Paris, traveling leisurely, and forming acquaintance 
with the most distinguished men on the Continent; 
examining architectural remains, galleries of paintings, 
and all renowned works of art. At Paris he again 
became associated with the most illustrious men of 
all lands in the contemplations of the loftiest temporal 
themes which can engross the human mind. After 
a short visit to England he returned to Paris, and 
consecrated all his energies to study until May, 17S5, 
when he returned to America. To a brilliant young 
man of eighteen, who had seen much of the world, 
and who was familiar with the etiquette of courts, a 
residence with his father in London, under such cir- 
cumstances, must have been extremely attractive; 
but with judgment very rare in one of his age, he pre- 
ferred to return to America to complete his education 
in an American college. He wished then to study 
law, that with an honorable profession, he might be 
able to obtain an independent support.. 

Upon leaving Harvard College, at the age of twenty, 
he studied law for three years. In June, 1794, be- 
ing then but twenty-seven years of age, he was ap- 
pointed by Washington, resident minister at the 
Netherlands. Sailing from Boston in July, lie reached 
London in October, where he was immediately admit- 
ted to the deliberations of Messrs. Jay and Pinckney, 
assisting them in negotiating a commercial treaty with 
Great Britian. After thus spending a fortnight in 
London, he proceeded to the Hague. 

In July, 1797, he left the Hague to go to Portugal as 
minister plenipotentiary. On his way to Portugal, 
upon arriving in London, he met with despatches 
directing him to the court of Berlin, but requesting 
him to remain in London until he should receive his 
instructions. While waiting he was married to an 
American lady to whom he had been previously en- 
gaged, — Miss Louisa Catherine Johnson, daughter 
of Mr. Joshua Johnson, American consul in London; 
a lady endownd with that beauty and those accom- 
plishment which eminently fitted her to move in the 
elevated sphere for which she was destined. 



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He reached Berlin with his wife in November, 1797 ; 
where he remained until July, 1799, when, having ful- 
filled all the purposes ot" his mission, he solicited his 
recall. 

Sum after his return, in 1802, he was chosen to 
the Senate of Massachusetts, hum Boston, and then 
was elected Senator of the United States for six years, 
from the 4th of March, 1S04. His reputation, his 
ability and his experience, placed him immediately 
among the most prominent and influential members 
of that body. Especially did he sustain the Govern- 
ment in its measures of resistance to the encroach- 
ments of England, destroying our commerce and in- 
sultingour flag. There was no man in America more 
familiar with the arrogance of the British court upon 
these points, and no one more resolved to present 
a firm resistance. 

In 1809, Madison succeeded Jefferson in the Pres- 
idential chair, and he immediately nominated John 
Quincy Adams minister to St. Petersburg. Resign- 
ing his professorship in I larvard College, he embarked 
.11 Boston, in August, 1809. 

While in Russia, Mr. Adams was an intense stu- 
dent. He devoted his attention to the language and 
history of Russia; to the Chinese trade; to the 
European system of weights, measures, and coins; to 
the climate and astronomical observations ; while he 
kept up a familiar acquaintance with the Greek and 
Latin classics. In all the universities of Europe, a 
more accomplished scholar could scarcely be found. 
All through life the Bible constituted an important 
part of his studies. It was his rule to read five 
chapters every day. 

On the 4th of March, 1S17, Mr. Monroe took the 
Presidential chair, and immediately appointed Mr. 
Adams Secretary of State. Taking leave of his num- 
erous friends in public and private life in Europe, he 
sailed in June, 1819, for the United States. On the 
18th of August, he again crossed the threshold of his 
home in Quincy. During the eight yearsof Mr. Mon- 
roe's administration, Mr. Adams continued Secretary 
of State. 

Some time before the close of Mr. Monroe's second 
term of office, new candidates began to be presented 
for the Presidency. The friends of Mr. Adams brought 
forward his name. It was an exciting campaign. 
Party spirit wis never more bitter. Two hundred and 
sixty electoral votes were cast. Andrew Jackson re- 
ceived ninety-nine; John Quincy Adams, eighty-four; 
William H. Crawford, forty-one; Henry Clay, thirty- 
seven. As tiiere was no choice by the people, the 
question went to the House pf Representatives. Mr. 
Clay gave the vote of Kentucky to Mr. Adams, and 
he was elected. 

The friends of all the disappointed candidates now 
c niiiliined in a venomous and persistent assault upon 
Mr. Adams. There is nothing more disgraceful in 
the past history of our country than the abuse which 




was poured in one uninterrupted stream, upon this 
high-minded, upright, patriotic man. There never was 
an administration more pure in principles, more con- 
scientiously devoted to the best interests of the coun- 
try, than that of John Quincy Adams; and never, per- 
haps, was there an administration more unscrupu- 
lously and outrageously assailed. 

Mr. Adams was, to a very remarkable degree, ab- 
stemious and temperate in his habits; always rising 
early, and taking much exercise. \\ hen at his home in 
Quincy, he has been known to walk, before breakfast, 
seven miles to Boston. In Washington, it was said 
that he was the first man up in the city, lighting his 
own fire and applying himself to work in his library 
often long before dawn. 

On the 4th of March, 1829, Mr. Adams retired 
from the Presidency, and was succeeded by Andrew 
Jackson. John C. Calhoun was elected Vice Presi- 
dent. The slavery question now began to assume 
I>ortentous magnitude. Mr. Adams returned to 
Quincy and to his studies, which he pursued with un- 
abated zeal. But he was not long permitted to re- 
main in retirement. In November, 1830, he was 
elected representative to Congress. For seventeen 
years, until his death, he occupied the post as repre- 
sentative, towering above all his peers, ever ready to 
do brave battle' for freedom, and winning the title of 
" the old man eloquent." Upon taking his seat in 
the House, he announced that he should hold him- 
self bound to no party. Probably there never was a 
member more devoted to his duties. He was usually 
the first in his place in the morning, and the last to 
leave his seat in the evening. Not a measure could 
be brought forward and escape his scrutiny. The 
battle which Mr. Adams fought, almost singly, against 
the proslavery party in the Government, was sublime 
in its moral daring and heroism. For persisting in 
presenting petitions for the abolition of slavery, he 
was threatened with indictment by the grand jury, 
with expulsion from the House, with assassination; 
but no threats could intimidate him, and his final 
triumph was complete. 

It has been said of r resident Adams, that when his 
body was bent and his hair silvered by the lapse of 
fourscore years, yielding to the simple faith of a little 
child, he was accustomed to repeat every night, before 
he slept, the prayer which his mother taught him in 
his infant years.' 

On the 2istof February, 1S4S, he rose on the floor 
of Congress, with a paper in his hand, to address the 
speaker. Suddenly he fell, again stricken by paraly- 
sis, and was caught in the arms of those around him. 
For a time he was senseless, as he was conveyed to 
the sofa in the rotunda. With reviving conscious- 
ness, he opened his eyes, looked calmly around and 
said " This is ///,■ end of earth .-"then after a moment's 
pause he added, "'7 am content'' These were the 
last words of the grand "old Man Eloquent." 



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NDREW JACKSON, the 
seventh President of the 
" United States, was born in 
Waxhaw settlement, N. C, 
March 15, 1767, a few days 
after his father's death. His 
parents were poor emigrants 
from Ireland, and took up 
their abode in Waxhaw set- 
tlement, where they lived in 
deepest poverty. 
Andrew, or Andy, as he was 
universally called, grew up a very 
rough, rude, turbulent boy. His 
features were coarse, his form un- 
gainly; and there was but very 
little in his character, made visible, which was at- 
tractive. 

When only thirteen years old he joined the volun- 
teers of Carolina against the British invasion. In 
1781, he and his brother Robert were captured and 
imprisoned for a time at Camden. A British officer 
ordered him to brush his mud-spattered boots. " I am 
a prisoner of war, not your servant," was the reply of 
the dauntless boy. 

The brute drew his sword, and aimed a desperate 
blow at the head of the helpless young prisoner. 
Andrew raised his hand, and thus received two fear- 
ful gashes, — one on the hand and the other upon the 
head. The officer then turned to his brother Robert 
with the same demand. He also refused, and re- 
ceived a blow from the keen-edged sabre, which quite 
disabled him, and which probably soon after caused 
his death. They suffered much other ill-treatment, and 
were finally stricken with the small-pox. Their 
mother was successful in obtaining their exchange, 
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and took her sick boys home. After a long illness 
Andrew recovered, and the death of his mother soon 
left him entirely friendless. 

Andrew supported himself in various ways, such as 
working at the saddler's trade, teaching school and 
clerking in a general store, until 1784, when he 
entered a law office at Salisbury, N. C. He, however, 
gave more attention to the wild amusements of the 
times than to his studies. In 1788, he was appointed 
solicitor for the western district of North Carolina, of 
which Tennessee was then a part. This involved 
many long and tedious journeys amid dangers of 
every kind, but Andrew Jackson never knew fear, 
and the Indians had no desire to repeat a skirmish 
with the Sharp Knife. 

In 1 79 1, Mr. Jackson was married to a woman who 
supposed herself divorced from her former husband. 
Great was the surprise of both parties, two years later, 
to find that the conditions of the divorce had just been 
definitely settled by the first husband. The marriage 
ceremony was performed a second time, but the occur- 
rence was often used by his enemies to bring Mr. 
Jackson into disfavor. 

During these years he worked hard at his profes- 
sion, and frequently had one or more duels on hand, 
one of which, when he killed Dickenson, was espec- 
ially disgraceful. 

In January, 1796, the Territory of Tennessee then 
containing nearly eighty thousand inhabitants, the 
people met in convention at Knoxville to frame a con- 
stitution. Five were sent from each of the eleven 
counties. Andrew Jackson was one of the delegates. 
The new State was entitled to but one member in 
the National House of Representatives. Andrew Jack- 
son was chosen that member. Mounting his horse he 
rode to Philedelphia, where Congress then held its 



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ANDREW JACKSON. 






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ins, —a distance of about eight hundred miles. 

Jackson was an earnest advocate of the Demo- 
cratic party. Jefferson was his idol. He admired 
Bonaparte, loved France and hated England. As Mr. 
[ackson took his seat, Gen. Washington, whose 
second term of office was then expiring, delivered his 
last speech to Congress. A committee drew up a 
complimentary address in reply. Andrew Jackson 
did not approve of the address, and was one of the 
twelve who voted against it. He was not willing to 
say that Gen. Washington's adminstration had been 
" wise, firm and patriotic." 

Mr. Jackson was elected to the United States 
Senate in 1797, but soon resigned and returned home. 
Soon after lie was chosen Judge of the Supreme Court 
of his State, which position he held for six years. 

When the war of 1S12 with Great Britian com- 
menced, Madison occupied the Presidential chair. 
Aaron Burr sent word to the President that there was 
an unknown man in the West, Andrew Jackson, who 
would do credit to a commission if one were con- 
ferred upon him. Just at that time Gen. Jackson 
offered his services and those of twenty-five hundred 
volunteers. His offer was accepted, and the troops 
were assembled at Nashville. 

As the British were hourly expected to make an at- 
tack upon New Orleans, where Gen. Wilkinson was 
in command, he was ordered to descend the river 
with fifteen hundred troops to aid Wilkinson. The 
expedition reached Natchez; and after a delay of sev- 
eral weeks there, without accomplishing anything, 
the men were ordered back to their homes. But the 
energy Gen. Jackson had displayed, and his entire 
devotion to the comrfort of his soldiers, won him 
golden opinions; and he became the most popular 
111.111 in the State. It was in this expedition that his 
toughness gave him the nickname of "Old Hickory." 

Soon after this, while attempting to horsewhip Col. 
Thomas II. Benton, for a remark that gentleman 
made about his taking a part as second in a duel, in 
which a younger brother of Benton's was engaged, 
he received two severe pistol wounds. While he was 
lingering upon a bed of suffering news came that the 
Indians, who had combined under Tecumseh from 
Florida to the Lakes, to exterminate the white set- 
tlers, were committing the most awful ravages. De- 
cisive action became necessary. Gen. Jackson, with 
his fractured bone just beginning to heal, his arm in 
a sling, and unable to mount his horse without assis- 
tance, gave his amazing energies to the raising of an 
army to rendezvous at Fayettesvillc, Alabama. 

The Creek Indians had established a strong fort on 
one of the bends of the Tallapoosa River, near the cen- 
I Alabama, about fifty miles below Fort Strother. 
With an army of two thousand men, Gen. Jackson 
traversed the pathless wilderness in a march of eleven 
He reached their foit. called Tohopeka or 
Horse-shoe, on the 27th of March. 1814. The bend 



of the river enclosed nearly one hundred acres of 
tangled forest and wild ravine. Across the narrow 
neck the Indians had constructed a formidable breast- 
work of logs and brush. Here nine hundred warriors, 
with an ample suplyof arms were assembled. 

The fort was stormed. The fight was utterly des- 
perate. Not an Indian would accept of quarter. When 
bleeding and dying, they would fight those who en- 
deavored to spare their lives. From ten in the morn- 
ing until dark, the battle raged. The carnage was 
awful and revolting. Some threw themselves into the 
river; but the unerring bullet struc k their heads as 
they swam. Nearly everyone of the nine hundred war- 
rios were killed A few probably, in the night, swam 
the river and escaped. This ended the war. The 
power of the Creeks was broken forever. This bold 
plunge into the wilderness, with its terriffic slaughter. 
so appalled the savages, that the haggard remnants 
of the bands came to the camp, begging lor pen 

This closing of the Creek war enabled us to con- 
centrate all our militia upon the British, who were the 
allies of the Indians No man of less resolute will 
than Cen. Jackson could have conducted this Indian 
campaign to so successful an issue Immediately he 
was appointed major-general. 

Late in August, with an army of two thousand 
men, on a rushing march, Cen. Jackson came to 
Mobile. A British fleet came from Pensacola, landed 
a force upon the beach, anchored near the little fort, 
and from both ship and shore commenced a furious 
assault. The battle was long and doubtful. At length 
one of the ships was blown, up and the rest retired. 

Garrisoning Mobile, where he had taken his little 
army, he moved his troops to New Orleans, 
And the battle of New Orleans which soon ensued, 
was in reality a very arduous campaign. This won 
for Cen. Jackson an imperishable name. Here his 
troops, which numbered about four thousand men, 
won a signal victory over the British army of about 
nine thousand. His loss was but thirteen, while the 
loss of the British was two thousand six hundred. 

The name of Cen. Jackson soon began to be men- 
tioned in connection with the Presidency, but, in 1S24, 
he was defeated by Mr. Adams. He was, however, 
successful in the election of 182S, and was re-elected 
for a second term in 1832. In 1829, just before he 
assumed the reins of the government, he met with 
the most terrible affliction of his life in the death of 
his wife, whom he had loved with a devotion which has 
perhaps never been surpassed. From the shock of 
her death he never recovered. 

His administration was one of the most memorable 
in the annals of our country; applauded by one party, 
condemned by the other. No man had more bitter 
enemies or warmer friends. At the expiration of his 
two terms of office he retired to the Hermitage, where 
he died June 8, 1845. The last years of Mr. Jack- 
son's life were that of a devoted Christian man. 




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EIGHTH PRESIDENT. 



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ARTIN VAN BUREN, the 
eighth President of the 
United States, was born at 
Kinderhook, N. Y., Dec. 5, 
1782. He died at the same 
place, July 24, 1862. His 
body rests in the cemetery 
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high, bearing a simple inscription 
about half way up on one face. 
v The lot is unfenced, unbordered 
or unbounded by shrub or flower. 

There is but little in the life of Martin Van Buren 
of romantic interest. He fought no battles, engaged 
in no wild adventures. Though his life was stormy in 
political and intellectual conflicts, and he gained many 
signal victories, his days passed uneventful in those 
incidents which give zest to biography. His an- 
cestors, as his name indicates, were of Dutch origin, 
and were among the earliest emigrants from Holland 
to the banks of the Hudson. His father was a farmer, 
residing in the old town of Kinderhook. His mother, 
also of Dutch lineage, was a woman of superior intel- 
ligence and exemplary piety. 

He was decidedly a precocious boy, developing un- 
usual activity, vigor and strength of mind. At the 
age of fourteen, he had finished his academic studies 
in his native village, and commenced the study of 
law. As he had not a collegiate education, seven 
years of study in a law-office were required of him 
before he could be admitted to the bar. Inspired with 
a lofty ambition, and conscious of his powers, he pur- 
sued his studies with indefatigable industry. After 
spending six years in an office in his native village, | 



he went to the city of Mew York, and prosecuted his 
studies for the seventh year. 

In 1803, Mr. Van Buren, then twenty-one years of 
age, commenced the practice of law in his native vil- 
lage. The great conflict between the Federal and 
Republican party was then at its height. Mr. Van 
Buren was from the beginning a politician. He had, 
perhaps, imbibed that spirit while listening to the 
many discussions which had been carried on in his * 
father's hotel. He was in cordial sympathy with ' 
Jefferson, and earnestly and eloquently espoused the == 
cause of State Rights ; though at that time the Fed- V* 



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eral party held the supremacy both in his town 
and State. 

His success and increasing ruputation led him, 
after six years of practice, to remove to Hudson, the 
county seat of his county. Here he spent seven years, 
constantly gaining strength by contending in the 
courts with some of the ablest men who have adorned 
the bar of his State. 

Just before leaving Kinderhook for Hudson, Mr. 
Van Buren married a lady alike distinguished for 
beauty and accomplishments. After twelve short 
years she sank into the grave, the victim of consump- 
tion, leaving her husband and four sons to weep over 
her loss. For twenty-five years, Mr. Van Buren was 
an earnest, successful, assiduous lawyer. The record 
of those years is barren in items of public interest. 
In 1 81 2, when thirty years of age, he was chosen to 
the State Senate, and gave his strenuous support to f ^. v 
Mr. Madison's adminstration. In 1815, he was ap- j 
pointed Attorney-General, and the next year moved 
to Albany, the capital of the State. '> 

While he was acknowledged as one of the most ' 
prominent leaders of the Democratic party, he had "\ 




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MARTIN VAN 13 U REN. 



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the moral courage to avow that true democracy did 
not require that " universal suffrage" which admits 
the vile, the degraded, the ignorant, to the right of 
nil- the State. In true consistency with his 
democratic principles, he contended that, while the 
path leading to the privilege of voting should he open 
to every man without distinction, no one should he 
invested with that sacred prerogative, unless he were 
in some degree qualified for it by intelligence, virtue 
ami some property interests in the welfare of the 
State. 

In 1 82 i he was elected a member of the United 
States Senate; and in the same year, he took a seat 
in the convention to revise the constitution of his 
native State. His course in this convention secured 
the approval of men of all parties. No one could 
doubt the singleness of his endeavors to promote the 
interests of all classes in the community. In the 
Senate of the United Suites, he rose at once to a 
conspicuous position as an active and useful legislator. 

In 1827, John Quincy Adams being then in the 
Presidential chair, Mr. Van Buren was re-elected to 
the Senate. He had been from the beginning a de- 
termined opposer of the Administration, adopting the 
"State Rights" view in opposition to what was 
deemed the Federal proclivities of Mr. Adams. 

Soon after this, in 1828, he was chosen Governorof 
the State of New York, and accordingly resigned his 
seat in the Senate. ' Probably no one in the United 
States contributed so much towards ejecting John Q. 
Adams from the Presidential chair, and placing in it 
Andrew Jackson, as did Martin Van Buren. Whether 
entitled to the reputation or not, he certainly was re- 
garded throughout the United States as one of the 
most skillful, sagacious and cunning of politicians. 
It was supposed that no one knew so well as lie how 
to touch the secret springs of action; how to pull all 
the wires to put his machinery in motion; and how to 
organize a political army which would, secretly and 
stealthily accomplish the most gigantic results. liy 
powers it is said that he outwitted Mr. Adams, 
Mr. Clay, Mr. Webster, and secured results which 
few thought then could be accomplished. 

When Andrew Jackson was elected President he 
appointed Mr. Van Buren Secretary of State. This 
position he resigned in 1831, and was immediately 
appointed Minister to England, where he went the 
same autumn. The Senate, however, when it met, 
refused to ratify the nomination, and he returned 




home, apparently untroubled ; was nominated Vice 
President in the place of Calhoun, at the re-election 
of President Jackson; and with smiles for all and 
frowns for none, he took his place at the head of that 
Senate which had refused to confirm his nomination 
as ambassador. 

His rejection by the Senate roused all the zeal of 
President Jackson in behalf of his repudiated favor- 
ite; and this, probably more than any other cause, 
secured his elevation to the chair of the Chief Execu- 
tive. On the 20th of May, 1836, Mr. Van Buren re- 
ceived the Democratic nomination to succeed ('.en. 
Jackson as President of the United States. He was 
elected by a handsome majority, to the delight of the 
retiring President. " Leaving New York out of the 
canvass," >.iys Mr. Barton, "the election of Mr. Van 
Buren to the Presidency was as much the act of Gen. 
Jackson as though the Constitution had conferred 
upon him the power to appoint a successor." 

His administration was filled with exciting events. 
The insurrection in Canada, which threatened to in- 
volve this country in war with England, the agitation 
of the slavery question, and finally the great commer- 
cial panic which spread over the country, all were 
trials to his wisdom. The financial distress was at- 
tributed to the management of the Democratic party, 
and brought the President into such disfavor that he 
failed of re-election. 

With the exception of being nominated for the 
Presidency by the "Free Soil" Democrats, in 184S, 
Mr. Van Buren lived quietly upon his estate until 
his death. 

He had ever been a prudent man, of frugal habits, 
and living within his income, had now fortunately a 
competence for his declining years. His unblemished 
character, his commanding abilities, his unquestioned 
patriotism, and the distinguished positions which he 
had occupied in the government of our country, se- 
cured to him not only the homage of his party, but 
the respect ot the whole community. It was on the 
4th of March, [841, that Mr. Van Buren retired from 
the presidency. From his fine estate at Lindenwald 
he still exerted a powerful influence upon the politics 
of the country. From this time until his death, on 
the 24th of July, 1862, at the age of eighty years, he 
resided at Lindenwald, a gentleman of leisure, of 
culture and of wealth; enjoying in a healthy old 
age, probably far more happiness than he had before 
experienced amid the stormy scenes of his active life. 



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NINTH PRESIDENT. 




WILLI A Al HENRY HARRIS OX 





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ILLIAM HENRY HARRI- 
SON, the ninth President of 
the United States, was born 
at Berkeley, Va., Feb. 9, 1773. 
His father, Benjamin Harri- 
/ son, was in comparatively op- 
' ulent circumstances, and was 
one of the most distinguished 
men of his day. He was an 
intimate friend of George 
Washington, was early elected 
a member of the Continental 
Congress, and was conspicuous 
among the patriots of Virginia in 
resisting the encroachments of the 
British crown. In the celebrated 
Congress of 1775, Benjamin Har- 
rison and John Hancock were 
both candidates for the office of 
speaker. 

Mr Harrison was subsequently 
chosen Governor of Virginia, and 
was twice re-elected. His son, 
i William Henry, of course enjoyed 

in childhood all the advantages which wealth and 
intellectual and cultivated society could give. Hav- 
ing received a thorough common-school education, he 
entered Hampden Sidney College, where he graduated 
with honor soon after the death of his father. He 
then repaired to Philadelphia to study medicine under 
the instructions of Dr. Rush and the guardianship of 
Robert Morris, both of whom were, with his father, 
signers of the Declaration of Independence. 

Upon the outbreak of the Indian troubles, and not- 
withstanding the remonstrances of his friends, he 
abandoned his medical studies and entered the army, 







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dent 'Washington. He was then but 19 years old. 
From that time he passed gradually upward in rank 
until he became aid to General Wayne, after whose 
death lie resigned his commission. He was then ap- 
pointed Secretary of the North-western Territory. This 
Territory was then entitled to but one member in 
Congress and Capt. Harrison was chosen to fill that 
position. 

In the spring of 1800 the North-western Territory 
was divided by Congress into two portions. The 
eastern portion, comprising the region now embraced 
in the State of Ohio, was called '' The Territory 
north-west of the Ohio." The western portion, which 
included what is now called Indiana, Illinois and 
Wisconsin, was called the "Indiana Territory." Wil- S^ 
liam Henry Harrison, then 27 years of age, was ap- *- 
pointed by John Adams, Governor of the Indiana ( \ 
Territory, and immediately after, also Governor of 
Upper Louisiana. He was thus ruler over almost as 
extensive a realm as any sovereign upon the globe. He 
was Superintendent of Indian Affairs, and was in- 
vested with powers nearly dictatorial over the now 
rapidly increasing white population. The abilitv and 
fidelity with which he discharged these responsible £ 
duties may be inferred from the fact that he was four 
times appointed to this office — first by John Adams, 
twice by Thomas Jefferson and afterwards by Presi- 
dent Madison. 

When he began his adminstration there were but 
three white settlementsin that almost boundless region, 
now crowded with cities and resounding with all the 
tumult of wealth and traffic. One of these settlements 
was on the Ohio, nearly opposite Louisville; one at 
Vincennes, on the Wabash, and the thiid a French 
settlement. 

The vast wilderness over which Gov. Harrison 



having obtained a commission of Ensign from Presi- I reigned was filled with many tribes of Indians. About 



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WILLIAM HENRY HARRISON. 



the year 1806, two extraordinary men, twin brothers, 
of the Shawnese tribe, rose among them. One of 
these was called lYvumseh, or "The Crouching 
Panther;" the other, < Hliwacheca, or "The Prophet." 
Tecumseh was not only an Indian warrior, but a man 
of great sagacity, far-reaching foresight and indomit- 
able perseverance in any enterprise in which he might 
engage. He was inspired with the highest enthusiasm, 
and had long regarded with dread and with hatred 
the encroachment of the whites upon the hunting- 
ids of his fathers. His brother, the Prophet, was 
an orator, who could sway the feelings of the untutored 
Indian as the gale tossed the tree-tops beneath which 
they dwelt. 

but the Prophet was not merely an orator: he was, 
in the superstitious minds of the Indians, invested 
with the superhuman dignity of a medicine-man or a 
magician. With an enthusiasm unsurpassed by Peter 
the Hermit rousing Europe to the crusades, he went 
from tribe to tribe, assuming that he was specially sent 
by the Great Spirit. 

Gov. Harrison made many attempts to conciliate 
the Indians, but at last the war came, and at Tippe- 
canoe the Indians were routed with great slaughter. 
October 28, 1812, his army began its march. When 
near the Prophet's town three Indians of rank made 
their appearance tind inquired why Gov. Harrison was 
approaching them in so hostile an attitude. After a 
short conference, arrangements were made for a meet- 
ing the next day, to agree upon terms of peace. 

But Gov. Harrison was too well acquainted with 
the Indian character to be deceived by such protes- 
tations. Selecting a favorable spot for his night's en- 
campment; he took every precaution against surprise. 
His troops were posted in a hollow square, and slept 
upon their arms. 

The troops threw themselves upon the ground for 
rest; but every man had his accourtrements on, his 
loaded musket by his side, and his bayonet fixed. The 
wakeful Governor, between three and four o'clock in 
the morning, had risen, and was sitting in conversa- 
tion with his aids by the embers of a waning fire. It 
was a chill, cloudy morning with a drizzling rain. In 
the darkness, the Indians had crept as near as possi- 
ble, and just then, with a savage yell, rushed, with all 
the desperation which superstition and passion most 
highly inflamed could give, upon the left flank of the 
little army. The savages' had been amply provided 
with guns and ammunition by the English. Their 
war-whoop was accompaincd by a shower of bullets. 

The camp-fires were instantly extinguished, as the 
light aided the Indians in their aim. With hide- 
ous yells, the Indian bands rushed on, not doubting a 
speedy and an entire victory. But Gen. Harrison's 
troops stood as immovable as the rocks around them 
until day dawned : they then made a simultaneous 
charge with the bayonet, and swept every thing be- 
fore them, and completely routing the foe. 



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Gov. Harrison now had all his energies tasked 
to the utmost. The British descending from the Can - 
adas, were of themselves a very formidable force ; but 
with their savage allies, rushing like wolves from the 
forest, searching out every remote farm-house, burn- 
ing, plundering, scalping, torturing, the wide frontier 
was plunged into a state of consternation which even 
the most vivid imagination can but faintly conceive. 
The war-whoop was resounding everywhere in the 
forest. The horizon was illuminated with the conflagra- 
tion of the cabins of the settlers. Gen Hull had made 
the ignominious surrender of his forces at Detroit. 
Under these despairing circumstances, Gov. Harrison 
was appointed by President Madison commander-in- 
chief of the North-western army, with orders to retake 
Detroit, and to protect the frontiers. 

It would be difficult to place a man in a situation 
demanding more energy, sagacity and courage; but 
General Harrison was found equal to the position, 
and nobly and triumphantly did he meet all the re- 
sponsibilities. 

He won the love of his soldiers by always sharing 
with them their fatigue. His whole baggage, while 
pursuing the foe up the Thames, was carried in a 
valise; and his bedding consisted of a single blanket 
lashed over his saddle. Thirty-five British officers, 
his prisoners of war, supped with him after the battle. 
The only fare he could give them was beef roasted 
before the fire, without bread or salt. 

In 1 8 16, Gen. Harrison was chosen a member of 
the National House of Representatives, to represent 
the District of Ohio. In Congress he proved an 
active member; and whenever he spoke, it was with 
force of reason and power of eloquence, which arrested 
the attention of all the members. 

In 1819, Harrison was elected to the Senate of 
Ohio; and in 1S24, as oneof the presidential electors 
of that State, he gave his vote for Henry Clay. The 
same year he was chosen to the United States Senate. 

In r836, the friends of Gen. Harrison brought him 
forward as a candidate for the Presidency against 
Van Buren, but he was defeated. At the close of 
Mr. Van Buren's term, he was re-nominated by his 
party, and Mr. Harrison was unanimously nominated 
by the Whigs, with John Tylerforthe Vice Presidency. 
The contest was very animated. Gen. Jackson 
all his influence to prevent Harrison's election ; but 
his triumph was signal. 

The cabinet which he formed, with Daniel Webster 
at its head as Secretary of State, was one of the most 
brilliant with which any President had ever been 
surrounded. Never were the prospects of an admin- 
istration more flattering, or the hopes of the country 
more sanguine. In the midst of these bright and 
joyous prospects, Gen. Harrison was seized by a 
pleurisy-fever and after a few days of violent sick- 
ness, died on the 4th of April ; just one month after 
his inauguration as President of the United States. 



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i OHN TYLER, the tenth 
|L l'residentof the United States. 
He was born in Charles-city 
Co., Va., March 29, 1790. He 
was the favored child of af- 
fluence and high social po- 
sition. At the early age of 
twelve, John entered William 
and Mary College and grad- 
uated with much honor when 
but seventeen years old. After 
graduating, he devoted him- 
self with great assiduity to the 
study of law, partly with his 
father and partly with Edmund 
Randolph, one of the most distin- 
guished lawyers of Virginia. 

At nineteen years of age, lie 
commenced the practice of law. 
His success was rapid and aston- 
ishing. It is said that three 
months had not elapsed ere there 
was scarcely a case on the dock- 
et of the court in which he was 
not retained. When but twenty-one years of age, he 
was almost unanimously elected to a seat in the State 
Legislature. He connected himself with the Demo- 
cratic party, and warmly advocated the measures of 
Jefferson and Madison. For five successive years he 
was elected to the Legislature, receiving nearly the 
unanimous vote or his county. 

When but twenty-six years of age, he was elected 
a member of Congress. Here he acted earnestly and 
ably with the Democratic party, opposing a national 
bank, internal improvements by the General Govern- 



ment, a protective tariff, and advocating a strict con- 
struction of the Constitution, and the most careful 
vigilance over State rights. His labors in Congress 
were so arduous that before the close of his second 
term he found it necessary to resign and retire to his 
estate in Charles-city Co., to recruit his health. He, 
however, soon after consented to take his seat in the 
State Legislature, where his influence was powerful 
in promoting public works of great utility. With a 
reputation thus canstantly increasing, he was chosen 
by a very large majority of votes, Governor of his 
native State. His administration was signally a suc- 
cessful one. His popularity secured his re-election. 

John Randolph, a brilliant, erratic, half-crazed 
man, then represented Virginia in the Senate of the 
United States. A portion of the Democratic party 
was displeased with Mr. Randolph's wayward course, 
and brought forward John Tyler as his opponent, 
considering him the only man in Virginia of sufficient 
popularity to succeed against the renowned orator of 
Roanoke. Mr. Tyler was the victor. 

In accordance with his professions, upon taking his 
seat in the Senate, he joined the ranks of the opposi- 
tion. He opposed the tariff; he spoke against and 
voted against the bank as unconstitutional ; he stren- 
uously opposed all restrictions upon slavery, resist- 
ing all projects of internal improvements by the Gen- 
eral Government, and avowed his sympathy with Mr. 
Calhoun's view of nullification ; he declared that Gen. 
Jackson, by his opposition to the nullifiers, had 
abandoned the principles of the Democratic party. 
Such was Mr. Tyler's record" in Congress, — a record 
in perfect accordance with the principles which he 
had always avowed. 

Returning to Virginia, he resumed the practice of 
his profession. There was a split in the Democratic 



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party. His friends still regarded him as a true Jef- 
fersonian, gave him a dinner, and showered compli- 
ments upon him. He had now attained the age of 
liiii\ -six. His career had been very brilliant. In con- 
sequence of his devotion to public business, his pri- 
vate affairs had fallen into some disorder; and it was 
not without satisfaction that he resumed the practice 
ot law, and devoted himself to the culture of his plan- 
tation. Soon after this he removed to Williamsburg, 
for the better education of his children ; and he again 
took his scat in the Legislature of Virginia. 

By the Southern Whigs, he was sent to the national 
convention at Harrisburg to nominate a President in 
1839. The majority of votes were given to Gen. Har- 
rison, a genuine Whig, much to the disappointment of 
the South, who wished for Henry Clay. To concili- 
ate the Southern Whigs and to secure their vote, the 
convention then nominated John Tyler for Vice Pres- 
ident. It was well known that he was not in sympa- 
thy with the Whig party in the Notth : but the Vice 
President has but very little power in the Govern- 
ment, his main and almost only duty being to pre- 
side over the meetings of the Senate. Thus it hap- 
pened that a Whig President, and, in reality, a 
Democratic Vice President were chosen. 

In 1 841, Mr. Tyler was inaugurated Vice Presi- 
dent of the United States. In one short month from 
that time, President Harrison died, and Mr. Tyler 
thus found himself, to his own surprise and that of 
the whole Nation, an occupant of the Presidential 
ch iir. This was a new test of the stability of our 
institutions, as it was the first time in the history of our 
country that such an event had occured. Mr. Tyler 
was at home in Williamsburg when he received the 
unexpected tidings of the death of President Harri- 
son, lie hastened to Washington, and on the 6th of 
April was inaugurated to the high and responsible 
office. He was placed in a position of exceeding 
delicacy and difficulty. All his long life he had been 
Opposed to the main principles of the party which had 
brought him into power. He had ever been a con- 
sistent, honest man, with an unblemished record. 
Gen. Harrison had selected a Whig cabinet. Should 
he retain them, and thus surround himself with coun- 
sellors whose views were antagonistic to his own? or, 
on the other hand, should he turn against the party 
which had elected him and select a cabinet in har- 
mony with himself, and which would oppose all those 
views which the Whigs deemed essential to the pub- 
lic welfare? This was his fearful dilemma. He in- 
vited the cabinet which President -Harrison had 
selected to retain their seats. He reccommended a 
day of fasting and prayer, that God would guide and 
bless us. 

The Whigs carried through Congress a bill for the 
incorporation of a fiscal bank of the United States. 
The President, after ten days' delay, returned it with 
his veto. lie suggested, however, that he would 




approve of a bill drawn up upon such a plan as he 
proposed. Such a bill was accordingly prepared, and 
privately submitted to him. He gave it his approval. 
It was passud without alteration, and he sent it back 
with his veto. Here commenced the open rupture, 
li is said that Mr. Tyler was provoked to this meas- 
ure by a published letter from the Hon. John M. 
Botts, a distinguished Virginia Whig, who severely 
touched the pride of the President. 

The opposition now exultingly received the Presi- 
dent into their arms. The party which elected him 
denounced him bitterly. All the members of his 
cabinet, excepting Mr. Webster, resigned. The Whigs 
of Congress, both the Senate and the House, held a 
meeting and issued an address to the people of the 
United States, proclaiming that all political alliance 
between the Whigs and President Tyler were at 
an end. 

Still the President attempted to conciliate. He 
appointed a new cabinet of distinguished Whigs and 
Conservatives, carefully leaving out all strong party 
men. Mr. Webster soon found it necessary to resign, 
forced out by the pressure of his Whig friends. Thus 
the four years of Mr. Tyler's unfortunate administra- 
tion passed sadly away. No one was satisfied. The 
land was filled with murmurs and vituperation. Whigs 
and Democrats alike assailed him. More and more, 
however, he brought himself into sympathy with his 
old friends, the Democrats, until atthe close of his term, 
he gave his whole influence to the support of Mr. 
Polk, the Democratic candidate for his successor. 

On the 4th of March, 1845, he retired from the 
harassments of office, to the regret of neither party, and 
probably to his own unspeakable relief. His first wife, 
Miss Letitia Christian, died in Washington, in 1842; 
and in June, 1844, President Tylei was again married, 
at New York, to Miss Julia Gardiner, a young lady of 
many personal and intellectual accomplishments. 

The remainder of his days Mr. Tyler passed mainly 
in retirement at his beautiful home, — Sherwood For- 
est, Charles-city Co., Va. A polished gentleman in 
his manners, richly furnished with information from 
books and experience in the world, and possessing 
brilliant powers of conversation, his family circle was 
the scene of unusual attractions. With sufficient 
means for the exercise of a generous hospitality, he 
might have enjoyed a serene old age with the few 
friends who gathered around him, were it not for the 
storms of civil war which his own principles and 
policy had helped to introduce. 

When the great Rebellion rose, which the State- 
rights and nullifying doctrines of Mr. John C. Cal- 
houn had inaugurated, President Tyler renounced his 
allegiance to the United States, and joined the Confed- 
erates. He was chosen a member of their Congress; 
and while engaged in active measures to destroy, by 
force of arms, the Government over which he had 
once presided, he was taken sick and soon died. 



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AMES K. POLK, the eleventh 

j Si President of the United States, 

was born in Mecklenburg Co., 

N. C, Nov. 2, 1795. His par- 

» ents were Samuel and Jane 

(Knox) Polk, the former a son 

of Col. Thomas Polk, who located 

at the above place, as one of the 

first pioneers, in 1735. 

In the year 1006, with his wife 
and children, and soon after fol- 
lowed by most of the members of 
the Polk famly, Samuel Polk emi- 
grated some two or three hundred 
miles farther west, to the rich valley 
of the Duck River. Here in the 
midst of the wilderness, in a region 
which was subsequently called Mau- 
ry Co., they reared their log huts, 
and established their homes. In the 
hard toil of a new farm in the wil- 
derness, James K. Polk spent the 
early years of his childhood and 
youth. His father, adding the pur- 
suit of a surveyor to that of a farmer, 
gradually increased in wealth until 
he became one of the leading men of the region. His 
mother was a superior woman, of strong common 
sense and earnest piety. 

Very early in life, James developed a taste for 
reading and expressed the strongest desire to obtain 
a liberal education. His mother's training had made 
him methodical in his habits, had taught him punct- 
uality and industry, and had inspired him with lofty 
principles of morality. His health was frail ; and his 
father, fearing that he might not be able to endure a 




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sedentary life, got a situation for him behind the 
counter, hoping to fit him for commercial pursuits. 

This was to James a bitter disappointment. He 
had no taste for these duties, and his daily tasks 
were irksome in the extreme. He remained in this 
uncongenial occupation but a few weeks, when at his 
earnest solicitation his father removed him, and made 
arrangements for him to prosecute his studies. Soon 
after he sent him to Murfreesboro Academy. With 
ardor which could scarcely be surpassed, he pressed 
forward in his studies, and in less than two and a half 
years, in the autumn of 1S15, entered the sophomore 
class in the University of North Carolina, at Chapel 
Hill. Here he was one of the most exemplary of 
scholars, punctual in every exercise, never allowing 
himself to be absent from a recitation or a religious 
service. 

He graduated in 1818, with the highest honors, be- 
ing deemed the best scholar of his class, both in 
mathematics and the classics. He was then twenty- 
three years of age. Mr. Polk's health was at this 
time much impaired by the assiduity with which lie 
had prosecuted his studies. After a short season of 
relaxation he went to Nashville, and entered the 
office of Felix Grundy, to study law. Here Mr. Polk 
renewed his acquaintance with Andrew Jackson, who 
resided on his plantation, the Hermitage, but a kw 
miles from Nashville. They had probably been 
slightly acquainted before. 

Mr. Polk's f.uher was a Jeffersonian Republican, 
and James K. Polk ever adhered to the same politi- 
cal faith. He was a popular public speaker, an. I « is 
constantly called upon to address the meetings of his 
party friends. His skill as .1 speaker was such that 
he was popularly called the Napoleon of the stump. 
He was a man of unblemished morals, genial and 



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courteous in liis bearing, and with that sympathetic 
nature in the jo\s and griefs of others which ever gave 
him troops of friends. In 1823, Mr. Polk was elected 
to the Legislature of Tennessee. Here he gave his 
strong influence towards the election of his friend, 
Mr. Jackson, to the Presidency of the United States. 

In January, 1S24, Mr. Polk married Miss Sarah 
Childress, of Rutherford Co., Tenn. His bride was 
altogether worthy of him, — a lady of beauty and cul- 
ture. In the fall of 1825, Mr. Polk was chosen a 
member of Congress. The satisfaction which he gave 
to his constituents may be inferred from the fact, that 
for fourteen successive years, until 1839, he was con- 
tinued in that office. He then voluntarily withdrew, 
only that he might accept the Gubernatorial chair 
of Tennessee. In Congress he was a laborious 
member, a frequent and a popular speaker. He was 
always in his seat, always courteous; and whenever 
he spoke it was always to the point, and without any 
ambitious rhetorical display. 

During five sessions of Congress, Mr. Polk was 
Speaker of the House. Strong passions were roused, 
and stormy scenes were witnessed ; but Mr. Polk per- 
formed his arduous duties to a very general satisfac- 
tion, and a unanimous vote of thanks to him was 
passed by the House as he withdrew on the 4th of 
March, 1839. 

In accordance with Southern usage, Mr. Polk, as a 
candidate for Governor, canvassed the State. He was 
elected by a large majority, and on the 14th of Octo- 
ber, 1839, took the oatli of office at Nashville. In 1841, 
his term of office expired, and he was again the can- 
didate of the Democratic party, but was defeated. 

On the 4th of March, 1845, Mr. Polk was inaugur- 
ated President of the United States. The verdict of 
the country in favor of the annexation of Texas, exerted 
its influence upon Congress ; and the last act of the 
administration of I 'resident Tyler was to affix his sig- 
nature to a joint resolution of Congress, passed on the 
3d of March, approving of the annexation of Texas to 
the American Union. As Mexico still claimed Texas 
as one of her provinces, the Mexican minister, 
Almonte, immediately demanded his passports and 
left t lie country, declaring the act of the annexation 
to be an act hostile to Mexico. 

In his first message, President Polk urged that 
Texas should immediately, by act of Congress, be re- 
ceived into the Union on the same footing with the 
other States. In the meantime, Gen. Taylor was sent 

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with an army into Texas to hold the country. He was 
sent first to Nueces, which the Mexicans said was the 
western boundary of Texas. Then he was sent nearly 
two hundred miles further west, to the Rio Grande, 
where he erected batteries winch commanded the 
Mexican city of Matamoras, which was situated on 
the western banks. 

The anticipated collision soon took place, and war 
was declared against Mexico by President Polk. The 
war was pushed forward by Mr. Polk's administration 
with great vigor. Gen. Taylor, whose army was first 
called one of "observation," then of "occupation," 
then of "invasion, "was sent forward to Monterey. The 
feeble Mexicans, in every encounter, were hopelessly 
and awfully slaughtered. The day of judgement 
alone can reveal the misery which this war caused. 
It was by the ingenuity of Mr. Polk's administration 
that the war was brought on. 

'To the victors belong the spoils." Mexico was 
prostrate before us. Her capital was in our hands. 
We now consented to peace upon the condition that 
Mexico should surrender to us, in addition to Texas, 
all of New Mexico, and all of Upper and Lower Cal- 
ifornia. This new demand embraced, exclusive of 
Texas, eight hundred thousand square miles. This 
was an extent of territory equal to nine States of the 
size of New York. Thus slavery was securing eighteen 
majestic States to be added to the Union. There were 
some Americans who thought it all right : there were 
others who thought it all wrong. In the prosecution 
of this war, we expended twenty thousand lives and 
more than a hundred million of dollars. Of this 
money fifteen millions were paid to Mexico. 

On the 3d of March, 1S49, Mr. Polk retired from 
office, having served one term. The next day was 
Sunday. On the 5th, Gen. Taylor was inaugurated 
as his successor. Mr. Polk rode to the Capitol in the 
same carriage with Gen. Taylor; and the same even- 
ing, with Mrs. Polk, he commenced his return to 
Tennessee. He was then but fifty-four years of age. 
He had ever been strictly temperate in all his habits, 
and his health was good. With an ample fortune, 
a choice library, a cultivated mind, and domestic ties 
of the dearest nature, it seemed as though long years 
of tranquility and happiness were before him. But the 
cholera — that fearful scourge — was then sweeping up 
the Valley of the Mississippi. This he contracted, 
and died on the 15th of June, 1S49, in the fifty-fourth 
year of his age, greatly mourned by his countrymen. 




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TWELFTH PRESIDENT. 




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/ACHAX^Y TA>feQI*. 




ACHARY TAYLOR, twelfth 

President of the United States, 
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^was born on the 24th of Nov., 

1784, in Orange Co., Va. His 

father, Colonel Taylor, was 

a Virginian of note, and a dis- 




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■' ■T./Jl'^ " ^ tinguished patriot and soldier of 
the Revolution. When Zachary 
was an infant,' his father with his 
wife and two children, emigrated 
to Kentucky, where he settled in 
the pathless wilderness, a few 
miles from Louisville. In this front- 
wy ier home, away from civilization and 
all its refinements, young Zachary 
could enjoy but few social and educational advan- 
tages. When six years of age he attended a common 
school, and was then regarded as a bright, active boy, 
rather remarkable for bluntness and decision of char- 
acter He was strong, fearless and self-reliant, and 
manifested a strong desire to enter the army to fight 
the Indians who were ravaging the frontiers. There 
is little to be recorded of the uneventful years of his 
childhood on his father's large but lonely plantation. 
In 1S0S, his father succeeded in obtaining for him 
the commission of lieutenant in the United States 
army ; and he joined the troops which were stationed 
at New Orleans under Gen. Wilkinson. Soon after 
this he married Miss Margaret Smith, a young lady 
from one of the first families of Maryland. 

Immediately after the declaration of war with Eng- 
land, in r8i2, Capt. Taylor (for he had then been 
promoted to that rank) was put in command of Fort 
Harrison, on the Wabash, about fifty miles above 
Vincennes. This fort had been built in the wilder- 
ness by Gen. Harrison, on his march to Tippecanoe. 
It was one of the first points of attack by the Indians, 
led by Tecumseh. Its garrison consisted of a broken 




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company of infantry numbering fifty men, many of 
whom were sick. 

Early in the autumn of 1812, the Indians, stealthily, 
and in large numbers, moved upon the fort. Their 
approach was first indicated by the murder of two 
soldiers just outside of the stockade. Capt. Taylor 
made every possible preparation to meet the antici- 
pated assault. On the 4th of September, a band of 
forty painted and plumed savages came to the fort, 
waving a white flag, and informed Capt. Taylor that 
in the morning their chief would come to have a talk 
with him. It was evident that their object was merely 
to ascertain the state of things at the fort, and Capt. 
Taylor, well versed in the wiles of the savages, kept 
them at a distance. 

The sun went down; the savages disappeared, the 
garrison slept upon their arms. One hour before 
midnight the war whoop burst from a thousand lips 
in the forest around, followed by the discharge of 
musketry, and the rush of the foe. Every man, sick 
and well, sprang to his post. Every man knew that 
defeat was not merely death, but in the case of cap- 
ture, death by the most agonizing and prolonged tor- 
ture. No pen can describe, no immagination can 
conceive the scenes which ensued. The savages suc- 
ceeded in setting lire to one of the block-houses- 
Until six o'clock in the morning, this awful conflict 
continued. The savages then, baffled at every point, 
and gnashing their teeth with rage, retired. Capt. 
Taylor, for this gallant defence, was promoted to the 
rank of major by brevet. 

Until the close of the war, Major Taylor was placed (q 
in such situations that he saw but little more of active 
service. He was sent far away into the depths of the 
wilderness, to Fort Crawford, on Fox River, which 
empties into Green Bay. Here there was but little 
to be done but to wear away the tedious hours asone 
best could. There were no books, no society, no in- 










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ZACHARY TAYLOR. 



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tellectual stimulus. Thus with him the uneventful 
/ears rolled on Gradually he rose to the rank of 
colonel, [n the Black-Hawk war, which resulted in 
the rapture of that renowned chieftain, Col Taylor 
took a subordinate but a brave and efficient part. 

For twenty-four years Col. Taylor was engaged in 
the defence of the frontiers, in scenes so remote, and in 
employments so obscure, that his name was unknown 
beyond the limits of his own immediate acquaintance. 
In the year [836, he was sent to Florida to compel 
the Seminole Indians to vacate that region and re- 
tire beyond the Mississippi, as their chiefs by treaty, 
had promised they should do. The services rendered 
here secured for Col. Taylor the high appreciation of 
the Government ; and as a reward, he was elevated 
to the rank of brigadier-general by brevet; and soon 
alter, in May, 1S3X, was appointed to the chief com- 
mand of the United States troops in Florida. 

After two years oi such wearisome employment 
amidst the everglades of the peninsula, Gen. Taylor 
obtained, at his own request, a change of command, 
and was stationed over the Department of the South- 
west, This field embraced Louisiana, Mississippi, 
Alabama and Georgia. Establishing his headquarters 
at Fort Jessup, in Louisiana, he removed his family 
to .1 plantation which he purchased, near Baton Rogue. 
Here he remained for live years, buried, as it were, 
from the world, but faithfully discharging every duty 
imposed upon him. 

In [846, Gen. Taylor was sent to guard the land 
between the Nueces and Rio Grande, the latter river 
being the boundary of Texas, which was then claimed 
by the United States. Soon the war with Mexico 
was brought on, and at I'alo Alto and Resaca de la 
Palma, Gen. Taylor won brilliant victories over the 
Mexicans. The rank of major-general by brevet 
was then conferred upon Gen. Taylor, and his name 
was received with enthusiasm almost everywhere in 
the Nation. Then came the battles of Monterey and 
Buena Vista in which he won signal victories over 
forces much larger than he commanded. 

His careless habits of dress and his unaffected 
simplicity, secured for Gen. Taylor among his troops, 
the sobriquet of "Old Rough and Ready.' 

The tidings of the brilliant victory of Buena Vista 
spread the wildest enthusiasm over the country. The 
name of Gen. Taylor was on every one's lips. The 
party decided to take advantage of this wonder- 
ful popularity in bringing forward the unpolished, un- 
lettered, honest soldier as their candidate for the 
Presidency. Gen. Taylor was astonished at the an- 
nouncement, and for a time would not listen to it; de- 
claring that he was not at all qualified for such an 
So little interest had he taken in politics that, 
for forty years, he had not east a vote. It was not 
without chagrin that several distinguished statesmen 
who had been long years in the public service found 
their claims set aside in behalf of one whose name 




had never been heard of, save in connection with I'alo 
Alto, Resaca de la Palma, Monterey and Buena 
Vista, It Is said that Daniel Webster, in his haste re- 
marked, " It is a nomination not fit to be made." 

( ren. Ta_\ lor was not an eloquent speaker nor a fine 
writer His friends took possession of him, and pre- 
parer! such few communications as it was needful 
should be presented to the public. The popularity of 
the successful warrior swept the land. He was tri- 
umphantly elected over two opposing candidates, — 
Gen. Cass and Ex-President Martin Van Buren. 
Though he selected an excellent cabinet, the good 
old man found himself in a very uncongenial position, 
and was, at times, sorely perplexed and harassed. 
His mental sufferings were very severe, and probably 
tended to hasten his death. The pro-slavery party 
was pushing its claims with tireless energy, expedi- 
tions were fitting out to capture Cuba ; California was 
pleading for admission to the Union, while slavery 
stood at the door to bar her out. Gen. Taylor found 
the political conflicts in Washington to be far more 
trying to the nerves than battles with Mexicans or 
Indians. 

In the midst of all these troubles, Gen. Taylor, 
after he had occupied the Presidential chair but little 
over a year, took cold, and after a brief sickness of 
but little over five days, died on the 9th of July, 1850. 
His last words were, " I am not afraid to die. I am 
ready. I have endeavored to do my duty." He died 
universally respected and beloved. An honest, un- 
pretending man, he had been steadily growing in the 
affections of the people; and the Nation bitterly la- 
mented his death. 

('■en. Scott, who was thoroughly acquainted with 
Gen. Taylor, gave the following graphic and truthful 
description of his character: — " With a good store of 
common sense, Gen. Taylor's mind had not been en- 
larged and refreshed by reading, or much converse 
with the world. Rigidity of ideas was the conse- 
quence. The frontiers and small military posts had 
been his home. Hence he was quite ignorant for his 
rank, and quite bigoted in his ignorance. His sim- 
plicity was child-like, and with innumerable preju- 
dices, amusing and incorrigible, well suited to the 
tender age. Thus, if a man, however respectable, 
chanced to wear a coat of an unusual color, or his hit 
a little on one side of his head; or an officer to leave 
a corner of his handkerchief dangling from an out- 
side pocket, — in any such case, this critic held the 
offender to be a coxcomb (perhaps something worse), 
whom he would not, to use his oft repeated phrase, 
'touch with a pair of tongs.' 

"Any allusion to literature beyond good old Dil- 
worth's spelling-book, on the part of one wearing a 
sword, was evidence, with the same judge, of utter 
unfitness for heavy marchings and combats. In short, 
(<j\y men have ever had a more comfortable, labor- 
saving contempt fpr learning of every kind." 



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THIRTEENTH PRESIDENT. 





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ILLARD FILLMORE, thir- 
9 teenth President of the United 
s States, was born at Summer 
Hill, Cayuga Co., N. Y ., on 
the 7th of January, 1800. His 
father was a farmer, and ow- 
ing to misfortune, in humble cir- 
cumstances. Of his mother, the 
daughter of Dr. Abiathar Millard, 
of Pittsfield, Mass., it has been 
said that she possessed an intellect 
of very high order, united with much 
personal loveliness, sweetness of dis- 
position, graceful manners and ex- 
quisite sensibilities. She died in 
1 83 1 ; having lived to see her son a 
young man of distinguished prom- 
ise, though she was not permitted to witness the high 
dignity which he finally attained. 

In consequence of the secluded home and limited 
means of his father, Millard enjoyed but slender ad- 
vantages for education in his early years. The com- 
mon schools, which he occasionally attended were 
very imperfect institutions; and books were scarce 
and expensive. There was nothing then in his char- 
acter to indicate the brilliant career upon which he 
was about to enter. He was a plain fanner's boy; 
intelligent, good-looking, kind-hearted. The sacred 
influences of home had taught him to revere the Bible, 
and had laid the foundations of an upright character. 
When fourteen years of age, his father sent him 
some hundred miles from home, to the then wilds of 
Livingston County, to learn the trade of a clothier. 
Near the mill there was a small villiage, where some 




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enterprising man had commenced the collection of a 
village library. This proved an inestimable blessing 
to young Fillmore. His evenings were spent in read- 
ing. Soon every leisure moment was occupied with 
books. His thirst for knowledge became insatiate; 
and the selections which he made were continually 
more elevating and instructive. He read history, ^> 
biography, oratory, and thus gradually there was en- * 
kindled in his heart a desire to be something more £>" 
than a mere worker with his hands; and he was be- * 
coming, almost unknown to himself, a well-informed, 'S,\ 
educated man. ^ 

The young clothier had now attained the age of r Jj 
nineteen years, and was of fine personal appearance 
and of gentlemanly demeanor. It so happened that 
there was a gentleman in the neighborhood of ample 
pecuniary means and of benevolence, — Judge Walter 
Wood, — who was struck with the prepossessing ap- 
pearance of young Fillmore. He made his acquaint- 
ance, and was so much impressed with his ability and 
attainments that he advised him to abandon his 
trade and devote himself to the study of the law. The 
young man replied, that he had no means of his own, 
no friends to help him and that his previous educa- 
tion had been very imperfect. But Judge Wood had 
so much confidence in him that he kindly offered to 
take him into his own office, and to loan him such 
money as he needed. Most gratefully the generous 
offer was accepted. 

There is in many minds a strange delusion about 
a collegiate education. A young man is supposed to 
lie liberally educated if he has graduated at some col- - 
lege. But many a boy loiters through university halls ^-j 
and then enters a law office, who is by no means as * 



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well prepared to prosecute his legal studies as was 
Millard Fillmore when he graduated at the clothing- 
mill at the end of four years of manual labor, during 
which every leisure moment had been devoted to in- 
tense mental culture. 

In [823, when twenty-three years of age, he was 
admitted to the Court of Common Pleas. He then 
went to the village of Aurora, and commenced the 
practice of law. In this secluded, peaceful region, 
his practice of course was limited, and there was no 
opportunity for a sudden rise in fortune or in fame. 
Here, in the year 1826, he married a lady of great 
moral worth, and one capable of adorning any station 
she might be called to fill, — Miss Abigail Powers. 

I lis elevation of character, his untiring industry, 
his legal acquirements, and his skill as an advocate, 
gradually attracted attention ; and he was invited to 
enter into partnership under highly advantageous 
circumstances, with an elder member of the bar hi 
Buffalo. Just before removing to Buffalo, in 1829, 
he took his seat in the House of Assembly, of the 
State of New York, as a representative from Erie 
County. Though he had never taken a very active 
part in politics, his vote and his sympathies were with 
the Whig party. The State was then Democratic, 
and he found himself in a helpless minority in the 
Legislature; still the testimony comes from all parties, 
that his courtesy, ability and integrity, won, to a very 
unusual degree the respect of his associates. 

In the autumn of 1832, he was elected to a seat in 
the United States Congress. He entered that troubled 
arena in some of the most tumultuous hours of our 
national history. The great conflict respecting the 
national bank and the removal of the deposits, was 
then raging. 

1 lis term of two years closed ; and he returned to 
his profession, which he pursued with increasing rep- 
utation and success. After a lapse of two years 
he again became a candidate for Congress ; was re- 
elected, and took his seat in 1837. His past expe- 
rience as a representative gave him strength and 
confidence. The first term of service in Congress to 
any man can be but little more than an introduction. 
He was new prepared for active duty. All his ener- 
gies were brought to bear upon the public good. Every 
measure received his impress. 

Mr. Fillmore was now a man of wide repute, and 
his popularity filled the State, and in the year 1847, 
he was elected Comptroller of the State. 



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Mr. Fillmore had attained the age of forty-seven 
years. His labors at the bar, in the Legislature, in 
Congress and as Comptroller, had given him very con- 
siderable fame. The Whigs were casting about to 
find suitable candidates for President and Vice-Presi- 
dent at the approaching election. Far away, on the 
waters of the Rio Grande, there was a rough old 
soldier, who had fought one or two successful battles 
with the Mexicans, which had caused his name to be 
proclaimed in trumpet-tones all over the land. lint 
it was necessary to associate with him on the same 
ticket some man of reputation as a statesman. 

Under the influence of these considerations, the 
namesof Zachary Taylor and Millard Fillmore became 
the rallying-cry of the Whigs, as their candidates tor 
President and Vice-Peesident. The Whig ticket was 
signally triumphant. On the 4th of March, 1849, 
Gen. Taylor was inaugurated President, and Millard 
Fillmore Vice-President, of the United States. 

On the 9th of July, 1850, President Taylor, but 
about one year and four months after his inaugura- 
tion, was suddenly taken sick and died. By the Con- 
stitution, Vice-President Fillmore thus became Presi- 
dent. He appointed a very able cabinet, of which 
the illustrious Daniel Webster was Secretary of State. 

Mr. Fillmore had very serious difficulties to contend 
with, since the opposition had a majority in both 
Houses. He did everything in his power to conciliate 
the South; but the pro-slavery party in the South felt 
the inadequacy of all measuresof transient conciliation. 
The population of the free States was so rapidly in- 
creasing over that of the slave States that it was in- 
evitable that the power of the Government should 
soon pass into the hands of the free States. The 
famous compromise measures were adopted under Mr. 
Fillmore's adminstration, and the Japan Expedition 
was sent out. On the 4th of March, 1853, Mr. Fill- 
more, having served one term, retired. 

In 1856, Mr. Fillmore was nominated for the Pres- 
idency by the " Know Nothing " party, but was beaten 
by Mr. Buchanan. After that Mr. Fillmore lived in 
retirement. During the terrible conflict of civil war, 
he was mostly silent. It was generally supposed that 
his sympathies were rather with those who were en- 
deavoring to overthrow our institutions. President 
Fillmore kept aloof from the conflict, without any 
cordial words of cheer to the one party or the other. 
He was thus forgotten by both. He lived to a ripe 
old age, and died in Buffalo. N. Y., March 8, 1874. 

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RANKLIN PIERCE, the 
fourteenth Pre '°nt r -^e 
j" L nited States, was .in 

Hillsborough, N. H., !ov. 
23, 1804. His father was a 
Revolutionary soldier, who, 
with his own strong arm, 
hewed out a home in the 
wilderness. He was a man 
of inflexible integrity; of 
strong, though uncultivated 
mind, and an uncompromis- 
ing Democrat. The mother of 
Franklin Pierce was all that a son 
could desire, — an intelligent, pru- 
dent, affectionate, Christian wom- 
an. Franklin was the sixth of eight children. 

Franklin was a very bright and handsome boy, gen- 
erous, warm-hearted and brave. He won alike the 
love of old and young. The boys on the play -ground 
loved him. His teachers loved him. The neighbors 
looked upon him with pride and affection. He was 
by instinct a gentleman; always speaking kind words, 
doing kind deeds, with a peculiar unstudied tact 
which taught him what was agreeable. Without de- 
veloping any precocity of genius, or any unnatural 
devotion to books, he was a good scholar; in body, 
in mind, in affections, a finely-developed boy. 

When sixteen years of age, in the year 1820, he 
entered Bowdoin College, at Brunswick, Me. He was 
one of the most popular young men in the college. 
The purity of his moral character, the unvarying 
courtesy of his demeanor, his rank as a scholar, and 



genial nature, rendered him a universal favorite. 
There was something very peculiarly winning in his 
address, and it was evidently not in the slightest de- 
gree studied : it was the simple outgushing of his 
own magnanimous and loving nature. 

Upon graduating, in the year 1824, Franklin Pierce 
commenced the study of law in the office of Judge 
Woodbury, one of the most distinguished lawyers of 
the State, and a man of great private worth. The 
eminent social qualities of the young lawyer, his 
father's prominence as a public man, and the brilliant 
political career into which Judge Woodbury was en- 
tering, all tended to entice Mr. Pierce into the faci- 
nating yet perilous path of political life. With all 
the ardor of his nature he espoused the cause of Gen. 
Jackson for the Presidency. He commenced the 
practice of law in Hillsborough, and was soon elected 
to represent the town in the State Legislature. Here 
he served for four years. The last two years he was 
chosen speaker of the house by a very large vote. 

In 1833, at the age of twenty-nine, he was elected 
a member of Congress. Without taking an active 
part in debates, he was faithful and laborious in duty, 
and ever rising in the estimation of those with whom 
he was associatad. 

In 1837, being then but thirty-three years of age, 
he was elected to the Senate of the United States; 
taking his seat just as Mr. Van Buren commenced 
his administration. He was the youngest member in 
the Senate. In the year 1834, he married Miss Jane 
Means Appleton, a lady of rare beauty and accom- 
plishments, and one admirably fitted to adorn every 
station with which her husband was honoied. Of the 



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FRANKLIN PIERCE. 




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three sons who were born to them, all now sleep with 
their parents in the grave. 

In the year 1838, Mr. Pierce, with growing fame 
and increasing business as a lawyer, took up his 
residence in Concord, the capital of New Hampshire. 
President Polk, upon his accession to office, appointed 
Mr. I 'ierce attorney-general of the United States; but 
the oiler was declined, in consequence of numerous 
professional engagements at home, and the precariuos 
state of Mrs. Pierce's health. He also, about the 
same time declined the nomination for governor by the 
Democratic party. The war with Mexico called Mr. 
Pierce in the army. Receiving the appointment of 
brigadier-general, he embarked, with a portion of his 
troops, at Newport, R. I., on the 27th of May, 1847. 
He took an important part in this war, proving him- 
self a brave and true soldier. 

When Gen. Pierce reached his home in his native 
State, he was received enthusiastically by the advo- 
cates of the Mexican war, and coldly by his oppo- 
nents. He resumed the practice of his profession, 
very frequently taking an active part in political ques- 
tions, giving his cordial support to the pro-slavery 
wing of the Democratic party. The compromise 
measures met cordially with his approval; and he 
strenuously advocated the enforcement of the infa- 
mous fugitive-slave law, which so shocked the religious 
sensibilities of the North. He thus became distin- 
guished as a "Northern man with Southern principles.'' 
The strong partisans of slavery in the South conse- 
quently regarded him as a man whom they could 
safely trust in office to carry out their plans. 

On the 1 2th of June, 1852, the Democratic conven- 
tion met in Baltimore to nominate a candidate for the 
Presidency. For four days they continued in session, 
and in thirty-five ballotings no one had obtained a 
two-thirds vote. Not a vote thus far had been thrown 
for Gen. Pierce. Then the Virginia delegation 
brought forward his name. There were fourteen 
more ballotings, during which Gen. Pierce constantly 
gained strength, until, at the forty-ninth ballot, he 
received two hundred and eighty-two votes, and all 
other candidates eleven. Gen. Winfield Scott was 
the Whig candidate. Gen. Pierce was chosen witli 
great unanimity. Only four States — Vermont, Mas- 
sachusetts, Kentucky and Tennessee — cast their 
electoral votes against him Gen. Franklin Pierce 
was therefore inaugurated President of the United 
States on the 4th of March, 1853. 



His administration proved one of the most stormy our 
country had ever experienced. The controversy be- 
tween slavery and freedom was then approaching its 
culminating point. It became evident that there was 
an "irrepressible conflict " between them, and that 
this Nation could not long exist " half slave and half 
free." President Pierce, during the whole of his ad- 
ministration, did every thing he could to conciliate 
the South ; but it was all in vain. The conflict every 
year grew more violent, and threats of the dissolution 
of the Union were borne to the North on evea' South- 
ern breeze. 

Such was the condition of affairs when President 
Pierce approached the close of his four-years' term 
of office. The North had become thoroughly alien- 
ated from him. The anti-slavery sentiment, goaded 
by great outrages, had been rapidly increasing; all 
the intellectual ability and social worth of President 
Pierce were forgotten in deep reprehension of his ad- 
ministrative acts. The slaveholders of the South, also, 
unmindful of the fidelity with which he had advo- 
cated those measures of Government which they ap- 
proved, and perhaps, also, feeling that he had 
rendered himself so unpopular as no longer to be 
able acceptably to serve them, ungratefully dropped 
him, and nominated James Buchanan to succeed him. 

On the 4th of March, 1857, President Pierce re- 
tired to his home in Concord. Of three children, two 
had died, and his only surviving child had been 
killed before his eyes by a railroad accident ; and his 
wife, one of the most estimable and accomplished of 
ladies, was rapidly sinking in consumption. The 
hour of dreadful gloom soon came, and he was left 
alone in the world, without wife or child. 

When the terrible Rebellion burst forth, which di- 
vided our country into two parties, and two only, Mr. 
Pierce remained steadfast in the principles which he 
had always cherished, and gave his sympathies to 
that pro-slavery party with which he had ever been 
allied. He declined to do anything, either by voice 
or pen, to strengthen the hand of the National Gov- 
ernment. He continued to reside in Concord until 
the time of his death, which occurred in October, 
1869. He was one of the most genial and social of 
men, an honored communicant of the Episcopal 
Church, and one of the kindest of neighbors. Gen- 
erous to a fault, he contributed liberally for the al- 
leviation of suffering and want, and many of his towns- 
people were often gladened by his material bounty. 



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PTFTEENTB PRESIDENT. 






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AMES BUCHANAN, the fif- 
teenth President of the United 
'jfiVff States, was born in a small 
'<$)' $ frontier town, at the foot of the 
eastern ridge of the Allegha- 
nies, in Franklin Co., Penn. ,011 
the 23d of April, 1791. The place 
where the humble cabin of his 
father stood was called Stony 
Matter. It was a wild and ro- 
mantic spot in a gorge of the moun- 
tains, with towering summits rising 
grandly all around. His father 
was a native of the north of Ireland ; 
a poor man, who had emigrated in 
1783, with little property save his 
own strong arms. Five years afterwards he married 
Elizabeth Spear, the daughter of a respectable farmer, 
and, with his young bride, plunged into the wilder- 
ness, staked his claim, reared his log-hut, opened a 
clearing with his axe, and settled down there to per- 
forin his obscure part in the drama of life. In this se- 
cluded home, where James was born, he remained 
for eight years, enjoying but few social or intellei tual 
advantages. When James was eight years of age, his 
father removed to the village of Mercersburg, where 
his son was placed at school, and commenced a 
course of study in English, Latin and Creek. His 
progress was rapid, and at the age of fourteen, he 
entered Dickinson College, at Carlisle. Here he de 
veloped remarkable talent, and took his stand among 
the first scholars in the institution. I lis application 
to study was intense, and yet his native powers en- 



abled him to master the most abstruse subjects with 
facility. 

In the year 1809, he graduated with the highest 
honors of his class. He was then eighteen years of 
age; tall and graceful, vigorous in health, fond of 
athletic sport, an unerring shot, and enlivened with 
an exuberant flow of animal spirits. He immediately 
commenced the study of law in the city of Lancaster, 
and was admitted to the bar in 1812, when he was 
but twenty-one years of age. Very rapidly lie rose 
in his profession, and at once took undisputed stand 
with the ablest law_\ers of the State. When but 
twenty-six years of age, unaided by counsel, he suc- 
cessfully defended before the State Senate one of the 
judges of the State, who was tried upon articles of 
impeachment. At the age of thirty it. was generally 
admitted that he stood at the head of the bar; and 
there was no lawyer in the State who had a more lu- 
crative prai tii e, 

In 1S20, he reluctantly consented to run as a 
candidate for Congress. He was elected, and for 
ten years he remained a member of the Lower House. 
During the vacations of Congress, he occasionally 
tried some important case. In 1S31, he retired 
altogether from the toils of his profession, having ac- 
quired an ample fortune. 

Cen. Jackson, upqn his elevation to the Presidency, 
appointed Mr. Buchanan minister to Russia. The 
duties of his mission he performed with ability, which 
gave satisfai tion to all parties. Upon his return, in 
1833, he was elected to a seat in the United - 
Senate. He there met, as his associates, Wei 
Clay, Wright and Calhoun. 1 I 'ted the meas- 

ures proposed by President Ja< F making repri- 




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JAMES BUCHANAN. 



sals against France, to enforce the payment of our 
claims against that < ountry ; and defended the course 
ol the President in hi^ unprecedented and wholesale 
removal from office of those who were not the sup- 
porters ut his administration. Upon this question he 
(dj was brought into direct collision with Henry Clay. 
Fie also, with voice and vote, advocated expunging 
from the journal of the Senate the vole of censure 
against Gen. Jackson for removing the deposits. 
Earnestly he opposed the abolition of slavery in the 
District ol Columbia, and urged the prohibition of the 
circulation of anti-slavery documents by the United 
Stales mails. 

As to petitions on the subject of slavery, he advo- 
cated that they should be respectfully received; and 
that the reply should be returned, that Congress had 
no power to legislate upon the subject. " Congress," 
said he, " might as well undertake to interfere with 
slavery under a foreign government as in any of the 
States where it now exists." 

Upon Mr. Polk's accession to the Presidency, Mr. 
Buchanan became Secretary of State, and as such, 
, ) took his share of the responsibility in the conduct of 
the Mexican War. Mr. Polk assumed that crossing 
the Nueces by the American troops into the disputed 
territory was not wrong, but for the Mexicans to cross 
the Rio Grande into that territory was a declaration 
of war. No candid man can read with pleasure the 
account of the course our Government pursued in that 
= movement. 

Mr. Buchanan identified himself thoroughly with 
the party devoted to the perpetuation and extension 
ol slaver), and brought all I he energies of his mind 
to bear against the W'ilmot Proviso. He gave his 
cordial approval to the compromise measures of 1050, 
which included the fugitive-slave law. Mr. Pierce, 
upon his election to the Presidency, honored Mr. 
Buchanan with the mission to England. 

In the year 1856, a national Democratic conven- 
tion nominated Mr. Buchanan forlhe Presidency. The 
political conflict was one of the most severe in which 
our country has ever engaged. All the friends of 
slavery were on one side; all the advocates of its re- 
striction and final abolition, on the other. Mr. Fre- 
mont, the candidate of the enemies of slavery, re- 
ceived 114 electoral votes. Mr. Buchanan received 
174, and was elected. The popular vote stood 
r, 340,618, for Fremont, 1,224,750 for Buchanan. On 
March 4th, 1857, Mr. Buchanan was inaugurated. 

Mr. Buchanan was fir advanced in life. Only four 
years were wanting to fill up his threescore years and 
ten. His own friends, those with whom he had been 
allied in political principles and action for years, were 
seeking the destruction of the Government, that they 
might rear upon the ruins of our free institutions a 
nation whose corner-stone should be human slavery. 
In this emergency, Mr. Buchanan was hopelessly be- 
wildered. He could not, with his long-avowed prin- 






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ciples, consistently oppose the Stale-rights party in 
their assumptions. As President of the United States, 
bound by his oath faithfully to administer the laws, 
he could not, without perjury of the grossest kind, 
unite with those endeavoring to overthrow the repub- 
lic. 1 le therefore did nothing. 

The opponents of Mr. Buchanan's administration 
nominated Abraham Lincoln as their standard bearer 
in the next Presidential canvass. The pro-slavery 
party declared, that if he were elected, and the con- 
trol of the Government were thus taken from then 
hands, they would secede from the Union, taking 
with them, as they retired, the National Capitol at 
Washington, and the lion's share of the territory of 
the United States. 

Mr. Buchanan's sympathy with the pro-slavery 
party was such, that he had been willing to offer them 
far more than they had ventured to claim. All the 
South had professed to ask of the Norih was non- 
intervention upon the subject of slavery. Mr. Bu- 
chanan had been ready to offer them the active co- 
operation of the Government to defend and extend 
the institution. 

As the storm increased in violence, the slaveholders 
claiming the right to secede, and Mr. Buchanan avow- 
ing that Congress had no power to prevent it, one of 
the most pitiable exhibitions of governmental im- 
becility was exhibited the world has ever seen. He 
dec hired that Congress had no power to enforce its 
laws in any State which had withdrawn, or which 
was attempting to withdraw from the Union. This 
was not the doctrine of Andrew Jackson, when, with 
his hand upon his sword-hilt, he exclaimed, " The 
Pinion must and shall be preserved!" 

South Carolina seceded in December, 1S60; nearly 
three months before the inauguration of President 
Lincoln. Mr. Buchanan looked on in listless despair. 
The rebel flag was raised in Charleston : Fort Sum pter 
was besieged ; our forts, navy-yards and arsenals 
were seized; our depots of military stores were plun- 
dered ; and our custom-houses and post-offices were 
appropriated by the rebels. 

The energy of the rebels, and the imbecility of our 
Executive, were alike marvelous. The Nation looked 
on in agony, waiting for the slow weeks to glide away, 
and close the administration, so terrible in its weak- 
ness At length the long-looked-for hour of deliver- 
ance came, when Abraham Lincoln was to receive the 
scepter. 

The administration of President Buchanan was 
certainly the most calamitous our country has ex- 
perienced. His best friends cannot recall it with 
pleasure. And still more deplorable it is tor his fame, 
that in that dreadful conflict which rolled its billows 
of flame and blood over our whole land, no word c ame 
from his lips to indicate his wish that our country's 
banner should triumph over the Hag of the rebellion. 
He died at his Wheatland retreat, June 1, 1868. 




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3RAHAM LINCOLN, the 
sixteenth President of the 
^United States, was born in 
Hardin Co., Ky., Feb. 12, 
1809. About the year 1780, a 
man by the name of Abraham 
Lincoln left Virginia with his 
family and moved into the then 
wilds of Kentucky. Only two years 
after this emigration, still a young 
man, while working one day in a 
field, was stealthily approached by 
an Indian and shot dead. His widow 
was left in extreme poverty with five 
little children, three boys and two 
girls. Thomas, the youngest of the 
boys, was four years of age at his 
father's death. This Thomas was 
the father of Abraham Lincoln, the 
President of the United States 
whose name must henceforth forever be enrolled 
with the most prominent in the annals of our world. 
Of course no record has been kept of the life 
of one so lowly as Thomas Lincoln. He was among 
the poorest of the poor. His home was a wretched 
log-cabin; his food the coarsest and the meanest. 
Education he had none; he could never either read 
or write. As soon as he was able to do anything for 
himself, he was compelled to leave the cabin of his 
starving mother, and push out into the world, a friend- 
less, wandering boy, seeking work. He hired him- 
self out, and thus spent the whole of his youth as a 
laborer in the fields of others. 

When twenty-eight years of age he built a log- 
cabin of his own, and married Nancy Hanks, the 
daughter of another family of poor Kentucky emi- 
grants, who had also come from Virginia. Their 
second child was Abraham Lincoln, the subject of 
this sketch. The mother of Abraham was a noble 
woman, gentle, loving, pensive, created to adorn 
a palace, doomed to toil and pine, and die in a hovel. 
" All that I am, or hope to be," exclaims the grate- 
ful son " I owe to my angel-mother. 

When he was eight years of age, his father sold his 

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cabin and small farm, and moved to Indiana. Where 
two years later his mother died. 

Abraham soon became the scribe of the uneducated 
community around him. He could not have had a 
better school than this to teach him to put thoughts 
into words. He also became an eager reader. The 
books he could obtain were few ; but these he read 
and re-read until they were almost committed to 
memory. 

As the years rolled on, the lot of this lowly family 
was the usual lot of humanity. There were joys and 
griefs, weddings and funerals. Abraham's sister 
Sarah, to whom he was tenderly attached, was mar- 
ried when a child of but fourteen years of age, and 
soon died. The family was gradually scattered. Mr. 
Thomas Lincoln sold out his squatter's claim in 1830, 
and emigrated to Macon Co., 111. 

Abraham Lincoln was then twenty-one years of age. 
With vigorous hands he aided his father in rearing 
another log-cabin. Abraham worked diligently at this 
until he saw the family comfortably settled, and their 
small lot of enclosed prairie planted with corn, when 
he announced to his father his intention to leave 
home, and to go out into the world and seek his for- 
tune. Little did he or his friends imagine how bril- 
liant that fortune was to be. He saw the value of 
education, and was intensely earnest to improve his 
mind to the utmost of his power. He saw the ruin 
which ardent spirits were causing, and became 
strictly temperate; refusing Jo allow a drop of intoxi- 
cating liquor to pass his lips. And he had read in 
God's word, " Thou shalt not take the name of the 
Lord thy God in vain;" and a profane expression he 
was never heard to utter. Religion he revered. His 
morals were pure, and he was uncontaminated by a 
single vice. 

Young Abraham worked for a time as a hired laborer 
among the farmers. Then he went to Springfield, 
where he was employed in building a large flat-boat. 
In this he took a herd of swine, floated them down 
the Sangamon to the Illinois, and thence by the Mis- 
sissippi to New Orleans. Whatever Abraham Lin- 
coln undertook, he performed so faithfully as to give 
great satisfaction to his employers. In this adven- 




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ture his employers were so well pleased, that upon 
his return they placed .1 store and mill under his care. 

In [832, at the outbreak of the Black Hawk war, he- 
enlisted and was chosen captain of a company. He 
returned to Sangamon ( lounty, and although only 23 
years of age, was a candidate for the Legislature, but 
was defeated. He soon after received from Andrew 
I i. kson the appointment of Postmaster of New Salem, 
His only post-office was his hat. All the letters he 
received he carried there ready to deliver to those 
lie chanced to meet. He studied surveying, and soon 
made this his business. In 1834 he again became a 
candidate for the Legislature, and was elected Mr. 
Stuart, of Springfield, advised him to study law. He 
walked from New Salem to Springfield, borrowed of 
Mr. Smart a load of books, carried them back and 
began his legal studies. When the Legislature as- 
sembled he trudged on foot with his pack on his back 
one hundred miles to Vandalia, then the capital. In 
[836 he was re-elected to the Legislature. Mere it 
was lie first met Stephen A. Douglas. In 1839 he re- 
moved to Springfield and began the practice of law. 
His success with the jury was so great that he was 
soon engaged in almost every noted case in the circuit. 

In 1854 the great discussion began between Mr. 
Lincoln and Mr. Douglas, on the slavery question. 
In the organization of the Republican party in Illinois., 
in 1856, he took an active part, and at once became 
one of the leaders in that party. Mr. Lincoln's 
speeches in opposition to Senator Douglas in the con- 
test in [858 for a seat in the Senate, form a most 
notable part of his history. The issue was on the 
slavery question, and he took the broad ground of 
the Declaration of Independence, that all men are 
created equal. Mr. Lincoln was defeated in this con- 
test, but won a far higher prize. 

The great Republican Convention met at Chicago 
on the' 16th of June, [860. The delegates and 
strangers who crowded the city amounted to twenty- 
five thousand. An immense building called "The 
Wigwam," was reared to accommodate the Conven- 
tion. There were eleven candid iles for whom votes 
were thrown. William II. Seward, a man whose fame 
as a statesman had long filled the land, was the most 
prominent. It was generally supposed lie would be 
the nominee. Abraham Lincoln, however, received 
the nomination on the third ballot. Little did he theft 
dream of the weary years of toil and care, and the 
bloody de nil. to which that nomination doomed him: 
.uid as lilt le did he dream that he was to render services 
to his country, which would fix upon him the eyes of 
the whole civilized world, and which would give him 
a pi i>e in the affections of his countrymen, second 
nub, if second, to that of Washington. 

Election day came and Mr. Lincoln received 180 
electoral votes OUt of 203 cast, and was, therefore, 
1 onstitutionally elected President of the United States. 
TJie tirade of abuse that was poured upon this 



and merciful man, especially by the slaveholders, was 
greater than upon any other man ever elected to this 
high position. In February, [861, Mr. Lincoln started 
for Washington, stopping in all the large cities on his 
way making speeches. The whole journey was fraught 
with much danger. Many of the Southern Slates h. id 
already seceded, and several attempts at .1 ssassination 
were afterwards brought to light. A gang in Balti- 
more had arranged, upon his arrival to "get up a row," 
and in the confusion to make sure of his death with 
revolvers and hand-grenades. A detective unravelled 
the plot. A secret and special train was provided to 
take him from Harrisburg, through Baltimore, at an 
unexpected hour of the night. The train started at 
half-past ten ; and to prevent any possible communi- 
< ation on the part ot the Secessionists with their Con- 
federate gang ill Baltimore, as soon as the train had 
started the telegraph-wires were cut. Mr. Lincoln 
reached Washington in safety and was inaugurated, 
although great anxiety was felt by all loyal people. 

Ill the selection of his cabinet Mr. Lincoln gave 
to Mi. Seward the Department of State, and to other 
prominent opponents before the convention he gave 
important positions. 

During no other administration have the duties 
devolving upon the President been so manifold, and 
the responsibilities so great, as those which fell to 
the lot of President Lincoln. Knowing this, and 
feeling his own weakness and inability to meet, and in 
his own strength to cope with, the difficulties, he 
learned early to seek Divine wisdom and guidance in 
determining his plans, and Divine comfort in all his 
trials, both personal and national. Contrary to his 
own estimate of himself, Mr. Lincoln was one of the 
most courageous of men. He went directly into the 
rebel capital just as the retreating foe was leaving, 
with no guard but a few sailors. From the time he 
had left Springfield, in 1861, however, plans had been 
made for his assassination, and he at last fell a victim 
to one of them. April 14, 1865, he, with Gen. Grant, 
w.is urgently invited to attend Fords' Theater. It 
was announced that they would Le present. Gen. 
( '.rant, however, left the city. President Lincoln, feel- 
ing, with his characteristic kindliness of heart, that 
it would be a disappointment if he should fail them, 
very reluctantly consented to go. While listening to 
the play an actor by the name oi John Wilkes Booth 
entered the box where the President and family were 
seated, and fired a bullet into his brains. He died the 
next morning at seven o'clock. 

Never before, in the history of the world was a nation 
plunged into such deep grief by the death of its ruler. 
Strong men met in the streets and wept in sped lib 
anguish. It is not too much to say that a nation was 
in tears. His was a life which will fitly become a 
model. I lis name as the savior of his country will 
live with that of Washington's, its father; his t our.try- 

men being unable to decide which is the greater. 



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SE I ENTEENTH PRESIDENT. 



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NDREW JOHNSON, seven- 
teenth President of the United 
States. The early life of 
Andrew Johnson contains but 
the record of poverty, destitu- 
W-) tion and friendlessness. He 
7 was born December 29, 180S, 
in Raleigh, N. C. His parents, 
belonging to the class of the 
"poor whites " of the South, were 
in such circumstances, that they 
could not confer even the slight- 
est advantages of education upon 
their child. When Andrew was five 
years of age, his father accidentally 
lost his life while herorically endeavoring to save a 
friend from drowning. Until ten years of age, Andrew 
was a ragged boy about the streets, supported by the 
labor of his mother, who obtained her living with 
her own hands. 

He then, having never attended a school one day, 
and being unable either to read or write, was ap- 
prenticed to a tailor in his native town. A gentleman 
was in the habit of going to the tailor's shop occasion- 
ally, and reading to the boys at work there. He often 
read from the speeches of distinguished British states- 
men. Andrew, who was endowed with a mind of more 
than ordinary native ability, became much interested 
in these speeches; his ambition was roused, and he 
was inspired with a strong desire to learn to read. 

He accordingly applied himself to the alphabet, and 
with the assistance of some of his fellow-workmen, 
learned his letters. He then called upon the gentle- 
man to borrow the book of speeches. The owner, 






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pleased with his zeal, not only gave htm the book, 
but assisted him in learning to combine the letters 
into words. Under such difficulties he pressed on- 
ward laboriously, spending usually ten or twelve hours 
at work in the shop, and then robbing himself of rest ( 
and recreation to devote such time as he could to s 
reading. rS 

He went to Tennessee in 1826, and located at J 
Greenville, where he married a young lady who pos- £&! 
sessed some education. Under her instructions he =* 
learned to write and cipher. He became prominent 
in the village debating society, and a favorite with 
the students of Greenville College. In 182S, he or- 
ganized a working man's party, which elected him 
alderman, and in 1830 elected him mayor, which 
position he held three years. 

He now began to take a lively interest in political 
affairs; identifying himself with the working-classes, 
to which he belonged. In 1835, he was elected a 
member of the House of Representatives of Tennes- 
see. He was then just twenty-seven years of age. 
He became a very active member of the legislature, 
gave his adhesion to the Democratic party, and in 
,1840 "stumped the State," advocating Martin Van 
Buren's claims to the Presidency, in opposition to those 
of ( ren. Harrison. In this campaign he acquired much 
readiness as a speaker, and extended and increased 
his reputation. 

In 1841, he was elected State Senator 
was elected a member of Congress, and by successi\ . 
elections, held that important post for ten years. In ;. 
1853, he was elected Governor of Tennessee, and 
was re-elected in 1855. In all these responsible posi- 1 
tions, he discharged his duties with distinguished abil 

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ANDREW JOHNSON. 







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ity, and proved himself the warm friend of the work- 
ing classes. In 1857, Mr. Johnson was elected 
United States Senator. 

Years before, in 1845, he had warmly advocated 
the annexation of Texas, stating however, as his 
reason, that he thought this annexation would prob- 
ably prove "to be the gateway out of which the sable 
sons of Africa are to pass from bondage to freedom, 
and become merged in a population congenial to 
themselves." In 1850, he also supported the com- 
promise measures, the two essential features of which 
were, that the white people of the Territories should 
be permitted to decide for themselves whether they 
would enslave the colored people or not, and that 
the free States of the North should return to the 
South persons who attempted to escape from slavery. 

Mr. Johnson was never ashamed of his lowly origin: 
on the contrary, he often took pride in avowing that 
he owed his distinction to his own exertions. "Sir,'" 
said he on the floor of the Senate, " I do not forget 
that I am a mechanic ; neither do I forget that Adam 
was a tailor and sewed fig-leaves, and that our Sav- 
ior was the son of a carpenter." 

In the Charleston-Baltimore convention of i860, he 
was the choice of the Tennessee Democrats for the 
Presidency. In 1861, when the purpose of the South- 
ern 1 )emocracy became apparent, he took a decided 
stand in favor of the Union, and held that " slavery 
must be held subordinate to the Union at whatever 
cost." He returned to Tennessee, and repeatedly 
imperiled his own life to protect the Unionists of 
Tennesee. Tennessee having seceded from the 
Union, President Lincoln, on March 4th, 1862, ap- 
pointed him Military Governor of the State, and he 
established the most stringent military rule. His 
numerous proclamations attracted wide attention. In 

1864, he was elected Vice-President of the United 
States, and upon the death of Mr. Lincoln, April 15, 

1865, became President. In a speech two days later 
he said, " The American people must be taught, if 
they do not already feel, that treason is a crime and 
must be punished ; that the Government will not 
always bear with its enemies ; that it is strong not 
only to protect, but to punish. * * The people 
must understand that it (treason) is the blackest of 
crimes, and will surely be punished." Yet his whole 
administration, the history of which is so well known, 
was in utter inconsistency with, and the most violent 




opposition to, the principles laid down in that speech. 

In his loose policy of reconstruction and general 
amnesty, he was opposed by Congress ; and he char- 
acterized Congress as a new rebellion, and lawlessly 
defied it, in everything possible, to the utmost. In 
the beginning of 1868, on account of "high crimes 
and misdemeanors," the principal of which was the 
removal of Secretary Stanton, in violation of the Ten- 
ure of Office Act, articles of impeachment were pre- 
ferred against him, and the trial began March 23. 

It was very tedious, continuing for nearly three 
months. A test article of the impeachment was at 
length submitted to the court for its action. It was 
certain that as the court voted upon that article so 
would it vote upon all. Thirty-four voices pronounced 
the President guilty. As a two-thirds vote was neces- 
sary to his condemnation, he was pronounced ac- 
quitted, notwithstanding the great majority against 
him. The change of one vote from the not guilty 
side would have sustained the impeachment. 

The President, for the remainder of his term, was 
but little regarded. He continued, though impotently, 
his conflict with Congress. His own party did not 
think it expedient to renominate him for the Presi- 
dency. The Nation rallied, with enthusiasm unpar- 
alleled since the days of Washington, around the name 
of Gen. Grant. Andrew Johnson was forgotten. 
The bullet of the assassin introduced him to the 
President's chair. Notwithstanding this, never was 
there presented to a man a better opportunity to im- 
mortalize his name, and to win the gratitude of a 
nation. He failed utterly. He retired to his home 
in Greenville, Tenn., taking no very active part in 
politics until 1875. On Jan. 26, after an exciting 
struggle, he was chosen by the Legislature of Ten- 
nessee, United States Senator in the forty-fourth Con- 
gress, and took his seat in that body, at the special 
session convened by President Grant, on the 5th of 
March. On the 27th of July, 1875, the ex-President 
made a visit to his daughter's home, near Carter 
Station, Tenn. When he started on his journey, he was 
apparently in his usual vigorous health, but on reach- 
ing the residence of his child the following day, was 
stricken with paralysis, rendering him unconscious, 
lie rallied occasionally, but finally passed away at 
2 a.m., July 31, aged sixty-seven years. His fun- 
eral was attended at Geenville, on the 3d of August, 
with every demonstration of respect. 



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EIGHTEENTH PRESIDENT. 




87 




LYSSES S. GRANT, the 
eighteenth President of the 
United States, was born on 
the 29th of April, 1822, of 
Christian parents, in a humble 
home, at Point Pleasant, on the 
banks of the Ohio. Shortly after 
his father moved to George- 
town, Brown Co., O. In this re- 
mote frontier hamlet, Ulysses 
received a common-school edu- 
cation. At the age of seven- 
teen, in the year 1839, he entered 
the Military Academy at West 
Point. Here he was regarded as a 
solid, sensible young man of fair abilities, and of 
sturdy, honest character. He took respectable rank 
as a scholar. In June, 1843, he graduated, about the 
middle in his class, and was sent as lieutenant of in- 
fantry to one of the distant military posts in the Mis- 
souri Territory. Two years he past in these dreary 
solitudes, watching the vagabond and exasperating 
Indians. 

The war with Mexico came. Lieut. Grant was 
sent with his regiment to Corpus Christi. His first 
battle was at Palo Alto. There was no chance here 
for the exhibition of either skill or heroism, nor at 
Resaca de la Palma, his second battle. At the battle 
of Monterey, his third engagement, it is said that 
he performed a signal service of daring and skillful 
horsemanship. His brigade had exhausted its am- 
munition. A messenger must be sent for more, along 
a route exposed to the bullets of the foe. Lieut. 
Grant, adopting an expedient learned of the Indians, 
grasped the mane of his horse, and hanging upon one 
side of the animal, ran the gauntlet in entire safety. 

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From Monterey he was sent, with the fourth infantry, 
to aid Gen. Scott, at the siege of Vera Cruz. In 
preparation for the march to the city of Mexico, he 
was appointed quartermaster of his regiment. At the 
battle of Molino del Rey, he was promoted to a 
first lieutenancy, and was brevetted captain at Cha- 
pultepec. 

At the close of the Mexican War, Capt. Grant re- 
turned with his regiment to New York, and was again 
sent to one of the military posts on the frontier. The 
discovery of gold in California causing an immense 
tide of emigration to flow to the Pacific shores, Capt. 
Grant was sent with a battalion to Fort Dallas, in 
Oregon, for the protection of the interests of the im- 
migrants. Life was wearisome in those wilds. Capt. 
Grant resigned his commission and returned to the ( 
States; and having married, entered upon the cultiva- 
tion of a small farm near St. Louis, Mo. He had but 
little skill as a farmer. Finding his toil not re- 
munerative, he turned to mercantile life, entering into 
the leather business, with a younger brother, at Ga- 
lena, 111. This was in the year i860. As the tidings 
of the rebels firing on Fort Sumpter reached the ears 
of Capt. Grant in his counting-room, he said, — 
"Uncle Sam has educated me for the army; though 
I have served him through one war, I do not feel that 
I have yet repaid the debt. I am still ready to discharge 
my obligations. I shall therefore buckle on my sword 
and see Uncle Sam through this war too." 

He went into the streets, raised a company of vol- 
unteers, and led them as their captain to Springfield, 
the capital of the State, where their services were 
offered to Gov. Yates. The Governor, impressed by 
the zeal and straightforward executive ability of Capt. 
Grant, gave him a desk in his office, to assist in the 
volunteer organization that was being formed in the 
State in behalf of the Government. On the 15th of 



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ULYSSES S. GRANT. 



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June, 1861, Capt, Grant received a commission as 
j Colonel of the Twenty-first Regiment of Illinois Vol- 
unteers. His merits as a West Point graduate, who 
had served for 15 years in the regular army, were such 
' . that he was soon promoted to the rank of Brigadier- 
General and was placed in command at Cairo. The 
rebels raised their banner at Paducah, near the mouth 
of the Tennessee River. Scarcely had its folds ap- 
peared in the breeze ere Gen. ('.rant was there. The 
rebels fled. Their banner fell, and the star and 
stripes were unfurled in its stead. 

He entered the service with great determination 
and immediately began active duty. This was the be- 
ginning, and until the surrender of Lee at Richmond 
he was ever pushing the enemy with great vigor and 
effectiveness. At Belmont, a few days later, he sur- 
prised and routed the rebels, then at Fort Henry 
won another victory. Then came the brilliant fight 
at Fort Donelson. The nation was electrified by the 
victory, and the brave leader of the boys in blue was 

/^ immediately made a Major-General, and the military 
district of Tennessee was assigned to him. 

Like all great captains, Gen. Grant knew well how 
to secure the results of victory. He immediately 
pushed on to the enemies' lines. Then came the 
terrible battles of Pittsburg Landing, Corinth, and the 
siege of Vicksburg, where Gen. Pemberton made an 
unconditional surrender of the city with over thirty 
thousand men and one-hundred and seventy-two can- 
non. The fall of Vicksburg was by far the most 
severe blow which the rebels had thus far encountered, 
and opened up the Mississippi from Cairo to the Gulf. 
Gen. Grant was next ordered to co-operate with 
Gen. Banks in a movement upon Texas, and pro- 
ceeded to New Orleans, where he was thrown from 
his horse, and received severe injuries, from which he 
was laid up for months. He then rushed to the aid 
of Gens. Rosecrans and Thomas at Chattanooga, and 
by a wonderful series of strategic and tactical meas- 
ures put the Union army in fighting condition. Then 
followed the bloody battles at Chattanooga, Lookout 
Mountain and Missionary Ridge, in which the rebels 
were routed with great loss. This won for him un- 
bounded praise in the North. On the 4th of Febru- 
ary, 1864, Congress revived the grade of lieutenant- 
general, and the rank was conferred on Gen. Grant. 
He repaired to Washington to receive his credentials 

^« and enter upon the duties of his new office. 



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Gen. Grant decided as soon as he took charge of 
the army to concentrate the widely-dispersed National 
troops for an attack upon Richmond, the nominal 
capital of the Rebellion, and endeavor there to de- 
stroy the rebel armies which would lie promptly as- 
sembled from all quarters for its defence. The whole 
continent seemed to tremble under the trampof these 
majestic armies, rushing to the decisive battle field. 
Steamers were crowded with troops. Railway trains 
were burdened with closely packed thousands. His 
plans were comprehensive and involved a series of 
campaigns, which were executed with remarkable en- 
ergy and ability, and were consummated at the sur- 
render of Lee, April 9, 1865. 

The war was ended. The Union was saved. The 
almost unanimous voice of the Nation declared Gen. 
Grant to be the most prominent instrument in its sal- 
vation. The eminent services he had thus rendered 
the country brought him conspicuously forward as the 
Republican candidate for the Presidential chair. 

At the Republican Convention held at Chicago, 
May 21, 1868, he was unanimously nominated for the 
Presidency, and at the autumn election received a 
majority of the popular vote, and 214 out of 294 
electoral votes. 

The National Convention of the Republican party 
which met at Philadelphia on the 5th of June, 1872, 
placed Gen. Grant in nomination for a second term 
by a unanimous vote. The selection was emphati- 
cally indorsed by the people five months later, 292 
electoral votes being cast for him. 

Soon after the close of his second term, Gen. Grant 
started upon his famous trip around the world. He 
visited almost every country of the civilized world, 
and was everywhere received with such ovations 
and demonstrations of respect and honor, private 
as well as public and official, as were never before 
bestowed upon any citizen of the United States. It 
is not too much to say that his modest, courteous, and 
dignified demeanor in the presence of the most dis- 
tinguished men in the different nations in the world, 
reflected honor upon the Republic which he so long 
and so faithfully served. The country felt a great 
pride in his reception. Upon his arrival in San Fran- 
cisco, Sept. 20, 1879, the city authorities gave him a 
fine reception. After lingering in the Golden State 
for a while, he began his tour through the States, 
which extended North and South, everywhere mark- 
ed by great acclamation and splendid ovations. 



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UTHERFORD B. HAYES, 

&) the nineteenth President of 
a the United States, was born in 
Delaware, O., Oct. 4, 1822, al- 
most three months after the 
death of his father, Rutherford 
Hayes. His ancestry on both 
the paternal and maternal sides, 
was of the most honorable char- 
acter. It can be traced, it is said, 
as far back as 1280, when Hayes and 
Rutherford were two Scottish chief- 
tains, fighting side by side with 
Baliol, William Wallace and Robert 
Bruce. Both families belonged to the 
nobility, owned extensive estates, 
and had a large following. Misfor- 
tune overtaking the family, George Hayes left Scot- 
land in 1680, and settled in Windsor, Conn. His son 
George was born in Windsor, and remained there 
during his life. Daniel Hayes, son of the latter, mar- 
ried Sarah Lee, and lived from the time of his mar- 
riage until his death in Simsbury, Conn. Ezekiel, 
son of Daniel, was born in 1724, and was a manufac- 
turer of scythes at Bradford, Conn. Rutherford Hayes, 
son of Ezekiel and grandfather of President Hayes, was 
born in New Haven, in August, 1756. He was a farmer, 
blacksmith and tavern-keeper. He emigrated to 
Vermont at an unknown date, settling in Brattleboro, 
where he established a hotel. Here his son Ruth- 
erford Hayes, the father of President Hayes, was 




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born. He was married, in September, 18 13, to Sophia 
Birchard, of Wilmington, Vt., whose .ancestors emi- 
grated thither from Connecticut, they having been 
among the wealthiest and best famlies of Norwich. 
Her ancestry on the male side are traced back to 
1635, to John Bkchard, one of the principal founders 
of Norwich. Both of her grandfathers were soldiers 
in the Revolutionary War. 

The father of President Hayes was an industrious, 
frugal and opened-hearted man. He was of a me- 
chanical turn, and could mend a plow, knit a stock- 
ing, or do almost anything else that he choose to 
undertake. He was a member of the Church, active 
in all the benevolent enterprises of the town, and con- 
ducted his business on Christian principles. After 
the close of the war of 181 2, for reasons inexplicable 
to his neighbors, he resolved to emigrate to Ohio. 

The journey from Vermont to Ohio in that day, 
when there were no canals, steamers, nor railways, 
was a very serious affair. A tour of inspection was 
first made, occupying four months. Mr. Hayes deter- 
mined to move to Delaware, where the family arrived 
in 1817. He died July 22, 1822, a victim of malarial 
fever, less than three months before the birth of the 
son, of whom we now write. Mrs. Hayes, in her sore be- 
reavement, found the support she so much needed in 
her brother Sardis, who had been a member of the 
household from the day of its departure from Ver- 
mont, and in an orphan girl whom she had adopted 
some time before as an act of charity. 

Mrs. Hayes at this period was very weak, and the 



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RUTIIERFORD B. HAYES. 



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subject of this sketch was so feeble at birth that he 
was not expected to live beyond a month or two at 
most. As the months went by he grew weaker and 
weaker, so that the neighbors were in the habit of in- 
quiring from time to time "ifMrs. Hayes/baby died 
last night." On one occasion a neighbor, who was on 
familiar terms with the family, after alluding to the 
boy's big head, and the mother's assiduous care of 
him, said in a bantering way, " That's right ! Stick to 
him. You have got him along so far, and I shouldn't 
wonder if he would really come to something yet." 

" You need not laugh," said Mrs. Hayes. "'You 
wait and see. You can't tell but 1 shall make him 
President of the United States yet." The boy lived, 
in spite of the universal predictions of his speedy 
death; and when, in 1825, his older brother was 
drowned, he became, if possible, still dearer to his 
mother. 

The boy was seven years old before he went to 
school. His education, however, was net neglected. 
He probably learned as much from his mother and 
sister as he would have done at school. His sports 
were almost wholly within doors, his playmates being 
his sister and her associates. These circumstances 
tended, no doubt, to foster that gentleness of dispo- 
sition, and that delicate consideration for the feelings 
of others, which are marked traits of his character. 

His uncle Sardis Birchard took the deepest interest 
in his education ; and as the boy's health had im- 
proved, and he was making good progress in his 
studies, he proposed to send him to college. His pre- 
paration commenced with a tutor at home; but he 
was afterwards sent for one year to a professor in the 
Wesleyan University, in Middletown, Conn. He en- 
tered Renyon College in 1838, at the age of sixteen, 
and was graduated at the head of his class in 1842. 

Immediately after his graduation he began the 
study of law in the office of Thomas Sparrow, Esq., 
in Columbus. Finding his opportunities for study in 
Columbus somewhat limited, he determined to enter 
the Law School at Cambridge, Mass., where he re- 
mained two years. 

In 1 845, after graduating at the Law School, he was 
admitted to the bar at Marietta, Ohio, and shortly 
afterward went into practice as an attorney-at-law 
with Ralph P. Ruckland, of Fremont. Here he re- 
mained three years, acquiring but a limited practice, 
and apparently unambitious of distinction in his pro- 
fusion. 

In [849 he moved to Cincinnati, where his ambi- 
tion found a new stimulus. For several years, how- 
ever, his progress was slow. Two events, occurring at 
this period, had a powerful influence upon his subse- 
quent life. One of these was his manage with Miss 
Lucy' Ware Webb, daughter of Or. James Webb, of 
Chilicothe; the other was his introduction to the Cin- 
cinnati Literary Club, a body embracing among its 
members such men as Chief Justice Salmon P.Chase, 

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Gen. John Pope, Gov. Edward F. Noyes, and many 
others hardly less distinguished in after life. The 
marriage was a fortunate one in every respect, as 
everybody knows. Xot one of all the wives of our 
Presidents was more universally admired, reverenced 
and beloved than was Mrs. Hayes, and no one did 
more than she to reflect honor upon American woman- 
hood. The Literary Club brought Mr. Hayes into 
constant association with young men of high char- 
acter and noble aims, and lured him to display the 
qualities so long hidden by his bashfulness and 
modesty. 

In 1856 he was nominated to the office of Judge of 
the Court of Common Pleas; but he declined to ac- 
cept the nomination. Two years later, the office of 
city solicitor becoming vacant, the City Council 
elected him for the unexpired term. 

In 1861, when the Rebellion broke out, he was at 
the zenith of his professional life. His rank at the 
bar was among the the first. But the news of the 
attack on Fort Sumpter found him eager to take up 
arms for the defense of his country. 

His military record was bright and illustrious. In 
October, 186 1, he was made Lieutenant-Colonel, and 
in August, 1862, promoted Colonel of the 79th Ohio 
regiment, but he refused to leave his old comrades 
and go among strangers. Subsequently, however, lie- 
was made Colonel of his old regiment. At the battle 
of South Mountain he received a wound, and while 
faint and bleeding displayed courage and fortitude 
that won admiration from all. 

Col. Hayes was detached from his regiment, after 
his recovery, to act as Brigadier-General, and placed 
in command of the celebrated Kanawha division, 
and for gallant and meritorious services in the battles 
of Winchester, Fisher's Hill and Cedar Creek, he was 
promoted Brigadier-General. He was also brevetted 
Major-General, "forgallant and distinguished services 
during the campaigns of 1S64, in West Virginia." In 
the course of his arduous services, four horses were 
shot from under him, and he was wounded four times. 

In 1S64, Gen: Hayes was elected to Congress, from 
the Second Ohio District, which had long been Dem- 
ocratic. He was not present during the campaign, 
and after his election was importuned to resign his 
commission in the army ; but he finally declared, " I 
shall never come to Washington until I can come by 
the way of Richmond." He was re-elected in 1S66. 

In 1S67, Gen Hayes was elected Governor of Ohio, 
over Hon. Allen G. Thurman, a popular Democrat. 
In 1869 was re-elected over George II. Pendleton. 
1 le was elected Governor for the third term in 18-5. 

In 1S76 he was the standard bearer of the Repub- 
lican Parly in the Presidential contest, and after a 
hard long contest was chosen President, and was in 
augurated Monday, March 5, 1875. He served his 
full term, not, hewever, with satisfaction to his party, 
but his administration was an average one. 



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AMES A. GARFIELD, twen- 
tieth President of the United 
States, was born Nov. 19, 
1S31, in the woods of Orange, 
Cuyahoga Co., O His par- 
ents were Abram and Eliza 
(Ballou) Garfield, both of New 
England ancestry and from fami- 
lies well known in the early his- 
tory of that section of our coun- 
try, but had moved to the Western 
Reserve, in Ohio, early in its settle- 
ment. 

The house in which James A. was 
born was not unlike the houses of 
poor Ohio farmers of that day. It 
was about 20x30 feet, built of logs, with the spaces be- 
tween the logs filled with clay. His father was a 
hard working farmer, and he soon had his fields 
cleared, an orchard planted, and a log barn built. 
The household comprised the father and mother and 
their four children — Mehetabel, Thomas, Mary and 
James. In May, 1S23, the father, from a cold con- 
tracted in helping to put out a forest fire, died. At 
this time James was about eighteen months old, and 
Thomas about ten years old. No one, perhaps, can 
tell how much James was indebted to his biother's 
toil and self-sacrifice during the twenty years suc- 
**\ ceeding his father's death, but undoubtedly very 
much. He now lives in Michigan, and the two sis- 
ters live in Solon, O., near their birthplace. 

The early educational advantages young Garfield 
enjoyed were very limited, yet he made the most of 
them. He labored at farm work for others, did car- 
penter work, chopped wood, or did anything that 
would bring in a few dollars to aid his widowed 



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mother in her struggles to keep the little family to 



gether. Nor was Gen. Garfield ever ashamed of his 
origin, and he never forgot the friends of his strug- 
gling childhood, youth and manhood, neither did they 
ever forget him. When in the highest seats of honor, 
the humblest fiiend of his boyhood was as kindly 
greeted as ever. The poorest laborer was sure of the 
sympathy of one who had known all the bitterness 
of want and the sweetness of bread earned by the 
sweat of the brow. He was ever the simple, plain, 
modest gentleman. 

The highest ambition of young Garfield until he 
was about sixteen years old was to be a captain of 
a vessel on Lake Erie. He was anxious to go aboard 
a vessel, which his mother strongly opposed. She 
finally consented to his going to Cleveland, with the 
understanding, however, that he should try to obtain 
some other kind of employment. He walked all the 
way to Cleveland. This was his first visit to the city. 
Afier making many applications for work, and trying 
to get aboard a lake vessel, and not meeting with 
success, he engaged as a driver for his cousin, Amos 
Letcher, on the Ohio & Pennsylvania Canal. He re- 
mained at this work but a short time when he went 
home, and attended the seminary at Chester for 
about three years, when he entered Hiram and the 
Eclectic Institute, teaching a few terms of school in 
the meantime, and doing other work. This school 
was started by the Disciples of Christ in 1850, of 
which church he was then a member. He became 
janitor and bell-ringer in order to help pay his way. 
He then became both teacher and pupil. He soon 
" exhausted Hiram " and needed more ; hence, in the 
fall of 1854, he entered Williams College, from which 
he graduated in 1856, taking one of the highest hon- 
ors of his class. He afterwards returned to Hiram 
College as its President. As above stated, he early 
united with the Christian or Diciples Church at 
Hiram, and was ever after a devoted, zealous mem- 
ber, often preaching in its pulpit and places where 
he happened to be. Dr. Noah Porter, President of 
Vale College, says of him in reference to his religion : 



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JAMES A. GARFIELD. 




" President Garfield was more than a man of 
strong moral and religious convictions. His whole 
history, from boyhood to the last, shows that duty to 
man and to God, and devotion to Christ and life and 
faith and spiritual commission were controlling springs 
of his being, and to a more than usual degree. In 
my judgment there is no more interesting feature of 
his character than his loyal allegiance to the body of 
Christians in which lie was trained, anil the fervent 
sympathy which he ever showed in their Christian 
communion. Not many of the few 'wise and mighty 
and noble who are called' show a similar loyalty to 
the less stately and cultured Christian communions 
in which they have been reared. Too often it is true 
thai as they step upward in social and political sig- 
nificance they step upward from one degree to 
another in some of the many types of fashionable 
Christianity. President Garfield adhered to the 
church of his mother, the church in which he was 
trained, and in which he served as a pillar and an 
evangelist, and yet with the largest and most unsec- 
larian charity for all 'who loveour Lord in sincerity.'" 

Mr. Garfield was united in marriage with Miss 
Lucretia Rudolph, Nov. 1 1, 1858, who proved herself 
worthy as the wife of one whom all the world loved and 
mourned. To them were born seven children, five of 
whom are still living, four boys and one girl. 

Mr. Garfield made his first political speeches in 1856, 
in Hiram and the neighboring villages, and three 
years later he began to speak at county mass-meet- 
ings, and became the favorite speaker wherever he 
was. During this year he was elected to the Ohio 
Senate. He also began to study law at Cleveland, 
and in t86i was admitted to the bar. The great 
Rebellion broke out in the early part of this year, 
and Mr. Garfield at once resolved to fight as he had 
talked, and enlisted to defend the old flag. He re- 
ceived his commission as Lieut. -Colonel of the Forty- 
second Regiment of Ohio Volunteer Infantry, Aug. 
14, 1S61. He was immediately put into active ser- 
vice, and before lie had ever seen a gun fired in action, 
was placed in command of four regiments of infantry 
and eight companies of cavalry, charged with the 
work of driving out of his native State the officer 
(Humphrey Marshall) reputed to be the ablest of 
those, not educated to war whom Kentucky had given 
to the Rebellion. This work was bravely and speed- 
ily accomplished, although against great odds. Pres- 
ident Lincoln, on his success commissioned him 
Brigadier-General, Jan. 10, 1862; and as "he had 
been the youngest man in the Ohio Senate two years 
before, so now he was the youngest General in the 
army." He was with Gen. Buell's army at Shiloh, 
in its operations around Corinth and its march through 
Alabama. He was then detailed as a memberof the 
General Court-Martial for the trial of Gen. Fitz-John 
Porter. He was then ordered to report to Gen. Rose- 
crans, and was assigned to the "Chief of Staff/ 



The military history of Gen. Garfield closed with 

jcgag. s^ =^>utjs||t|;>^ — 



his brilliant services at Chickamauga, where he won 
the stars of the Major-General. 

Without an effort on his part Gen. Garfield was 
elected to Congress in the fall of 1862 from the 
Nineteenth District of Ohio. This section of Ohio 
had been represented in Congress for sixty years 
mainly by two men — Elisha Whittlesey and Joshua 
R. Giddings. It was not without a struggle that he 
resigned his place in the army. At the time he en- 
tered Congress he was the youngest member in that 
body. There he remained by successive re- 
elections until he was elected President in 1880. 
Of his labors in Congress Senator If oar says : " Since 
the year 1864 you cannot think of a question which 
has been debated in Congress, or discussed before a 
tribunel of the American people, in regard to which 
you will not find, if you wish instruction, the argu- 
ment on one side stated, in almost every instance 
better than by anybody else, in some speech made in 
the House of Representatives or on the hustings by 
Mr. Garfield." 

Upon Jan. 14, 1880, Gen. Garfield was elected to 
the U. S. Senate, and on the eighth of June, of the 
same year, was nominated as the candidate of his 
party for President at the great Chicago Convention. 
He was elected in the following November, and on 
March 4, iSSr, was inaugurated. Probably no ad- 
ministration ever opened its existence under brighter 
auspices than that of President Garfield, and every 
day it grew in favor with the people, and by the first 
of July he had completed all the initiatory and pre- 
liminary work of his administration and was prepar- 
ing to leave the city to meet his friends at Williams 
College. While on his way and at the depot, in com- 
pany with Secretary Blaine, a man stepped behind 
him, drew a revolver, and fired directly at his back. 
The President tottered and fell, and as he did so the 
assassin fired a second shot, the bullet cutting the 
left coat sleeve of his victim, but inflicting no further 
injury. It has been very truthfully said that this was 
" the shot that was heard round the world " Never 
before in the history of the Nation had anything oc- 
curred which so nearly froze the blood of the people 
for the moment, as this awful deed. He was smit- 
ten on the brightest, gladdest day of all his life, and 
was at the summit of his power and hope. For eighty 
days, all during the hot months of July and August, 
he lingered and suffered. He, however, remained 
master of himself till the last, and by his magnificent 
bearing was teaching the country and the world the 
noblest of human lessons' — -how to live grandly in the 
very clutch of death. Great in life, lie was surpass- 
ingly great in death. He passed serenely away Sept. 
19, [883, at Elberon, N. J., on the very bank of the 
ocean, where he had been taken shortly previous. The 
world wept at his death, as it never had done on the 
death of any other man who had ever lived upon it. 
The murderer was duly tried, found guilty and exe- 
cuted, in one year after he committed the foul deed. 



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T WEN T Y- FIRST PRESIDENT. 






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HESTER A. ARTHUR, 

twenty-first President of the 

' United States, was born in 

Franklin County, Vermont, on 

i&> thefifthof October, 1810, andis 
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■--^sK-H"/ the oldest of a family of two 

sons and five daughters. His 

father was the Rev. Dr. William 

Arthur, a Baptist clergyman, who 

emigrated to this country from 

\j^ the county Antrim, Ireland, in 

his 1 8th year, and died in 1875, in 

Newtonville, near Albany, after a 

long and successful ministry. 

Young Arthur was educated at 
Union College, Schenectady, where 
he excelled in all his studies. Af- 
ter his graduation he taught school 
f ik in Vermont for two years, and at 
so the expiration of that time came to 
New York, with $500 in his pocket, 
and entered the office of ex-Judge 
E. D. Culver as student. After 
' being admitted to the bar he formed 
a partnership with his intimate friend and room-mate, 
Henry D. Gardiner, with the intention of practicing 
in the West, and for three months they roamed about 
in the Western States in search of an eligible site, 
but in the end returned to New York, where they 
hung out their shingle, and entered upon a success- 
ful career almost from the start. General Arthur 
soon afterward married the daughter of Lieutenant 



Herndon, of the United States Navy, who was lost at 
sea. Congress voted a gold medal to his widow in 
recognition of the bravery he displayed oji that occa- 
sion. Mrs. Arthur died shortly before Mr. Arthur's 
nomination to the Vice Presidency, leaving two 
children. 

Gen. Arthur obtained considerable legal celebrity 
in his first great case, the famous Lemmon suit, 
brought to recover possession of eight slaves who had 
been declared free by Judge Paine, of the Superior 
Court of New York City. It was in 1852 that Jon. 
athan Lemmon, of Virginia, went to New York with 
his slaves, intending to ship them to Texas, when 
they were discovered and freed. The Judge decided 
that they could not be held by the owner under the 
Fugitive Slave Law. A howl of rage went up from 
the South, and the Virginia Legislature authorized the 
Attorney General of that State to assist in an appeal. 
Wm. M. Evarts and Chester A. Arthur were employed 
to represent the People, and they won their case, 
which then went to the Supreme Court of the United 
States. Charles O'Conor here espoused the cause 
of the slave-holders, but he too was beaten by Messrs 
Evarts and Arthur, and a long step was taken toward 
the emancipation of the black race. 

Another great service was rendered by General 
Arthur in the same cause in 1856. Lizzie Jennings, 
a respectable colored woman, was put off a Fourth 
Avenue car with violence after she had paid her fare. 
General Arthur sued on her behalf, and secured a 
verdict of $500 damages. The next day the compa- 
ny issued an order to admit colored persons to ride 
on their cars, and the other car companies quickly 






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followed their example. Before that the Sixth Ave- 
nue Company ran .1 few special cars for colored per- 
sons and the oilier lines refused to let them ride at all. 

General Arthur was a delegate to the Convention 
at Saratoga that founded the Republican party. 
Previous to the war he was Judge-Advocate of the 
Second Brigade of the State of New York, and ( to 
ernor Morgan, of that State, appointed him Engineer- 
in-Chief of his staff. In t86i, he was made Inspec- 
tor General, and soon afterward became Quartermas- 
ter-General. In each of these offices he rendered 
great service to the Government during the war. At 
the end of Governor Morgan's term he resumed the 
practice of the law, forming a partnership with Mr. 
Ransom, and then Mr. Phelps, the District Attorney 
of New Yoik, was added to the firm. The legal prac- 
tice of this well-known firm was very large and lucra- 
tive, each of the gentlemen composing it were able 
lawyers, and possessed a splendid local reputation, if 
not indeed one of national extent. 

He always took a leading part in State and city 
liolitics. He was appointed Collector of the Port of 
New York by President Grant, Nov. 21 1872, to suc- 
ceed Thomas Murphy, and held the office until July, 
20, 1878, when he was succeeded by Collector Merritt. 

Mr. Arthur was nominated on the Presidential 
ticket, with Cen. James A. Garfield, at the famous 
National Republican Convention held at Chicago in 
June, 1880. This was perhaps the greatest political 
convention that ever assembled on the continent. It 
was composed of the leading politicians of the Re- 
publican party, all able men, and each stood firm and 
fought vigorously and with signal tenacity for their 
respective candidates that were before the conven- 
tion for the nomination. Finally Gen. Garfield re- 
ceived the nomination for President and Gen. Arthur 
for Vice-President. The campaign which followed 
was one of the most animated known in the history of 
our country. Gen. Hancock, the standard-bearer of 
the Democratic party, was a popular man, and his 
party made a valiant fight for his election. 

Finally the election came and the country's choice 
was Garfield and Arthur. They were inaugurated 
March 4, 1881, as President and Vice-President. 
A few months only had passed ere the newly chosen 
President was the victim of the assassin's bullet. Then 
came terrible weeks of suffering, — those- moments of 
anxious suspense, when the hearts of all civilized na 




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tions were throbbing in unison, longing for the re- 
covery of the noble, the good President. The remark- 
able patience that he manifested during those hours 
and weeks, and even months, of the most terrible suf- 
fering man has often been called upon to endure, was 
seemingly more than human. It was certainly God- 
like. I luring all this period of deepest anxiety Mr. 
Arthur's every move was'watched, and be it said to his 
credit that his every action displayed only an earnest 
desire that the suffering Garfield might recover, to 
serve the remainder of the term he had so auspi- 
ciously begun. Not a selfish feeling was manifested 
111 deed or look of this man, even though the most 
honored iiosition in the world was at any moment 
likely to fall to him. 

At last God in his mercy relieved President Gar- 
field from further suffering, and the world, as never 
before in its history over the death of any other 
man, wept at his bier. Then it became the duty of 
the Vice President to assume the responsibilities of 
the high office, and he took the oath in New York, 
Sept. 20, 1 88 1. The position was an embarrassing &. 
one to him, made doubly so from the facts that all 1 
eyes were on him, anxious to know what he would do, <& 
what policy he would pursue, and who he would se- j 
lect as advisers. The duties of the office had been \^. 
greatly neglected during the President's long illness, * N 
and many important measures were to be immediately ( 1) 
decided by him; and still farther to embarrass him lie 
did not fail to realize under what circumstances he 
became President, and knew the feelings of many on 
this point. Under these trying circumstances President 
Arthur took the reins of the Government in his own 
hands ; and, as embarrassing as were the condition of 
affairs, he has happily surprised t he Nation, acting so 
justly, so wisely, so well, that but few have criticised 
his administration. Should he continue during the 
remainder of his term to pursue the wise policy he 
has followed thus far, we believe President Arthur's 
administration will go down in history as one of the 
wisest and most satisfactory our country has ever 
enjoyed. His highest ambition seems to lie to do his 
duty to the whole Nation, even to the sacrifice of his 
warmest personal friends. With the good of the 
people at heart, and guided by the wisdom already 
displayed, he will surprise his opponents, gratify his 
friends, and bless the American Republic, during 
tin years he occupies the Presidential (hair. 




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TWRNTY-SECOND PRESIDENT. 



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TEPHEN GROVER CLEVE- 
LAND, the twenty- second Pres- 
ident of the United States, was 
born in 1837, in the obscure 
town of Caldwell, Essex Co., 
N. J., and in a little two-and-a- 
half-story white house which is still 
standing, characteristically to mark 
the humble birth-place of one of 
America's great men in striking con- 
trast with the Old World, where all 
men high in office must be high in 
origin and born in the cradle of 
wealth. When the subject of this 
sketch was three years of age, his 
father, who was a Presbyterian min- 
ister, with a large family and a small salary, moved, 
by way of the Hudson River and Erie Canal, to 
Fayetteville, in search of an increased income and a 
larger field of work. Fayetteville was then the most 
straggling of country villages, about five miles from 
Pompey Hill, where Governor Seymour was born. 

At the last mentioned place young Grover com- 
menced going to school in the "good, old-fashioned 
way," and presumably distinguished himself after the 
manner of all village boys, in doing the things he 
ought not to do. Such is the distinguishing trait of 
all geniuses and independent thinkers. When he 
arrived at the age of 14 years, he had outgrown the 
capacity of the village school and expressed a most 



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emphatic desire to be sent to an academy. To this 
his father decidedly objected. Academies in those 
days cost money; besides, his father wanted him to 
become self-supporting by the quickest possible 
means, and this at that time in Fayetteville seemed 
to be a position in a country store, where his father 
and the large family on his hands had considerable 
influence. Grover was to be paid $50 for his services 
the first year, and if he proved trustworthy he was to 
receive $100 the second year. Here the lad com- * 
menced his career as salesman, and in two years he 
had earned so good a reputation for trustworthiness 
that his employers desired to retain him for an in- 
definite length of time. Otherwise he did not ex- 
hibit as yet any particular " flashes of genius " or 
eccentricities of talent. He was simply a good boy. 
But instead of remaining with this firm in Fayette- 
ville, he went with the family in their removal to 
Clinton, where he had an opportunity of attending a 
high school. Here he industriously pursued his 
studies until the family removed with him to a point 
on Black River known as the " Holland Patent," a 
village of 500 or 600 people, 15 miles north of Utica, 
N". Y. At this place his father died, after preaching 
but three Sundays. This event broke up the family, 
and Grover set out for New York City to accept, at a 
small salary, the position of " under-teacher " in an 
asylum for the blind. He taught faithfully for two 
years, and although he obtained a good reputation in 
this capacity, he concluded that teaching was not his 



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calling for life, and, reversing the traditional order, 
he left the city to seek his fortune, instead of going 

rto a city. He first thought of Cleveland, Ohio, as 
there was some charm in that name for him; but 
before proceeding to that place he went to Buffalo to 
ask the advice of his uncle, Lewis F. Allan, a noted 
stock-breeder of that place. The latter did not 
speak enthusiastically. "What is it you want to do, 
my boy?" he asked. "Well, sir, I want to study 
law," was the reply. " Good gracious ! " remarked 
the old gentleman ; " do you, indeed ? What ever put 
that into your head? How much money have you 

got?" "Well, sir, to tell the truth, I haven't got 

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any. 

After a long consultation, his uncle offered him a 
place temporarily as assistant herd-keeper, at $50 a 
year, while he could "look around." One day soon 
afterward he boldly walked into the office of Rogers, 
Bowen & Rogers, of Buffalo, and told them what he 
wanted. A number of young men were already en- 
gaged in the office, but Grover's persistency won, and 
he was finally permitted to come as an office boy and 
have the use of the law library, for the nominal sum 
of $3 or $4 a week. Out of this he had to pay for 
his board and washing. The walk to and from his 
uncle's was a long and rugged one; and, although 
the first winter was a memorably severe one, his 
shoes were out of repair and his overcoat — he had 
none — yet he was nevertheless prompt and regular. 
On the first day of his service here, his senior em- 
ployer threw down a copy of Blackstone before him 
with a bang that made the dust fly, saying "That's 
where they all begin." A titter ran around the little 
circle of clerks and students, as they thought that 
was enough to scare young Grover out of his plans ; 
but in due time he mastered that cumbersome volume. 
Then, as ever afterward, however, Mr. Cleveland 
exhibited a talent for executiveness rather than for 
chasing principles through all their metaphysical 
possibilities. " Let us quit talking and go and do 
it," was practically his motto. 

The first public office to which Mr. Cleveland was 
elected was that of Sheriff of Erie Co., N. Y., in 
which Buffalo is situated; and in such capacity it fell 
to his duty to inflict capital punishment upon two 
criminals. In 1881 he was elected Mayor of the 
City of Buffalo, on the Democratic ticket, with es- 
pecial reference to the bringing about certain reforms 



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in the administration of the municipal affairs of that 
city. In this office, as well as that of Sheriff, his 
performance of duty has generally been considered 
fair, with possibly a few exceptions which were fer- 
reted out and magnified during the last Presidential 
campaign. As a specimen of his plain language in 
a veto message, we quote from one vetoing an iniqui- 
tous street-cleaning contract: "This is a time for 
plain speech, and my objection to your action shall 
be plainly stated. I regard it as the culmination of 
a most bare-faced, impudent and shameless scheme 
to betray the interests of the people and to worse 
than squander the people's money." The New York 
Sun afterward very highly commended Mr. Cleve- 
land's administration as Mayor of Buffalo, and there- 
upon recommended him for Governor of the Empire 
State. To the latter office he was elected in 1882, 
and his administration of the affairs of State was 
generally satisfactory. The mistakes he made, if 
any, were made very public throughout the nation 
after he was nominated for President of the United 
States. For this high office he was nominated July 
11, 1884, by the National Democratic Convention at 
Chicago, when other competitors were Thomas F. 
Bayard, Roswell P. Flower, Thomas A. Hendricks, 
Benjamin F. Butler, Allen G. Thurman, etc.; and he 
was elected by the people, by a majority of about a 
thousand, over the brilliant and long-tried Repub- 
lican statesman, James G. Blaine. President Cleve- 
land resigned his office as Governor of New York in 
January, 1885, in order to prepare for his duties as 
the Chief Executive of the United States, in which 
capacity his term commenced at noon on the 4th of 
March, 1885. For his Cabinet officers he selected 
the following gentlemen: For Secretary of State, 
Thomas F. Bayard, of Delaware ; Secretary of the 
Treasury, Daniel Manning, of New York ; Secretary 
of War, William C. Endicott, of Massachusetts ; 
Secretary of the Navy, William C. Whitney, of New 
York ; Secretary of the Interior, L. Q. C. Lamar, of 
Mississippi; Postmaster-General, William F. Vilas, 
of Wisconsin ; Attorney-General, A. H. Garland, of 
Arkansas. 

The silver question precipitated a controversy be- 
tween those who were in favor of the continuance of 
silver coinage and those who were opposed, Mr. 
Cleveland answering for the latter, even before his 
inauguration. 



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F HAURACH BOND, the first 
Governor of Illinois after its 
organization as a State, serving 
from 1818 to 1822, was born in 
Frederick County, Maryland, 
in the year 1773, and was 
raised a farmer on his father's 
intation, receiving only a plain 
lglish education. He emigrated 
this State in 1794, when it was a 
of the "Northwest Territory," 
itinuing in the vocation in which 
had been brought up in his native 
State, in the " New Design," near 
Eagle Creek, in what is now Monroe 
County. He served several terms as 
a member of the General Assembly 
of Indiana Territory, after it was organized as such, 
and in 1812-14 he was a Delegate to the Twelfth 
and Thirteenth Congresses, taking his seat Dec. 3, 
r8i2, and serving until Oct. 3, [814. These were 
the times, the reader will recollect, when this Gov- 
ernment had its last struggle with Great Britain. 
The year 1812 is also noted in the history of this 
State as that in which the first Territorial Legislature 
was held. It convened at Kaskaskia, Nov. 25, and 
adjourned Dec. 26, following. 

While serving as Delegate to Congress, Mr. Bond 
was instrumental in procuring the right of pre-emp- 
tion on the public domain. On the expiration of his 
term at Washington he was appointed Receiver of 
Public Moneys at Kaskaskia, then the capital of the 
Territory. In company with John G. Corny ges, 




Thomas H. Harris, Charles Slade, Michael Jones, 
Warren Brown, Edward Humphries and Charles W. 
Hunter, he became a proprietor of the site of the 
initial city of Cairo, which they hoped, from its favor- 
able location at the junction of the two great 
rivers near the center of the Great West, would 
rapidly develop into a metropolis. To aid the enter- 
prise, they obtained a special charter from the Legis- 
lature, incorporating both the City and the Bank of 
Cairo. 

In 181 8 Mr. Bond was elected the first Governor 
of the State of Illinois, being inaugurated Oct. 6, 
that year, which was several weeks before Illinois 
was actually admitted. The facts are these: In 
January, 18 18, the Territorial Legislature sent a peti- 
tion to Congress for the admission of Illinois as a 
State, Nathaniel Pope being then Delegate. The 
petition was granted, fixing the northern line of the 
State on the latitude of the southern extremity of 
Lake Michigan; but the bill was afterward so amend- 
ed as to extend this line to its present latitude. In 
July a convention was called at Kaskaskia to draft a 
constitution, which, however, was not submitted to 
the people. By its provisions, supreme judges, pros- 
ecuting attorneys, county and circuit judges, record- 
ers and justices of the peace were all to be appointed 
by the Governor or elected by the Legislature. This 
constitution was accepted by Congress Dec. 30. At 
that time Illinois comprised but eleven counties, 
namely, Randolph, Madison, Gallatin, Johnson, 
Pope, Jackson, Crawford, Bond, Union, Washington 
and Franklin, the northern portion of the State be- 
ing mainly in Madison County. Thus it appears 
that Mr. Bond was honored by the naming of a 



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county before he was elected Governor. The present 
county of Bond is of small limitations, about 60 to 80 
miles south of Springfield. For Lieutenant Governor 
the people chose Pierre Menard, a prominent and 
worthy Frenchman, after whom a county in this State 
is named. In this election there were no opposition 
candidates, as the popularity of these men had made 
their promotion to the chief offices of the Slate., even 
before the constitution was drafted, a foregone con- 
clusion. 

The principal points that excited the people in 
reference to political issues at this period were local 
or "internal improvements," as they were called, 
State banks, location of the capital, slavery and the 
personal characteristics of the proposed candidates. 
Mr. Bond represented the " Convention party," for 
introducing slavery into the State, supported by Elias 
K.eit Kane, his Secretary of State, and John Mc- 
Lean, while Nathaniel Pope and John P. Cook led 
the anti-slavery element. The people, however, did 
not become very much excited over this issue until 
1820, when the famous Missouri Compromise was 
adopted by Congress, limiting slavery to the south 
of the parallel of 36° 30' except in Missouri. While 
this measure settled the great slavery controversy, 
so far as the average public sentiment was tempor- 
arily concerned, until 1854, when it was repealed 
under the leadership of Stephen A. Douglas, the issue 
as considered locally in this State was not decided 
until 1824, after a most furious campaign. (See 
sketch of Gov. Coles.) The ticket of 181 8 was a 
compromise one, Bond representing (moderately) the 
pro-slavery sentiment and Menard the anti-slavery. 

An awkward element in the State government 
under Gov. Bond's administration, was the imperfec- 
tion of the State constitution. The Convention 
wished to have Elijah C. Berry for the fust Auditor 
of Public Accounts, but, as it was believed that the 
new Governor would not appoint him to the office, 
the Convention declared in a schedule that " an 
auditor of public accounts, an attorney general and 
such other officers of the State as may be necessary, 
may be appointed by the General Assembly." The 
Constitution, as it stood, vested a very large appoint- 
ing power in the Governor ; but for the purpose of 
getting one man into office, a total change was made, 
and the power vested in the Legislature. Of this 
provision the Legislature took advantage, and de- 



clared that State's attorneys, canal commissioners, 
bank directors, etc., were all " officers of the State" 
and must therefore be appointed by itself independ- 
ently of the Governor. 

During Gov. Bond's administration a general law 
was passed for the incorporation of academies and 
towns, and one authorizing lotteries. The session of 
1822 authorized the Governor to appoint commis- 
sioners, to act in conjunction with like commissioners 
appointed by the State of Indiana, to report on the 
practicability and expediency of improving the navi- 
gation of the Wabash River; also inland navigation 
generally. Many improvements were recommended, 
some of which have been feebly worked at even till 
the present day, those along the Wabash being of no 
value. Also, during Gov. Bond's term of office, the 
capital of the State was removed from Kaskaskia to 
Vandalia. In 1S20 a law was passed by Congress 
authorizing this State to open a canal through the 
public lands. The State appointed commissioners 
10 explore the route and prepare the necessary sur- 
veys and estimates, preparatory to its execution; 
but, being unable out of its own resources to defray 
the expenses of the undertaking, it was abandoned 
until some time after Congress made the grant of 
land for the purpose of its construction. 

On the whole, Gov. Bond's administration was 
fairly good, not being open to severe criticism from 
any party. In 1824, two years after the expiration 
of his term of office, he was brought out as a candi- 
date for Congress against the formidable John P. 
Cook, but received only 4,374 votes to 7,460 for the 
latter. Gov. Bond was no orator, but had made 
many fast friends by a judicious bestowment of his 
gubernatorial patronage, and these worked zealously 
for him in the campaign. 

In 1827 ex-Gov. Bond was appointed by the Leg- 
islature, with Wm, P. McKee and Dr. Gershom 
Jayne, as Commissioners to locate a site for a peni- 
tentiary on the Mississippi at or near Alton. 

Mr. Bond was of a benevolent and convivial dis- 
position, a man of shrewd observation and clear ap- 
preciation of events. His person was erect, stand- 
ing six feet in height, and after middle life became 
portly, weighing 200 pounds. His features were 
strongly masculine, complexion dark, hair jet and • 
eyes hazel ; was a favorite with the ladies. He died 
April 1 1, 1S30, in peace and contentment. 



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DWARD COLES, second 
Governor of Illinois, 1823- 
6, was born Dec. 15, 1786, 
in Albemarle Co., Va., on 
the old family estate called 
" Enniscorth y," on the 
Green Mountain. His fath- 
er, John Coles, was a Colonel in the 
Revolutionary War. Having been fit- 
ted for college by private tutors, he 
was sent to Hampden Sidney, where 
he remained until the autumn of 1805, 
when he was removed to William and 
Mary College, at Williamsburg, Va. 
This college he'left in the summer of 
iSo7,ashort time before the final and graduating 
examination. Among his classmates were Lieut. 
Gen. Scott, President John Tyler, Wm. S. Archer, 
United States Senator from Virginia, and Justice 
Baldwin, of the United States Supreme Court. The 
President of the latter college, Bishop Madison, was 
a cousin of President James Madison, and that cir- 
cumstance was the occasion of Mr. Coles becoming 
personally acquainted with the President and re- 
ceiving a position as his private secretary, 1809-15. 
•The family of Coles was a prominent one in Vir- 
ginia, and their mansion was the seat of the old- 
fashioned Virginian hospitality. It was visited by 
such notables as Patrick Henry, Jefferson, Madison, 
Monroe, the Randolphs, Tazewell, Wirt, etc. At the 
age of 23, young Coles found himself heir to a plant- 
ation and a considerable number of slaves. Ever 
since his earlier college days his attention had been 
drawn to the question of slavery. He read every- 




thing on the subject that came in his way, and 
listened to lectures on the rights of man. The more 
he reflected upon the subject, the more impossible 
was it for him to reconcile the immortal declaration 
"that all men are born free and equal " with the 
practice of slave-holding. He resolved, therefore, to 
free his slaves the first opportunity, and even remove 
his residence to a free State. One reason which de- 
termined him to accept the appointment as private 
secretary to Mr. Madison was because he believed 
that through the acquaintances he could make at 
Washington he could better determine in what part 
of the non-slaveholding portion of the Union he would 
prefer to settle. 

The relations between Mr. Coles and President 
Madison, as well as Jefferson and other distinguished 
men, were of a very friendly character, arising from 
the similarity of their views on the question of slavery 
and their sympathy for each other in holding doc- 
trines so much at variance with the prevailing senti- 
ment in their own State. 

In 1857, he resigned his secretaryship and spent a 
portion of the following autumn in exploring the 
Northwest Territory, for the purpose of finding a lo- 
cation and purchasing lands on which to settle his 
negroes. He traveled with a horse and buggy, with 
an extra man and horse for emergencies, through 
many parts of Ohio, Indiana, Illinois and Missouri, 
determining finally to settle in Illinois. At this time, 
however, a misunderstanding arose between our 
Government and Russia, and Mr. Coles was selected 
to repair to St. Petersburg on a special mission, bear- 
ing important papers concerning the matter at issue. 
The result was a conviction of the Emperor (Alex- 



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ander) of the error committed by his minister at 
Washington, and the consequent withdrawal of the 
the latter from the post. On his return, Mr. Coles 
visited other parts of Europe, especially Paris, where 
he was introduced to Gen. Lafayette. 

In the spring of 1810, he removed with all his 
negroes from Virginia to Edwardsville, 111., with the 
intention of giving them their liberty. He did not 
make known to them his intention until one beautiful 
morning in April, as they were descending the Ohio 
River. He lashed all the boats together and called 
all the negroes on deck and made them a short ad- 
dress, concluding his remarks by so expressing him- 
self that by a turn of a sentence he proclaimed in 
the shortest and fullest manner that they were no 
longer slaves, but free as he was and were at liberty 
to proceed with him or go ashore at their pleas- 
ure. A description of the effect upon the negroes is 
best desciibed in his own language : 

" The effect upon them was electrical. They stared 
at me and then at each other, as if doubting the ac- 
curacy or reality of what they heard. In breathless 
silence they stood before me, unable to' utter a word, 
but with countenances beaming with expression which 
no words could convey, and which no language 
can describe. As they began to see the truth of 
what they had heard, and realize their situation, there 
came on a kind of hysterical, giggling laugh. After 
a pause of intense and unutterable emotion, bathed 
in tears, and with tremulous voices, they gave vent to 
their gratitude and implored the blessing of God 
on me." 

Before landing he gave them a general certificate 
of freedom, and afterward conformed more particu- 
larly with the law of this State requiring that each 
individual should have a certificate. This act of 
Mr. Coles, all the more noble and heroic considering 
the overwhelming pro-slavery influences surrounding 
him, has challenged the admiration of every philan- 
thropist of modern times. 

March 5, 1810, President Monroe appointed Mr. 
Coles Registrar of the Land Office at Edwardsville, 
at that time one of the principal land offices in the 
State. While acting in this capacity and gaining 
many friends by his politeness and general intelli- 
gence, the greatest struggle that ever occurred in 
Illinois on the slavery question culminated in the 
furious contest characterizing the campaigns and 
elections of 1822-4. Li tne summer of 1823, when a 
new Governor was to be elected to succeed Mr. 
Bond, the pro-slavery element divided into factions, 
putting forward for the executive office Joseph 
Phillips, Chief Justice of the State, Thomas C. 
Browne and Gen. Junes B. Moore, of the State Mil- 
itia. The anti-slavery element united upon Mr. 
Coles, and, after one of the most bitter campaigns, 
succeeded in electing him as Governor. His plural- 
ity over Judge Phillips was only 59 in a total vote of 



over 8,000. The Lieutenant Governor was elected 
by the slavery men. Mr. Coles' inauguration speech 
was marked by calmness, deliberation and such a 
wise expression of appropriate suggestions as to 
elicit the sanction of all judicious politicians. But 
he compromised not with evil. In his message to 
the Legislature, the seat of Government being then 
at Vandalia, he strongly urged the abrogation of the 
modified form of slavery which then existed in this 
State, contrary to the Ordinance of 1787. His posi- 
tion on this subject seems the more remarkable, when 
it is considered that he was a minority Governor, the 
population of Illinois being at that time almost ex- 
clusively from slave-holding States and by a large 
majority in favor of the perpetuation of that old relic 
of barbarism. The Legislature itself was, of course, 
a reflex of the popular sentiment, and a majority of 
them were led on by fiery men in denunciations of 
the conscientious Governor, and in curses loud and 
deep upon him and all his friends. Some of the 
public men, indeed, went so far as to head a sort of 
mob, or " shiveree " party, who visited the residence 
of the Governor and others at Vandalia and yelled 
and groaned and spat fire. 

The Constitution, not establishing or permitting 
slavery in this State, was thought therefore to be 
defective by the slavery politicians, and they desired 
a State Convention to be elected, to devise and sub- 
mit a new Constitution; and the dominant politics 
of the day was "Convention" and "anti-Conven- 
tion." Both parties issued addresses to the people, 
Gov. Coles himself being the author of the address 
published by the latter party. This address revealed 
the schemes of the conspirators in a masterly man- 
ner. It is difficult for us at this distant day to esti- 
mate the critical and extremely delicate situation in 
which the Governor was placed at that time. 

Our hero maintained himself honorably and with 
supreme dignity throughout his administration, and 
in his honor a county in this State is named. He 
was truly a great man, and those who lived in 
this State during his sojourn here, like those who 
live at the base of the mountain, were too near to see 
and recognize the greatness that overshadowed them. 

Mr. Coles was married Nov. 28, 1833, by Bishop 
De Lancey, to Miss Sally Logan Roberts, a daughter 
of Hugh Roberts, a descendant of Welsh ancestry, 
who canii to this country with Win. Penn in 1682. 

After the expiration of his term of service, Gov. 
Coles continued his residence in Edwardsville, sup- 
erintending his farm in the vicinity. He was fond 
of agriculture, and was the founder of the first agri- 
cultural society in the State. On account of ill 
health, however, and having no family to tie him 
down, he spent much of his time in Eastern cities. 
About 1832 he changed his residence to Philadel- 
phia, where he died July 7, 1868, and is buried at 
Woodland, near that city. 



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GO VERNORS OF ILLINOIS. 



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INI AN EDWARDS, Governor 
from 1S27 to 1830, was a son 
of Benjamin Edwards, and 
was born in Montgomery 
j/o County, Maryland, in March, 
1775. His domestic train- 
ing was well fitted to give 
his mind strength, firmness and 
honorable principles, and a good 
foundation was laid for the elevated 
character to which he afterwards 
attained. His parents were Bap- 
tists, and very strict in their moral 
principles. His education in early 
youth was in company with and 
partly under the tuition of Hon. Wm. 
Wirt, whom his father patronized 
and who was more than two years 
older. An intimacy was thus 
formed between them which was lasting for life. He 
was further educated at Dickinson College, at Car- 
lisle, Pa. He next commenced the study of law, but 
before completing His course he moved to Nelson 
County, Ky., to open a farm for his father and to 
purchase homes and locate lands for his brothers and 
sisters. Here he fell in the company of dissolute 
companions, and for several years led the life of a 
spendthrift. He was, however, elected to the Legis- 
lature of Kentucky as the Representative of Nelson 
County before he was 2 1 years of age, and was re- 
elected by an almost unanimous vote. 



In 1 7 98 he was licensed to practice law, and the 
following year was admitted to the Courts of Tennes- 
see. About this time he left Nelson County for 
Russellville, in Logan County, broke away from his 
dissolute companions, commenced a reformation and 
devoted himself to severe and laborious study. He 
then began to rise rapidly in his profession, and soon 
became an eminent lawyer, and inside of four years 
he filled in succession the offices of Presiding Judge 
of the General Court, Circuit Judge, fourth Judge of 
the Court of Appeals and Chief Justice of the State, 
— all before he was 32 years of age ! In addition, in 
r8o2, he received a commission as Major of a battal- 
ion of Kentucky militia, and in 1804 was chosen a 
Presidential Elector, on the Jefferson and Clinton 
ticket. In 1806 he was a candidate for Congress, 
but withdrew on being promoted to the Court of 
Appeals. 

Illinois was organized as a separate Territory in 
the spring of r8og, when Mr. Edwards, then Chief 
Justice of the Court of Appeals in Kentucky, received 
from President Madison the appointment as Gover- 
nor of the new Territory, his commission bearing date 
April 24, 1S09. Edwards arrived at Kaskaskia in 
June, and on the r ith of that month took the oath of 
office. At the same time he was appointed Superin- 
tendent of the United States Saline, this Government 
interest then developing into considerable proportions 
in Southern Illinois. Although during the first three 
years of his administration he had the power to make 
new counties and appoint all the officers, yet he always 
allowed the people of each county, by an informal 






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vote, to select their own officers, both civil and mili- 
tary. The noted John J. Crittenden, afterward 
United States Senator from Kentucky, was appointed 
by Gev. Edwards to the office of Attorney General of 
the Territory, which office was accepted for a short 
time only. 

The Indians in iSio committing sundry depreda- 
tions in the Territory, crossing the Mississippi from 
the Territory of Louisiana, a long correspondence fol- 
lowed between the respective Governors concerning 
the remedies, which ended in a council with the sav- 
ages at Peoria in 1812, and a fresh interpretation of 
the treaties. Peoria was depopulated by these de- 
predations, and was not re-settled for many years 
afterward. 

As Gov. Edwards' term of office expired by law in 
1 81 2, he was re-appointed for another term of three 
years, and again in 1 8 15 for a third term, serving 
until the organization of the State in the fall of 1S18 
and the inauguration of Gov. Bond. At this time 
ex-Gov. Edwards was sent to the United States 
Senate, his colleague being Jesse B. Thomas. As 
Senator, Mr. Edwards took a conspicuous part, and 
acquitted himself honorably in all the measures that 
came up in that body, being well posted, an able de- 
bater and a conscientious statesman. He thought 
seriously of resigning this situation in 182 1, but was 
persuaded by his old friend, Wm. Wirt, and others to 
continue in office, which he did to the end of the 
term. 

He was then appointed Minister to Mexico by 
President Monroe. About this time, it appears that 
Mr. Edwards saw suspicious signs in the conduct of 
Wm. H. Crawford, Secretary of the United States 
Treasury, and an ambitious candidate for the Presi- 
dency, and being implicated by the latter in some of 
his statements, he resigned his Mexican mission in 
order fully to investigate the charges. The result 
was the exculpation of Mr. Edwards. 

Pro-slavery regulations, often termed "Black Laws," 
disgraced the statute books of both the Territory and 
the State of Illinois during the whole of his career in 
this commonwealth, and Mr. Edwards always main- 
tained the doctrines of freedom, and was an important 
actor in the great struggle which ended in a victory 
for his party in 1824. 

In 1826-7 l ' le Winnebago and other Indians com- 
mitted some depredations in the northern part of the 





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State, and the white settlers, who desired the lands 
and wished to exasperate the savages into an evacu- 
ation of the country, magnified the misdemeanors of 
the aborigines and thereby produced a hostility be- 
tween the races so great as to precipitate a little war, 
known in history as the "Winnebago War." A few 
chases and skirmishes were had, when Gen. Atkinson 
succeeded in capturing Red Bird, the Indian chief, 
and putting him to death, thus ending the contest, at 
least until the troubles commenced which ended in 
the "Black Hawk War " of 1832. In the interpre- 
tation of treaties and execution of their provisions 
Gov. Edwards had much vexatious work to do. The 
Indians kept themselves generally within the juris- 
diction of Michigan Territory, and its Governor, 
Lewis Cass, was at a point so remote that ready cor- 
respondence with him was difficult or impossible. 
Gov. Edwards' administration, however, in regard to 
the protection of the Illinois frontier, seems to have 
been very efficient and satisfactory.* 

For a considerable portion of his time after his re- 
moval to Illinois, Gov. Edwards resided upon his 
farm near Kaskaskia, which he had well stocked with 
horses, cattle and sheep from Kentucky, also with 
fruit-trees, grape-vines and shrubbery. He estab- 
lished saw and grist-mills, and engaged extensively 
in mercantile business, having no less than eight or ten 
stores in this State and Missouri. Notwithstanding 
the arduous duties of his office, he nearly always pur- 
chased the goods himself with which to supply the 
stores. Although not a regular practitioner of medi- 
cine, he studied the healing art to a considerable ex- 
tent, and took great pleasure in prescribing for, and 
taking care of, the sick, generally without charge. 
He was also liberal to the poor, several widows and 
ministers of the gospel becoming indebted to him 
even for their homes. 

He married Miss Elvira Lane, of Maryland, in 
1803, and they became the affectionate parents of 
several children, one of whom, especially, is well 
known to the people of the " Prairie State," namely, 
Ninian Wirt Edwards, once the Superintendent of 
Public Instruction and still a resident of Springfield. 
Gov. Edwards resided at and in the vicinity of Kas- 
kaskia from 1809 to 1818; in Edwardsville (named 
after him) from that time to 1824; and from the lat- 
ter date at Belleville, St. Clair County, until his 
death, July 20, 1833, of Asiatic cholera. Edwards 
County is also named in his honor. 



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*f<)HN REYNOLDS, Governor 1831- 
4, was born in Montgomery Coun- 
ty, Pennsylvania, Feb. 26, 1788. 
His father, Robert Reynolds and 
his mother, nee Margaret Moore, 
were both natives of Ireland, from 
which country they emigrated to 
the United States in 1785, land- 
ing at Philadelphia. The senior 
Reynolds entertained an undying 
hostility to the British Govern- 
ment. When the subject of this 
sketch was about six months old, 
his parents emigrated with him to 
Tennessee, where many of their 
relatives had already located, at the base of the 
Copper Ridge Mountain, about 14 miles northeast of 
the present city of Knoxville. There they were ex- 
posed to Indian depredations, and were much molest- 
ed by them. In 1794 they moved into the interior 
of the State. They were poor, and brought up their 
children to habits of manual industry. 

In 1800 the family removed to Kaskaskia, 111., with 
eight horses and two wagons, encountering many 
hardships on the way. Here young Reynolds passed 
the most of his childhood, while his character began 
to develop, the most prominent traits of which were 
ambition and energy. He also adopted the principle 
and practice of total abstinence from intoxicating 
liquors. In 1807 the family made another removal, 



this time to the " Goshen Settlement," at the foot of 
the Mississippi bluffs three or four miles southwest 
of Edwardsville. 

On arriving at his 20th year, Mr. Reynolds, seeing 
that he must look about for his own livelihood and 
not yet having determined what calling to pursue, 
concluded first to attend college, and he accordingly 
went to such an institution of learning, near Knox- 
ville, Tenn., where he had relatives. Imagine his 
diffidence, when, after passing the first 20 years of 
liis life without ever having seen a carpet, a papered 
wall or a Windsor chair, and never having lived in a 
shingle-roofed house, he suddenly ushered himself 
into the society of the wealthy in the vicinity of 
Knoxville! He attended college nearly two years, 
going through the principal Latin authors; but it 
seems that he, like the rest of the world in modern 
times, had but very little use for his Latin in after 
life. He always failed, indeed, to exhibit any good 
degree of literary discipline. He commenced the 
study of law in Knoxville, but a pulmonary trouble 
came on and compelled him to change his mode 
of life. Accordingly he returned home and re- 
cuperated, and in 18 r 2 resumed his college and 
law studies at Knoxville. In the fall of 181 2 he was 
admitted to the Bar at Kaskaskia. About this time- 
he also learned the French language, which he 
practiced with pleasure in conversation with his 
family for many years. He regarded this language 
as being superior to all others for social intercourse. 



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JOHN REYNOLDS. 



From his services in the West, in the war of 1S12, 
he obtained the sobriquet of the " Old Ranger." He 
was Orderly Sergeant, then Judge Advocate. 

Mr. Reynolds opened his first law office in the 
winter and spring of 1 814, in the French village of 
Cahokia, then the capital of St. Clair County. 

In the fall of 1818 he was elected an Associate 
Justice upon the Supreme Bench by the General 
Assembly. In 1825 he entered more earnestly than 
ever into the practice of law, and the very next year 
was elected a member of the Legislature, where he 
acted independently of all cliques and private inter- 
ests. In 1S28 the Whigs and Democrats were for 
the first time distinctively organized as such in Illi- 
nois, and the usual party bitterness grew up and 
raged on all sides, while Mr. Reynolds preserved a 
judicial calmness and moderation. The real animus 
of the campaign was " Jackson " and " anti- Jackson," 
the former party carrying the State. 

In August, 1830, Mr. Reynolds was elected Gov- 
ernor, amid great excitement. Installed in office, he 
did all within his power to advance the cause of edu- 
cation, internal improvements, the Illinois & Mich- 
igan Canal, the harbor at Chicago, settling the coun- 
try, etc.; also recommended the winding up of the 
State Bank, as its affairs had become dangerously 
complicated. In his national politics, he was a 
moderate supporter of General Jackson. But the 
most celebrated event of his gubernatorial admin- 
istration was the Black Hawk War, which occurred 
in 1832. He called out the militia and prosecuted 
the contest with commendable diligence, appearing 
in person on the battle-grounds during the most 
critical periods. He was recognized by the President 
as Major-General, and authorized by him to mike 
treaties with the Indians. By the assistance of the 
general Government the war was terminated without 
much bloodshed, but after many serious fights. This 
war, as well as everything else, was materially re- 
tarded by the occurrence of Asiatic cholera in the 
West. This was its first appearance here, and was 
the next event in prominence during Gov. Reynolds' 
term. 

South Carolina nullification coming up at this time, 
it was heartily condemned by both President Jackson 
and Gov. Reynolds, who took precisely the same 
grounds as the Unionists in the last war. 

On the termination of his gubernatorial term in 
1834, Gov. Reynolds was elected a Member of Con- 
gress, still considering himself a backwoodsman, as 
he had scarcely been outside of the State since he 
became of age, and had spent nearly all his youthful 
days in the wildest region of the frontier. His first 
move in Congress was to adopt a resolution that in 
all elections made by the House for offi crs the votes 
should be given viva voce, each member in his place 
naming aloud the person for whom he votes. This 
created considerable heated discussion, but was es- 




sentially adopted, and remained the controlling prin- 
ciple for many years. The ex-Governor was scarcely 
absent from his seat a single day, during eight ses- 
sions of Congress, covering a period of seven years, 
and he never vacillated in a party vote; but he failed 
to get the Democratic party to foster his " National 
Road" scheme. He says, in " My Own Times " (a 
large autobiography he published), that it was only 
by rigid economy that he avoided insolvency while in 
Washington. During his sojourn in that city he was 
married, to a lady of the place. 

In 1837, while out of Congress, and in company 
with a tew others, he built the first railroad in the 
Mississippi Valley, namely, one about six miles long, 
leading from his coal mine in the Mississippi bluff to 
the bank of the river opposite St. Louis. Having not 
the means to purchase a locomotive, they operated it 
by horse-power. The next spring, however, the com- 
pany sold out, at great sacrifice. 

In 1839 the ex-Governor was appointed one of the 
Canal Commissioners, and authorized to borrow 
money to prosecute the enterprise. Accord' ngly, he 
repaired to Philadelphia and succeeding in obtaining 
a million dollars, which, however, was only a fourth 
of what was wanted. The same year he and his 
wife made at our of Europe. This year, also, Mr. 
Reynolds had the rather awkward little responsibility 
of introducing to President Van Buren the noted 
Mormon Prophet, Joseph Smith, as a " Latter-Day 
Saint!" 

In 1846 Gov. Reynolds was elected a member of 
the Legislature from St. Clair County, more particu- 
larly for the purpose of obtaining a feasible charter 
for a macadamized road from Belleville to St. Louis, 
a distance of nearly 14 miles. This was immediately 
built, and was the first road of the kind in the State. 
He was again elected to the Legislature in 1852, when 
he was chosen Speaker of the House. In i860, aged 
and infirm, he attended the National Democratic 
Convention at Charleston, S. C , as an anti-Douglas 
Delegate, where he received more attention from the 
Southern Delegates than any other member. He 
supported Breckenridge for the Presidency. After 
the October elections foreshadowed the success of 
Lincoln, he published an address urging the Demo- 
crats to rally to the support of Douglas. Immedi- 
ately preceding and during the late war, his corre- 
spondence evinced a clear sympathy for the Southern 
secession, and about the first of March, i86t, he 
urged upon the Buchanan officials the seizure of the 
treasure and arm^ in the custom-house and arsenal 
at St. Louis. Mr. Reynolds was a rather talkative 
man, ami apt in all the Western phrases and catch- 
words that ever gained currency, besides many cun- 
ning and odd ones of his own manufacture. 

He was married twice, but had no children. He 
died in Belleville, in May, 1865, just after the close 
of the war. 




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:lliam LEE 1). EWING, 
Governor' of Illinois Nov. 3 
to 17, 1834, was a native 
of Kentucky, and probably 
of Scotch ancestry. He had 
ine education, was a gentle- 
man of polished manners and 
refined sentiment. In 1830 John Rey- 
nolds was elected Governor of the State, 
and Zadok Casey Lieutenant Governor, 
and for the principal events that followed, 
and the characteristics of the times, see 
sketch of Gov. Reynolds. The first we 
see in history concerning Mr. Ewing, in- 
forms us that he was a Receiver of Public 
Moneys at Vandalia soon after the organization of 
this State, and that the public moneys in his hands 
were deposited in various banks, as they are usually 
at the present day. In 1823 the State Bank was 
robbed, by which disaster Mr. Ewing lost a thousand- 
dollar deposit. 

The subject of this sketch had a commission as 
Colonel in the Black Hawk War, and in emergencies 
he acted also as Major. In the summer of 1832, 
when it was rumored among the whites that Black 
Hawk and his men had encamped somewhere on 
Rock River, Gen. Henry was sent on a tour of 
reconnoisance, and with orders to drive the Indians 
from the State. After some opposition from his 
subordinate officers, Henry resolved to proceed up 
Rock River in search of the enemy. On the 19th of 
July, early in the morning, five baggage wagons, 



camp equipage and all heavy and cumbersome arti- 
cles were piled up and left, so that the army might 
make speedy and forced marches. For some miles 
the travel was exceedingly bad, crossing swamps 
and the worst thickets; but the large, fresh trail 
gave life and animation to the Americans. Gen. 
Dodge and Col. Ewing were both acting as Majors, 
and composed the " spy corps " or vanguard of the 
army. It is supposed the army marched nearly 50 
miles this day, and the Indian trail they followed 
became fresher, and was strewed with much property 
and trinkets of the red-skins that they had lost or 
thrown away to hasten their march. During the 
following night there was a terrific thunder-storm, and 
the soldiery, with all their appurtenances, were thor- 
oughly drenched. 

On approaching nearer the Indians the next day. 
Gen. Dodge and Major Ewing, each commanding a 
battalion of men, were placed in front to bring on the 
battle, but the savages were not overtaken this day 
Forced marches were continued until they reached. 
Wisconsin River, where a veritable battle ensued, 
resulting in the death of about 68 of Black Hawk's 
men. The next day they continued the chase, and 
as soon as he discovered the trail of the Indians 
leading toward the Mississippi, Maj. Ewing formed 
his battalion in order of battle and awaited the order 
of Gen. Henry. The latter soon appeared on the 
ground and ordered a charge, which directly resulted 
in chasing the red warriors across the great river. 
Maj. Ewing and his command proved particularly 
efficient in war, as it seems they were the chief actors 
in driving the main body of the Sacs and Foxes, in- 












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WILLIAM L. D. EWING. 




eluding Black Hawk himself, aeross the Mississippi, 
while Gen. Atkinson, commander-in-chief of the ex- 
pedition, with a body of the army, was hunting for 
them in another direction. 

In the above affair Maj. Ewing is often referred to 
as a "General," which title he had derived from his 
connection with the militia. 

It was in the latter part of the same year (1832) 
that Lieutenant Governor Casey was elected to Con- 
gress and Gen. Ewing, who had been elected to the 
Senate, was chosen to preside over that body. At 
the August election of 1834, Gov. Reynolds was also 
elected to Congress, more than a year ahead of the 
time at which he could actually take his seat, as was 
then the law. His predecessor, Charles Slade, had 
just died of Asiatic cholera, soon after the elec- 
tion, and Gov. Reynolds was chosen to serve out his 
unexpired term. Accordingly he set out for Wash- 
ington in November of that year to take his seat in 
Congress, and Gen. Ewing, by virtue of his office as 
President of the Senate, became Governor of the 
State of Illinois, his term covering only a period of 
15 days, namely, from the 3d to the 17th days, in- 
clusive, of November. On the 17th the Legislature 
met, and Gov. Ewing transmitted to that body his 
message, giving a statement of the condition of the 
affairs of the State at that time, and urging a contin- 
uance of the policy adopted by his predecessor ; and 
on the same day Governor elect Joseph Duncan 
was sworn into office, thus relieving Mr. Ewing from 



the responsible situation. This is the only time that 
such a juncture has happened in the history of Illi- 
nois. 

On the 29th of December, 1835, Gen. Ewing was 
elected a United States Senator to serve out the 
unexpired term of Elias Kent Kane, deceased. The 
latter gentleman was a very prominent figure in the 
early politics of Illinois, and a county in this State is 
named in his honor. The election of Gen. Ewing to 
the Senate was a protracted struggle. His competi- 
tors were James Semple, who afterwards held several 
important offices in this State, and Richard M. 
Young, afterward a United States Senator and a 
Supreme Judge and a man of vast influence. On 
the first ballot Mr. Semple had 25 votes, Young 19 
and Ewing 18. On the eighth ballot Young was 
dropped ; the ninth and tenth stood a tie ; but on 
the 1 2th Ewing received 40, to Semple 37, and was 
accordingly declared elected. In 1837 Mr. Ewing 
received some votes for a continuance of his term in 
Congress, when Mr. Young, just referred to, was 
elected. In 1842 Mr. Ewing was elected State 
Auditor on the ticket with Gov. Ford. 

Gen. Ewing was a gentleman of culture, a lawyer 
by profession, and was much in public life. In person 
he was above medium height and of heavy build, 
with auburn hair, blue eyes, large-sized head and 
short face. He was genial, social, friendly and 
affable, with fair talent, though of no high degree of 
originality. He died March 25, 1846. 



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OSEPH DUNCAN, Governor 
1S34-8, was born at Paris, 
Ky., Feb. 23, 1794. At the 
tender age of 19 years he en- 
listed in the war against Great 
y* 4 ' Britain, and as a soldier he 
_s acquitted himself with credit. He 
was an Ensign under the daunt- 
less Croghan at Lower Sandusky, 
or Fort Stephenson. In Illinois 
lie first appeared in a public capa- 
city as Major-General of the Militia, 
a position which his military fame 
had procured him. Subsequently 
he became a State Senator from 
Jackson County, and is honorably 
mentioned for introducing the first bill providing for 
a free-school system. In 1826, when the redoubt- 
able John P. Cook, who had previously beaten such 
men as John McLean, Elias Kent Kane and ex- 
Gov. Bond, came up for the fourth time for Congress, 
Mr. Duncan was brought forward against him by his 
friends, greatly to the surprise of all the politicians. 
As yet he was but little known in the State. He was 
an original Jackson man at that time, being attached 
to his political fortune in admiration of the glory of 
his military achievements. His chances of success 
against Cook were generally regarded as hopeless, 
but he entered upon the campaign undaunted. His 
speeches, though short and devoid of ornament, were 
full of good sense. He made a diligent canvass of 
the State, Mr. Cook being hindered by the condition of 
his health. The most that was expected of Mr. 
Duncan, under the circumstances, was that he would 



obtain a respectable vote, but without defeating Mr. 
Cook. The result of the campaign, however, was a 
source of surprise and amazement to both friends 
and foes, as Mr. Duncan came out 64r votes ahead! 
He received 6,32r votes, and Mr. Cook 5,680. Un- 
til this denouement, the violence of party feeling 
smoldering in the breasts of the people on account 
of the defeat of Jackson, was not duly appreciated. 
Aside from the great convention struggle of 1824, no 
other than mere local and personal considerations 
had ever before controlled an election in Illinois. 

From the above date Mr. Duncan retained his 
seat in Co.igress until his election as Governor in 
August, 1834. The first and bloodless year of the 
Black Hawk War he was appointed by Gov. Rey- 
nolds to the position of Brigadier-General of the 
volunteers, and he conducted his brigade to Rock 
Island. But he was absent from the State, in Wash- 
ington, during the gubernatorial campaign, and did 
not personally participate in it, but addressed circu- 
lars to his constituents. His election was, indeed, 
attributed to the circumstance of his absence, be- 
cause his estrangement from Jackson, formerly his 
political idol, and also from the Democracy, largely 
in ascendency in the State, was complete ; but while 
his defection was well known to his Whig friends, 
and even to the leading Jackson men of this State, 
the latter were unable to carry conviction of that fact 
to the masses, as mail and newspaper facilities at 
that day were far inferior to those of the present 
time. Of course the Governor was much abused 
afterward by the fossilized Jackson men who re- 
garded party ties and affiliations as above all 
other issues that could arise; but he was doubtless 



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JOSEPH DUNCAN. 



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sincere in his opposition to the old hero, as the latter 
had vetoed several important western measures 
which were dear to Mr. Duncan. In his inaugural 
message he threw off the mask and took a bold stand 
against the course of the President. The measures 
he recommended in his message, however, were so 
desirable that the Legislature, although by a large 
majority consisting of Jackson men, could not refrain 
from endorsing them. These measures related 
mainly to banks and internal improvements. 

It was while Mr. Duncan was Governor that the 
people of Illinois went whirling on with bank and in- 
ternal improvement schemes that well nigh bank- 
rupted the State. The hard times of 1837 came on, 
and the disasters that attended the inauguration of 
these plans and the operation of the banks were mu- 
tually charged upon the two political parties. Had 
any one man autocratic power to introduce and 
carry on any one of these measures, he would proba- 
bly have succeeded to the satisfaction of the public ; 
but as many jealous men had hold of the same plow 
handle, no success followed and each blamed the other 
for the failure. In this great vortex Gov. Duncan 
was carried along, suffering the like derogation of 
character with his fellow citizens. 

At the height of the excitement the Legislature 
"provided for" railroads from Galena to Cairo, Alton 
to Shawneetown, Alton to Mount Carmel, Alton to the 
eastern boundary of the State in the direction of 
Terre Haute, Quincy via Springfield to the Wabash, 
Bloomington to Pekin, and Peoria to Warsaw, — in all 
about 1,300 miles of road. It also provided for the 
improvement of the navigation of the Kaskaskia, 
Illinois, Great and Little Wabash and Rock Rivers ; 
also as a placebo, $200,000 in money were to be dis- 
tributed to the various counties wherein no improve- 
ments were ordered to be made as above. The 
estimate for the expenses for all these projects was 
placed at a little over $10,000,000, which was not 
more than half enough! That would now be equal to 
saddling upon the State a debt of $225,000,000 ! It 
was sufficient to bankrupt the State several times 
over, even counting all the possible benefits. 

One of the most exciting events that ever occurred 
in this fair State was the murder of Elijah P. Love- 
joy in the fall of 1837, at Alton, during Mr. Duncan's 
term as Governor. Lovejoy was an "Abolitionist," 
editing the Observer at that place, and the pro- 
slavery slums there formed themselves into a mob, 




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and after destroying successively three presses be- 
longing to Mr. Lovejoy, surrounded the warehouse 
where the fourth press was stored away, endeavoring 
to destroy it, and where Lovejoy and his friends 
were entrenching themselves, and shot and killed the 
brave reformer! 

About this time, also, the question of removing the 
State capital again came up, as the 20 years' limit for 
its existence at Vandalia was drawing to a close. 
There was, of course, considerable excitement over 
the matter, the two main points competing for it be- 
ing Springfield and Peoria. The jealousy of the lat- 
ter place is not even yet, 45 years afterward, fully 
allayed. 

Gov. Duncan's term expired in 1838. In 1842 
he was again proposed as a candidate for the Execu- 
tive chair, this time by the Whig party, against Adam 
W. Snyder, of St. Clair County, the nominee of the 
Democrats. Charles W. Hunter was a third candi- 
date for the same position. Mr. Snyder, however, died 
before the campaign had advanced very far, and his 
party substituted Thomas Ford, who was elected, 
receiving 46,901 votes, to 38,584 for Duncan, and 
909 for Hunter. The cause of Democratic success 
at this time is mainly attributed to the temporary 
support of the Mormons which they enjoyed, and the 
want of any knowledge, on the part of the masses, 
that Mr. Ford was opposed to any given policy en- 
tertained in the respective localities. 

Gov. Duncan was a man of rather limited educa- 
tion, but with naturally fine abilities he profited 
greatly by his various public services, and gathered 
a store of knowledge regarding public affairs which 
served him a ready purpose. He possessed a clear 
judgment, decision, confidence in himself and moral 
courage to carry out his convictions of right. In his 
deportment he was well adapted to gain the admira- 
tion of the people. His intercourse with them was 
both affable and dignified. His portrait at the Gov- 
ernor's mansion, from which the accompanying was 
made, represents him as having a swarthy complex- 
ion, high cheek bones, broad forehead, piercing black 
eyes and straight black hair. 

He was a liberal patron of the Illinois College at 
Jacksonville, a member of its Board of Trustees, and 
died, after a short illness, Jan. 15, 1S44, a devoted 
member of the Presbyterian Church, leaving a wife 
but no children. Two children, born to them, had 
died in infancy. 



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iT^'^HOMAS CARLIN, the sixth 
Governor of the State of 
Illinois, serving from 1838 
to 1842, was also a Ken- 
tuckian, being born near 
Frankfort, that State, July 
18, 1789, of Irish paternity. 
The opportunities for an education 
>eing very meager in his native 
place, he, on approaching years of 
judgment and maturity, applied 
himself to those branches of learn- 
ing that seemed most important, 
and thus became a self-made man ; 
and his taste for reading and 
\* y \y. ^v study remained with him through 
^^ta 6 pf^ life. In 1803 his father removed 
to Missouri, then a part of " New Spain," where he 
died in 18 10. 

In 18 1 2 young Carlin came to Illinois and partici- 
pated in all the "ranging" service incident to the 
war of that period, proving himself a soldier of un- 
daunted bravery. In r8i4 he married Rebecca 
Huitt, and lived for four years on the bank of the 
Mississippi River, opposite the mouth of the Mis- 
souri, where he followed farming, and then removed 
to Greene County. He located the town site of Car- 
rollton, in that county, and in 1825 made a liberal 
donation of land for county building purposes. He 
was the first Sheriff of that county after its separate 
organization, and afterward was twice elected, as a 
Jackson Democrat, to the Illinois Senate. In the 
Black Hawk War he commanded a spy battalion, a 
post of considerable danger. In 1834 he was ap- 
pointed by President Jackson to the position of 
Receiver of Public Moneys, and to fulfill the office 




more conveniently he removed to the city of Quincy. 

While, in 1838, the unwieldy internal improvement 
system of the State was in full operation, with all its 
expensive machinery, amidst bank suspensions 
throughout the United States, a great stringency in 
the money market everywhere, and Illinois bonds 
forced to sale at a heavy discount, and the " hardest 
times " existing that the people of the Prairie State 
ever saw, the general election of State officers was 
approaching. Discreet men who had cherished the 
hope of a speedy subsidence of the public infatua- 
tion, met with disappointment. A Governor and 
Legislature were to be elected, and these were now 
looked forward to for a repeal of the ruinous State 
policy. But the grand scheme had not yet lost its 
dazzling influence upon the minds of the people. 
Time and experience had not yet fully demonstrated 
its utter absurdity. Hence the question of arresting 
its career of profligate expenditures did not become 
a leading one with the dominant party during the 
campaign, and most of the old members of the Leg- 
islature were returned at this election. 

Under these circumstances the Democrats, in State 
Convention assembled, nominated Mr. Carlin for the 
office of Governor, and S. H. Anderson for Lieuten- 
ant Governor, while the Whigs nominated Cyrus Ed- 
wards, brother of Ninian Edwards, formerly Governor, 
and W. H. Davidson. Edwards came out strongly 
for a continuance of the State policy, while Carlin 
remained non-committal. This was the first time 
that the two main political parties in this*6tate were 
unembarrassed by any third party in the field. The 
result of the election was : Carlin, 35,573 ; Ander- 
son, 30,335; Edwards, 29,629; and Davidson, 28,- 

715- 

Upon the meeting of the subsequent Legislature 

( 1 S39), the retiring Governor (Duncan) in his mes- 



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sage spoke in emphatic terms of the impolicy of the 
internal improvement system, presaging the evils 
threatened, and Ulged that body to do their utmost 
to correct the great error; yet, on the contrary, the 
Legislature not only decided to continue the policy 
but also added to its burden by voting more appro- 
priations and ordering more improvements. Although 
the money market was still stringent, a further loan 
of $4,000,000 was ordered for the Illinois & Mich- 
igan Canal alone. Chicago at that time began to 
loom up and promise to be an important city, even 
the great emporium of the West, as it has since in- 
deed came to be. Ex-Gov. Reynolds, an incompe- 
tent financier, was commissioned to effect the loan, 
and accordingly hastened to the East on this respons- 
ible errand, and negotiated the loans, at considera- 
ble sacrifice to the State. Besides this embarrassment 
to Carlin's administration, the Legislature also de- 
clared that he had no authority to appoint a Secretary 
of State until a vacancy existed, and A. P. Field, a 
Whig, who had already held the post by appointment 
through three administrations, was determined to 
keep the place a while longer, in spite of Gov. Car- 
lin's preferences. The course of the Legislature in 
this regard, however, was finally sustained by the 
Supreme Court, in a quo warranto case brought up 
before it by John A. McClemand, whom the Gov- 
ernor had nominated for the office. Thereui>on that 
dignified body was denounced as a "Whig Court!" 
endeavoring to establish the principle of life-tenure 
of office. 

A new law was adopted re-organizing the Judici- 
ary, and under it five additional Supreme Judges 
were elected by the Legislature, namely, Thomas 
Ford (afterward Governor), Sidney Breese, Walter B. 
Scates, Samuel H. Treat and Stephen A. Douglas — 
all Democrats. 

It was during Cov. Carlin's administration that the 
noisy campaign of "Tippecanoe and Tyler too" oc- 
curred, resulting in a Whig victory. This, however, 
did not affect Illinois politics very seriously. 

Another prominent event in the West during Gov. 
Carlin's term of office was the excitement caused by 
the Mormons and their removal from Independence, 
Mo., to Nauvoo, 111., in 1840. At the same time 
they began to figure somewhat in State politics. On 
account of their believing — as they thought, accord- 
ing to the New Testament — that they should have 



"all things common," and that consequently "all 
the earth " and all that is upon it were the" Lord's " 
and therefore the property of his " saints," they 
were suspected, and correctly, too, of committing 
many of the deeds of larceny, robbery, etc., that 
were so rife throughout this country in those days. 
Hence a feeling of violence grew up between the 
Mormons and "anti-Mormons." In the State of 
Missouri the Mormons always supported the Dem- 
ocracy until they were driven out by the Democratic 
government, when they turned their support to the 
Whigs. They were becoming numerous, and in the 
Legislature of 1840-1, therefore, it became a matter 
of great interest with both parties to conciliate these 
people. Through the agency of one John C. Ben- 
nett, a scamp, the Mormons succeeded in rushing 
through the Legislature (both parties not daring to 
oppose) a charter for the city of Nauvoo which vir- 
tually erected a hierarchy co-ordinate with the Fed- 
eral Government itself. In the fall of 1841 the 
Governor of Missouri made a demand upon Gov. 
Carlin for the body of Joe Smith, the Mormon leader, 
as a fugitive from justice. Gov. Carlin issued the 
writ, but for some reason it was returned unserved. 
It was again issued in 1842, and Smith was arrested, 
but was either rescued by his followers or discharged 
by the municipal court on a writ of habeas corpus. 

In December, 1841, the Democratic Convention 
nominated Adam W. Snyder, of Belleville, for Gov- 
ernor. As he had been, as a member of the Legisla- 
ture, rather friendly to the Mormons, the latter 
naturally turned their support to the Democratic 
party. The next spring the Whigs nominated Ex- 
Gov. Duncan for the same office. In the meantime 
the Mormons began to grow more odious to the 
masses of the people, and the comparative prospects 
of the respective parties for success became very 
problematical. Mr. Snyder died in May, and 
Thomas Ford, a Supreme Judge, was substituted as 
a candidate, and was elected. 

At the close of his gubernatorial term, Mr. Carlin 
removed back to his old home at Cairollton, where 
he spent the rem tinder of his life, as before his ele- 
vation to office, in agricultural pursuits. In 1849 
he served out the unexpired term of J. D. Fry in the 
Illinois House of Representatives, and died Feb. 4, 
1852, at his residence at Carrollton, leaving a wife 
and seven children. 



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j HO MAS FORD, Governor 

from 1842 to 1S46, and au- 
thor of a very interesting 
history of Illinois, was born 
at Uniontown, Pa., in the 
year 1 800. His mother, after 
the death of her first hus- 
band (Mr. Forquer), married Rob- 
ert Ford, who was killed in 1802, 
by the Indians in the mountains 
of Pennsylvania. She was conse- 
quently left in indigent circum- 
stances, with a large family, mostly 
s^Sv girls. With a view to better her 
condition, she, in 1S04, removed to 
Missouri, where it had been cus- 
tomary by the Spanish Govern- 
ment to give land to actual settlers; but upon her 
arrival at St. Louis she found the country ceded to 
the United States, and the liberal policy toward set- 
tlers changed by the new ownership. After some 
sickness to herself and family, she finally removed to 
Illinois, and settled some three miles south of Water- 
loo, but the following year moved nearer the Missis- 
sippi bluffs. Here young Ford received his first 



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schooling, under the instructions of a Mr. Humphrey, 
for which he had to walk three miles. His mother, 
though lacking a thorough education, was a woman 
of superior mental endowments, joined to energy 
and determination of character. She inculcated in 
her children those high-toned principles which dis- 
tinguished her sons in public life. She exercised a 
rigid economy to provide her children an education; 
but George Forquer, her oldest son (six years older 
than Thomas Ford), at an early age had to quit 
school to aid by his labor in the support of the family. 
He afterward became an eminent man in Illinois 
affairs, and but for his early death would probably 
have been elected to the United States Senate. 

Young Ford, with somewhat better opportunities, 
received a better education, though limited to the 
curriculum of the common school of those pioneer 
times. His mind gave early promise of superior en- 
dowments, with an inclination for mathematics. His 
proficiency attracted the attention of Hon. Daniel P. 
Cook, who became his efficient patron and friend. 
The latter gentleman was an eminent Illinois states- 
man who, as a Member of Congress, obtained a grant 
of 300,000 acres of land to aid in completing the 
Illinois & Michigan Canal, and after whom the 
county of Cook was named. Through the advice of 



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THOMAS FORD. 



this gentleman, Mr. Ford turned his attention to the 
study of law; but Forquer, then merchandising, re- 
garding his education defective, sent him to Transyl- 
vania University, where, however, he remained but 
one term, owing to Forquer's failure in business. On 
his return he alternated his law reading with teach- 
ing school for support. 

In 1829 Gov. Edwards appointed him Prosecuting 
Attorney, and in 1831 he was re-appointed by Gov. 
Reynolds, and after that he was four times elected a 
Judge by the Legislature, without opposition, twice a 
Circuit Judge, ice a Judge of Chicago, and as As- 
sociate Judge of the Supreme Court, when, in 1841, 
the latter tribunal was re-organized by the addition 
of five Judges, all Democrats. Ford was assigned to 
thi Ninth Judicial Circuit, and while in this capacity 
lie was holding Court in Ogle County he received a 
notice of his nomination by the Democratic Conven- 
tion for the office of Governor. He immediately re- 
signed his place and entered upon the canvass. In 
August, 1842, he was elected, and on the 8th of De- 
cember following he was inaugurated. 

All the offices which he had held were unsolicited 
by him. He received them upon the true Jefferson- 
ian principle, — Never to ask and never to refuse 
office. Both as a lawyer and as a Judge he stood 
deservedly high, but his cast of intellect fitted him 
rather for a writer upon law than a practicing advo- 
cate in the courts. In the latter capacity he was void 
of the moving power of eloquence, so necessary to 
success with juries. As a Judge his opinions were 
sound, lucid and able expositions of the law. In 
practice, he was a stranger to the tact, skill and in- 
sinuating address of the politician, but he saw through 
the arts of demagogues as well as any man. He was 
plain in his demeanor, so much so, indeed, that at 
one time after the expiration of his term of office, 
during a session of the Legislature, he was taken by 
a stranger lo be a seeker for the position of door- 
keeper, and was waked upon at his hotel near mid- 
night by a knot of small office-seekers with the view 
of effecting a " combination ! " 

Mr. Ford had not the "brass" of the ordinary 
politician, nor that impetuosity which characterizes a 
political leader. He cared little for money, and 
hardly enough for a decent support. In person he 
was of sm.dl stature, slender, of dark complexion, 
with black hair, sharp features, deep-set eyes, a 
pointed, aquiline nose having a decided twist to one 
side, and a small mouth. 

The three most important events in Gov. Ford's 
administration were the establishment of the high 
financial credit of the State, the " Mormon War "and 
the Mexican War. 

In the first of these the Governor proved himself 
to be eminently wise. On coming into office he found 
the State badly paralyzed by the ruinous effects of 
the notorious "internal improvement" schemes of 




the preceding decade, witli scarcely anything to 
show by way of "improvement." The enterprise 
that seemed to be getting ahead more than all the 
rest was the Illinois & Michigan Canal. As this 
promised to be the most important thoroughfare, 
feasible to the people, it was well under headway in 
its construction. Therefore the State policy was 
almost concentrated upon it, in order to rush it on to 
completion. The bonded indebtedness of the State 
was growing so large as to frighten the people, and 
they were about ready to entertain a proposition for 
repudiation. But the Governor had the foresight to 
recommend such measures as would maintain the 
public credit, for which every citizen to-day feels 
thankful. 

Hut perhaps the Governor is remembered more for 
his connection with the Mormon troubles than for 
anything else; for it was during his term of office 
that the " Latter-Day Saints " became so strong at 
Nauvoo, built their temple there, increased their num- 
bers throughout the country, committed misdemean- 
ors, taught dangerous doctrines, suffered the loss of 
theirleader, Jo Smith, by a violent death, were driven 
out of Nauvoo to the far West, etc. Having been a 
Judge for so many years previously, Mr. Ford of 
course was non-committal concerning Mormon affairs, 
and was therefore claimed by both parties and also 
accused by each of sympathizing too greatly with the 
other side. Mormonism claiming to be a system of 
religion, the Governor no doubt was "between two 
fires," and felt compelled to touch the matter rather 
" gingerly," and doubtless felt greatly relieved when 
that pestilential people left the State. Such compli- 
cated matters, especially when religion is mixed up 
with them, expose every person participating in 
them to criticism from all parties. 

The Mexican War was begun in the spring of 
1845, and was continued into the gubernatorial term 
of Mr. Ford's successor. The Governor's connection 
with this war, however, was not conspicuous, as it 
was only administrative, commissioning officers, etc. 

Ford's " History of Illinois " is a very readable and 
entertaining work, of 450 small octavo pages, and is 
destined to increase in value with the lapse of time. 
It exhibits a natural flow of compact and forcible 
thought, never failing to convey the nicest sense. In 
tracing with his trenchant pen the devious operations 
of the professional politician, in which lie is inimit- 
able, his account is open, perhaps, to the objection 
that all his contemporaries are treated as mere place- 
seekers, while many of them have since been judged 
by the people to be worthy statesmen. His writings 
seem slightly open to the criticism that they exhibit 
a little splenetic partiality against those of his con- 
temporaries who were prominent during his term of 
office as Governor. 

The death of Gov. Ford took place at Peoria, 111., 
Nov. 2, 1850. 



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UGUSTUS C. FRENCH, 
Governor of Illinois from 
1846 to 1852, was born in 
the town of Hill, in the 
State of New Hampshire, 
Aug. 2, 1808. He was a 
descendant in the fourth 
generation ot Nathaniel 
French, who emigrated from England 
in 1687 and settled in Saybury, Mass. 
In early life young French lost his 
father, but continued to receive in- 
struction from an exemplary and 
Christian mother until he was 19 years 
old, when she also died, confiding to 
his care and trust four younger broth- 
ers and one sister. He discharged his trust with 
parental devotion. His education in early life was 
such mainly as a common school afforded. For a 
brief period he attended Dartmouth College, but 
from pecuniary causes and the care of his brothers 
and sister, he did not graduate. He subsequently 
read law, and was admitted to the Bar in 1831, and 
shortly afterward removed to Illinois, settling first at 
Albion, Edwards County, where he established him- 
self in the practice of law. The following year he 
removed to Paris, Edgar County. Here he attained 
eminence in his profession, and entered public life 
by representing that county in the Legislature. A 
strong attachment sprang up between him and Ste- 
phen A. Douglas. 

In 1839, Mr. French was appointed Receiver of 
the United States Land Office at Palestine, Craw- 



ford County, at which place he was a resident when 

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elevated to the gubernatorial chair. In 1844 he was 
a Presidential Elector, and as such he voted for 
James K. Polk. 

The Democratic State Convention of 1846, meet- 
ing at Springfield Feb. 10, nominated Mr. French 
for Governor. Other Democratic candidates were 
Lyman Trumbull, John Calhoun (subsequently of 
Lecompton Constitution notoriety), Walter B. Scates, 
Richard M. Young and A. W. Cavarly, — an array of 
very able and prominent names. Trumbull was per- 
haps defeated in the Convention by the rumor that 
he was opposed to the Illinois and Michigan Canal, 
as he had been a year previously. For Lieutenant 
Governor J. B. Wells was chosen, while other candi- 
dates were Lewis Ross, Wm. McMurtry, Newton 
Cloud, I. B. Hamilton and W. W. Thompson. The 
resolutions declared strongly against the resuscita- 
tion of the old State Banks. 

The Whigs, who were in a hopeless minority, held 
their convention June 8, at Peoria, and selected 
Thomas M. Kilpatrick, of Scott County, for Governor, 
and Gen. Nathaniel G. Wilcox, of Schuyler, for 
Lieutenant Governor. 

In the campaign the latter exposed Mr. French's 
record and connection with the passage of the in- 
ternal improvement system, urging it against his 
election; but in the meantime the war with Mexico 
broke out, regarding which the Whig record was un- 
popular in this State. The war was the absorbing 
and dominating question of the period, sweeping 
every other political issue in its course. The elec- 
tion in August gave Mr. French 58,700 votes, and 
Kilpatrick only 36,775. Richard Eells, Abolitionist 
candidate for the same office, received 5,152 votes, 



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AUGUSTUS C. FRENCH. 




By the new Constitution of 1S4S, a new election for 
State officers was ordered in November of that year, 
before Gov. French's term was half out, and he was 
re-elected for the term of four years. He was there- 
fore the incumbent for six consecutive years, the 
only Governor of this State who has ever served in 
that capacity so long at one time. As there was no 
organized opposition to his election, he received 67,- 
453 votes, to 5,639 for Pierre Menard (son of the 
first Lieutenant Governor), 4,748 for Charles V. 
Dyer, 3,834 for W. L. D. Morrison, and 1,361 for 
James L. 1). Morrison. But Wm. McMurtry, of 
Knox County, was elected Lieutenant Governor, in 
place of Joseph B. Wells, who was before elected 
and did not run again. 

Governor French was inaugurated into office dur- 
ing the progress of the Mexican War, which closed 
during the summer of 1847, although the treaty of 
Guadalupe Hidalgo was not made until Feb. 2, 
1848. The policy of Gov. French's party was com- 
mitted to that war, but in connection with that affair 
he was, of course, only an administrative officer. 
During his term of office, Feb. 19, 1S47, trie Legisla- 
ture, by special permission of Congress, declared that 
all Government lands sold to settlers should be im- 
mediately subject to State taxation ; before this they 
were exempt for five years after sale. By this ar- 
rangement . the revenue was materially increased. 
About the same time, the distribution of Government 
land warrants among the Mexican soldiers as bounty 
threw upon the market a great quantity of good 
lands, and this enhanced the settlement of the State. 
The same Legislature authorized, with the recom- 
mendation of the Governor, the sale of the Northern 
Cross Railroad (from Springfield to Meredosia, the 
first in the State and now a section of the Wabash, 
St. Louis & Pacific) It sold for $100,000 in bonds, 
although it had cost the State not less than a million. 
The salt wells and canal lands in the Saline reserve 
in Gallatin County, granted by the general Govern- 
ment to the State, were also authorized by the 
Governor to be sold, to apply on the State debt. In 
1850, for the first time since 1839, the accruing State 
revenue, exclusive of specific appropriations, was 
sufficient to meet the current demands upon the 
treasury. The aggregate taxable property of the 
State at this time was over $100,000,000, and the 



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population 851,470. 



In 1849 the Legislature adopted the township or- 
ganization law, which, however, proved defective, 
and was properly amended in 185 1. At its session 
in the latter year, the General Assembly also passed 
a law to exempt homesteads from sale on executions. 
This beneficent measure had been repeatedly urged 
upon that body by Gov. French. 

In 1850 some business men in St. Louis com- 
menced to build a dike opposite the lower part of 
their city on the Illinois side, to keep the Mississippi 
in its channel near St. Louis, instead of breaking 
away from them as it sometimes threatened to do. 
This they undertook without permission from the 
Legislature or Executive authority of this State ; and 
as many of the inhabitants there complained that 
the scheme would inundate and ruin much valuable 
land, there was a slight conflict of jurisdictions, re- 
sulting in favor of the St. Louis project; and since 
then a good site has existed there for a city (East St. 
Louis), and now a score of railroads center there. 

It was in September, 1850, that Congress granted 
to this State nearly 3,000,000 acres of land in aid of 
the completion of the Illinois Central Railroad, 
which constituted the most important epoch in the 
railroad — we might say internal improvement — his- 
tory of the State. The road was rushed on to com- 
pletion, which accelerated the settlement of the in- 
terior of the State by a good class of industrious citi- 
zens, and by the charter a good income to the State 
Treasury is paid in from the earnings of the road. 

In 1851 the Legislature passed a law authorizing 
free stock banks, which was the source of much leg- 
islative discussion for a number of years. 

But we have not space further to particularize 
concerning legislation. Gov. French's administra- 
tion was not marked by any feature to be criticised, 
while the country was settling up as never before. 

In stature, Gov. French was of medium height, 
squarely built, light complexioned, with ruddy face 
and pleasant countenance. In manners he was 
plain and agreeable. By nature he was somewhat 
diffident, but he was often very outspoken in his con- 
victions of duty. In public speech he was not an 
orator, but was chaste, earnest and persuasive. In 
business he was accurate and methodical, and in his 
administration he kept up the credit of the State. 

He died in 1865, at his home in Lebanon, St. 



Clair Co., 111. 



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! ^i\W#M¥'1=° EL A ' MATTES0N > Governor 
™*~ 1853-6, was born Aug. 8, 1808, 
in Jefferson County, New York, 
to which place his father had re- 
moved from Vermont three years 
before. His father was a farmer 
in fair circumstances, but a com- 
mon English education was all 
that his only son received. Young 
Joel first tempted fortune as a 
small tradesman in Prescott, 
Canada, before he was of age. 
He returned from that place to 
his home, entered an academy, 
taught school, visited the prin- 
cipal Eastern cities, improved a farm his father had 
given him, made a tour in the South, worked there 
in building railroads, experienced a storm on the 
Gulf of Mexico, visited the gold diggings of Northern 
Georgia, and returned via Nashville to St. Louis and 
through Illinois to his father's home, when he mar- 
ried. In 1833, having sold his farm, he removed, 
with his wife and one child, to Illinois, and entered 
a claim on Government land near the head of Au 
Sable River, in what is now Kendall County. At 
that time there were not more than two neighbors 
within a range of ten miles of his place, and only 
three or four houses between him and Chicago. He 
opened a large farm. His family was boarded 12 



miles away while he erected a house on his claim, 
sleeping, during this time, under a rude pole shed. 
Here his life was once placed in imminent peril by 
a huge prairie rattlesnake sharing his bed. 

In rS35 he bought largely at the Government land 
sales. During the speculative real-estate mania which 
broke out in Chicago in 1836 and spread over the State, 
he sold his lands under the inflation of that period 
and removed to Joliet. In 1S38 he became a heavy 
contractor on the Illinois & Michigan Canal. Upon 
the completion of his job in 1841, when hard times 
prevailed, business at a stand, contracts paid in State 
scrip; when all the public works except the canal 
were abandoned, the State offered for sale 700 tons 
of railroad iron, which was purchased by Mr. Mat- 
teson at a bargain. This he accepted, shipped and 
sold at Detroit, realizing a very handsome profit, 
enough to pay off all his canal debts and leave him a 
surplus of several thousand dollars. His enterprise 
next prompted him to start a woolen mill at Joliet, 
in which he prospered, and which, after successive 
enlargements, became an enormous establishment. 

In 1842 he was first elected a State Senator, but, 
by a bungling apportionment, John Pearson, a Senator 
holding over, was found to be in the same district, 
and decided to be entitled to represent it. Mat- 
teson's seat was declared vacant. Pearson, however, 
with a nobleness difficult to appreciate in this day of 



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greed for office, unwilling to represent his district 
under the circumstances, immediately resigned his 
unexpired term of two years. A hill was passed in a 
few hours ordering a new election, and in ten days' 
time Mr. Matteson was returned re-elected and took 
his seat as Senator. From his well-known capacity 
as a business man, he was made Chairman of the 
Committee on Finance, a position he held during 
this half and two full succeeding Senatorial terms, 
discharging its important duties with ability and faith- 
fulness. Besides his extensive woolen-mill interest, 
when work was resumed on the canal under the new 
loan of $1, 600,000 he again became a heavy con- 
tractor, and also subsequently operated largely in 
building railroads. Thus he showed himself a most 
energetic and thorough business man. 

He was nominated for Governor by the Demo- 
cratic State Convention which met at Springfield 
April 20, 1852. Other candidates before the Con- 
vention were I). L. Gregg and F. C. Sherman, of 
Cook ; John Dement, of Lee ; Thomas L. Harris, of 
Menard; Lewis \V. Ross, of Fulton ; and D. P. Bush, 
of Pike. Gustavus Koerner, of St. Clair, was nom- 
inated for Lieutenant Governor. For the same offices 
the Whigs nominated Edwin B. Webb and Dexter A. 
Knowlton. Mr. Matteson received 80,645 votes at 
the election, while Mr. Webb received 64,408. Mat- 
teson's forte was not on the stump; he had not cul- 
tivated the art of oily flattery, or the faculty of being 
all things to all men. His intellectual qualities took 
rather the direction of efficient executive ability. His 
turn consisted not so much in the adroit manage- 
ment of party, or the powerful advocacy of great gov- 
ernmental principles, as in those more solid and 
enduring operations which cause the physical devel- 
opment and advancement of a State, — of commerce 
and business enterprise, into which he labored with 
success to lead the people. As a politician he was 
just and liberal in his views, and both in official and 
private life he then stood untainted and free from 
blemish. As a man, in active benevolence, social 
virtues and all the amiable qualities of neighbor or 
citizen, he had few superiors. His messages present 
a perspicuous array of facts as to the condition of the 
State, and are often couched in forcible and elegant 
diction. 

The greatest excitement during his term of office 
was the repeal of the Missouri Compromise, by Con- 




gress, under the leadership of Stephen A. Douglas in 
1854, when the bill was passed organizing the Terri- 
tory of Kansas and Nebraska. A large portion of 
the Whig party of the North, through their bitter op- 
position to the Democratic party, naturally drifted 
into the doctrine of anti-slavery, and thus led to what 
was temporarily called the " Anti-Nebraska " party, 
while the followers of Douglas were known as " Ne- 
braska or Douglas Democrats." It was during this 
embryo stage of the Republican party that Abraham 
Lincoln was brought forward as the "Anti-Nebraska" 
candidate for the United States Senatorship, while 
Gen. James Shields, the incumbent, was re-nom- 
inated by the Democrats. But after a few ballotings 
in the Legislature (1855), these men were dropped, 
and Lyman Trumbull, an Anti-Nebraska Democrat, 
was brought up by the former, and Mr. Matteson, 
then Governor, by the latter. On the nth ballot 
Mr. Trumbull obtained one majority, and was ac- 
cordingly declared elected. Before Gov. Matteson's 
term expired, the Republicans were fully organized 
as a national party, and in 1S56 put into the field a 
full national and State ticket, carrying the State, but 
not the nation. 

The Legislature of r 855 passed two very import- 
ant measures, — the present free-school system and a 
submission of the Maine liquor law to a vote of the 
people. The latter was defeated by a small majority 
of the popular vote. 

During the four years of Gov. Matteson's admin- 
istration the taxable wealth of the State was about 
trebled, from $ 1 37,8 r 8,07 9 to $349,95 r, 27 2 ; the pub- 
lic debt was reduced from $17,398,985 to $12,843,- 
144; taxation was at the same time reduced, and the 
State resumed paying interest on its debt in New 
York as fast as it fell due ; railroads were increased 
in their mileage from something less than 400 to 
about 3,000 ; and the population of Chicago was 
nearly doubled, and its commerce more than quad- 
rupled. 

Before closing this account, we regret that we have 
to say that Mr. Matteson, in all other respects an 
upright man and a good Governor, was implicated 
in a false re-issue of redeemed canal scrip, amount- 
ing to $224,182.66. By a suit in the Sangamon Cir- 
cuit Court the State recovered the principal and all 
the interest excepting $27,500. 

He died in the winter of 1872-3, at Chicago. 



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GOVERNORS OF ILLINOIS. 




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T LLIAM H. BISSELL, Gov- 
ernor 1857-60, was born 
April 25, 181 1, in the 
State of New York, near 
Painted Post, Yates County. 
His parents were obscure, 
honest, God-fearing people, 
who reared their children under the daily 
example of industry and frugality, accord- 
ing to the custom of that class of Eastern 
society. Mr. Bissell received a respecta- 
ble but not thorough academical education. 
By assiduous application he acquired a 
knowledge of medicine, and in his early 
manhood came West and located in Mon- 
roe County, this State, where he engaged in the 
practice of that profession. But he was not enam- 
ored of his calling: he was swayed by a broader 
ambition, to such an extent that the mysteries of the 
healing art and its arduous duties failed to yield him 
further any charms. In a few years he discovered 
his choice of a profession to be a mistake, and when 
he approached the age of 30 he sought to begin 
anew. Dr. Bissell, no doubt unexpectedly to him- 
self, discovered a singular facility and charm of 
speech, the exercise of which acquired for him a 
ready local notoriety. It soon came to be under- 



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stood that he desired to abandon his profession and 
take up that of the law. During terms of Court he 
would spend his time at the county seat among the 
members of the Bar, who extended to him a ready 
welcome. 

It was not strange, therefore, that he should drift 
into public life. In 1840 he was elected as a Dem- 
ocrat to the Legislature from Monroe County, and 
was an efficient member of that body. On his re- 
turn home he qualified himself for admission to the 
Bar and speedily rose to the front rank as an advo- 
cate. His powers of oratory were captivating. With a 
pure diction, charming and inimitable gestures, 
clearness of statement, and a remarkable vein of sly 
humor, his efforts before a jury told with irresistible 
effect. He was chosen by the Legislature Prosecut- 
ing Attorney for the Circuit in which he lived, and 
in that position he fully discharged his duty to the 
State, gained the esteem of the Bar, and seldom 
failed to convict the offender of the law. 

In stature he was somewhat tall and slender, and 
with a straight, military bearing, he presented a dis- 
tinguished appearance. His complexion was dark, 
his head well poised, though not large, his address 
pleasant and manner winning. He was exemplary 
in his habits, a devoted husband and kind parent. 
He was twice married, the first time to Miss James, 



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WILLIAM H. BISSELL. 



of Monroe County, by whom he had two children, 
both daughters. She died soon after the year 1840, 
and Mr. 15. married for his second wife a daughter 
ofEli.is K. Kane, previously a United States Senator 
from this State. She survived him but a short time, 
and died without issue. 

When the war with Mexico was declared in 1846, 
Mr. Bissell enlisted and was elected Colonel of his 
regiment, over Hon. Don Morrison, by an almost 
unanimous vote, — 807 to 6. Considering the limited 
opportunities he had had, he evinced a high order of 
military talent. On the bloody field of Buena Vista 
he acquitted himself with intrepid and distinguished 
ability, contributing with his regiment, the Second 
Illinois, in no small degree toward saving the waver- 
ing fortunes of our arms during that long and fiercely 
contested battle. 

After his return home, at the close of the war, he 
was elected to Congress, his opponents being the 
Hons. P. B. Fouke and Joseph Gillespie. He served 
two terms in Congress. He was an ardent politician. 
During the great contest of 1850 he voted in favor 
of the adjustment measures; but in 1854 he opposed 
the repeal of the Missouri Compromise act and 
therefore the Kansas-Nebraska bill of Douglas, and 
thus became identified with the nascent Republican 
party. 

During his first Congressional term, while the 
Southern members were following their old practice 
of intimidating the North by bullying language, 
and claiming most of the credit for victories in the 
Mexican War, and Jefferson Davis claiming for the 
Mississippi troops all the credit for success at Buena 
Vista, Mr. Bissell bravely defended the Northern 
troops ; whereupon Davis challenged Bissell to a duel, 
which was accepted. This matter was brought up 
against Bissell when he was candidate for Governor 
and during his term of office, as the Constitution of 
this State forbade any duelist from holding a State 
office. 

In 1856, when the Republican party first put fortli 
a candidate, John C. Fremont, for President of the 
United States, the same party nominated Mr. Bissell 
for Governor of Illinois, and John Wood, of Quincy, 
for Lieutenant Governor, while the Democrats nomi- 
nated Hon. W. A. Richardson, of Adams County, 
for Governor, and Col. R. J. Hamilton, of Cook 
County, for Lieutenant Governor. The result of the 




election was a plurality of 4,729 votes over Richard- 
son. The American, or Know-Nothing, party had a 
ticket in the field. The Legislature was nearly bal- 
anced, but was politically opposed to the Governor. 
His message to the Legislature was short and rather 
ordinary, and was criticised for expressing the sup- 
posed obligations of the people to the incorporators 
of the Illinois Central Railroad Company and for re- 
opening the slavery question by allusions to the 
Kansas troubles. Late in the session an apportion- 
ment bill, based upon the State census of 1855, was 
passed, amid much partisan strife. The Governor 
at first signed the bill and then vetoed it. A furious 
debate followed, and the question whether the Gov- 
ernor had the authority to recall a signature was 
referred to the Courts, that of last resort deciding in 
favor of the Governor. Two years afterward another 
outrageous attempt was made for a re-apportionment 
and to gerrymander the State, but the Legislature 
failed to pass the bill over the veto of the Governor. 

It was during Gov. Bissell's administration that 
the notorious canal scrip fraud was brought to light, 
implicating ex-Gov. Matteson and other prominent 
State officials. The principal and interest, aggregat- 
ing $255,500, was all recovered by the State except- 
ing $27,500. (See sketch of Gov. Matteson.) 

In 1859 an attempt was discovered to fraudu- 
lently refund the Macalister and Stebbins bonds and 
thus rob the State Treasury of nearly a quarter of a 
million dollars. The State Government was impli- 
cated in this affair, and to this day remains unex- 
plained or unatoned for. For the above, and other 
matters previously mentioned, Gov. Bissell has been 
severely criticised, and he has also been most shame- 
fully libelled and slandered. 

On account of exposure in the army, the remote 
cause of a nervous form of disease gained entrance 
into his system and eventually developed paraplegia, 
affecting his lower extremities, which, while it left 
his body in comparative health, deprived him of loco- 
motion except by the aid of crutches. While he was 
generally hopeful of ultimate recovery, this myste- 
rious disease pursued him, without once relaxing its 
stealthy hold, to the close of his life, March 18, 
i860, over nine months before the expiration of his 
gubernatorial term, at the early age of 48 years. He 
died in the faith of the Roman Catholic Church, of 
which he had been a member since 1854. 



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ll-OHN WOOD, Governor 1860-1, and 
the first settler of Quincy, 111., 
was born in the town of Sempro- 

f' IP5K ' ' ' V nius (now Moravia), Cayuga Co., 
^T '£;>?•' N. Y., Dec. 20, 1798. He was 
the second child and only son of 
Dr. Daniel Wood. His mother, 
nee Catherine Crause, was of 
German parentage, and died 
while he was an infant. Dr. 
Wood was a learned and skillful 
physician, of classical attain- 
ments and proficient in several 
modern languages, who, after 
serving throughout the Revolu- 
tionary War as a Surgeon, settled on the land granted 
him by the Government, and resided there a re- 
spected and leading influence in his section until his 
death, at the ripe age of 92 years. 

The subject of this sketch, impelled by the spirit 
of Western adventure then pervading everywhere, 
left his home, Nov. 2, 1818, and passed the succeed- 
ing winter in Cincinnati, Ohio. The following sum- 
mer he pushed on to Illinois, landing at Shawneetown, 
and spent the fall and following winter in Calhoun 
County. In 1820, in company with Willard Keyes, 
he settled in Pike County, about 30 miles southeast 
of Quincy, where for the next two years he pursued 
farming. In 1821 he visited "the Bluffs" (as the 
present site of Quincy was called, then uninhabited) 
and, pleased with its prospects, soon after purchased 
a quarter-section of land near by, and in the follow- 
ing fall (1S22) erected near the river a small cabin, 




18 x 20 feet, the first building in Quincy, of which 
he then became the first and for some months the 
only occupant. 

About this time he visited his old friends in Pike 
County, chief of whom was William Ross, the lead- 
ing man in building up the village of Atlas, of that 
county, which was thought then to be the possible 
commencement of 3 city. One day they and others 
were traveling together over the country between the 
two points named, making observations on the com- 
parative merits of the respective localities. On ap- 
proaching the Mississippi near Mr. Wood's place, 
the latter told his companions to follow him and he 
would show them where he was going to build a city. 
They went about a mile off the main trail, to a high 
point, from which the view in every direction was 
most magnificent, as it had been for ages and as yet 
untouched by the hand of man. Before them swept 
by the majestic Father of Waters, yet unburdened by 
navigation. After Mr. Wood had expatiated at 
length on the advantages of the situation, Mr. Ross 
replied, " But it's too near Atlas ever to amount to 
anything!" 

Atlas is still a cultivated farm, and Quincy is a 
city of over 30,000 population. 

In 1824 Mr. Wood gave a newspaper notice, 
as the law then prescribed, of his intention to apply 
to the General Assembly for the formation of a new 
county. This was done the following winter, result- 
ing in the establishment of the present Adams 
County. During the next summer Quincy was se- 
lected as the county seat, it and the vicinity then 
containing but four adult male residents and hall 



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JOHN WOOD. 



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that number of females. Sinoe that period Mr. 
Wood resided at the place of his early adoption un- 
til his death, and far more than any other man was 
he identified with every measure of its progress and 
history, and almost continuously kept in public posi- 
tions. 

He was one of the early town Trustees, and after 
the place became a city he was often a member of 
the City Council, many times elected Mayor, in the 
face of a constant large opposition political majority. 
In 1850 he was elected to the State Senate. In 1856, 
on the organization of the Republican party, he was 
chosen Lieutenant Governor of the State, on the 
ticket with Wm, H. Bissell for Governor, and on the 
death of the latter, March 18, 1S60, he succeeded to 
the Chief Executive chair, which he occupied until 
Gov. Yates was inaugurated nearly ten months after- 
ward. 

Nothing very marked characterized the adminis- 
tration of Gov. Wood. The great anti-slavery cam- 
paign of i860, resulting in the election of the honest 
Illinoisan, Abraham Lincoln, to the Presidency of the 
United States, occurred during the short period 
while Mr. Wood was Governor, and toe excitement 
and issues of that struggle dominated over every 
other consideration, — indeed, supplanted them in a 
great measure. The people of Illinois, during all 
that time, were passing the comparatively petty strifes 
under Bissell's administration to the overwhelming 
issue of preserving the whole nation from destruction. 

In 1 86 1 ex-Gov. Wood was one of the five Dele- 
gates from Illinois to the " Peace Convention " at 
Washington, and in April of the same year, on the 
breaking out of the Rebellion, he was appointed 



Quartermaster-General of the State, which position 
he held throughout the war. In 1864 he took com- 
mand as Colonel of the 137th 111. Vol. Inf., with 
whom he served until the period of enlistment ex- 
pired. 

Politically, Gov. Wood was always actively identi- 
fied with the Whig and Republican parties. Few 
men have in personal experience comprehended so 
many surprising and advancing local changes as 
vested in the more than half century recollections of 
Gov. Wood. Sixty-four years ago a solitary settler 
on the "Bluffs," with no family, and no neighbor 
within a score of miles, the world of civilization away 
behind him, and the strolling red-man almost his 
only visitant, he lived to see growing around him, 
and under his auspices and aid, overspreading the 
wild hills and scraggy forest a teaming city, second 
only in size in the State, and surpassed nowhere in 
beauty, prosperity and promise; whose people recog- 
nize as with a single voice the proverbial honor and 
liberality that attach to the name and lengthened 
life of their pioneer settler, "the old Governor." 

Gov. Wood was twice married,— first in January, 
1826, to Ann M. Streeter, daughter of Joshua Streeter, 
formerly of Salem, Washington Co., N. Y. They had 
eight children. Mrs. W. died Oct. 8, 1863, and in 
June, 1865, Gov. Wood married Mrs. Mary A., widow 
of Rev. Joseph T. Holmes. Gov. Wood died June 4, 
1880, at his residence in Quincy. Four of his eight 
children are now living, namely: Ann E., wife of 
Gen. John Tillson; Daniel C, who married Mary J. 
Abernethy; John, Jr., who married Josephine Skinner, 
and Joshua S., who married Annie Bradley. The 
last mentioned now resides at Atchison, Kansas, and 
all the rest are still at Quincy. 



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ICHARD YATES, the "War 
Governor," 1 86 1-4, was born 
Jan. 18, 1818, on the banks of 
the Ohio River, at Warsaw, 
g> Gallatin Co., Ky. His father 
fe?- moved in 1831 tp Illinois, and 
after stopping for a time in 
Springfield, settled at Island 
Grove, Sangamon County. Here, 
after attending school, Richard joined 
the family. Subsequently he entered 
Illinois College at Jacksonville, 
where, in 1837, he graduated with 
first honors. He chose for his pro- 
fession the law, the Hon. J. J. Har- 
din being his instructor. After ad- 
mission to the Bar he soon rose to distinction as an 
advocate. 

Gifted with a fluent and ready oratory, he soon 
appeared in the political hustings, and, being a 
passionate admirer of the great Whig leader of the 
West, Henry Clay, he joined his political fortunes to 
the party of his idol. In 1840 he engaged with great 
ardor in the exciting " hard cider " campaign for 
Harrison. Two years later he was elected to the 
Legislature from Morgan County, a Democratic 
stronghold. He served three or four terms in the 
Legislature, and such was the fascination of his ora- 
tory that by 1850 his large Congressional District, 
extending from Morgan and Sangamon Counties 
north to include LaSalle, unanimously tendered him 
the Whig nomination for Congress. His Democratic 
opponent was Maj. Thomas L. Harris, a very pop- 
ular man who had won distinction at '.ie battle of 
Cerro Gordo, in the Mexican War, and who had 
beaten Hon. Stephen T. Logan for the same position. 

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two years before, by a large majority. Yates was 
elected. Two years later he was re-elected, over 
John Calhoun. 

It was during Yates' second term in Congress that 
the great question of the repeal of the Missouri Com- 
promise was agitated, and the bars laid down for re- 
opening the dreaded anti-slavery question. He took 
strong grounds against the repeal, and thus became 
identified with the rising Republican party. Conse- 
quently he fell into the minority in his district, which 
was pro-slavery. Even then, in a third contest, he 
fell behind Major Harris only 200 votes, after the 
district had two years before given Pierce 2,000 
majority for President. 

The Republican State Convention of i860 met at 
Decatur May 9, and nominated for the office of Gov- 
ernor Mr. Yates, in preference to Hon. Norman B. 
Judd, of Chicago, and Leonard Swett, of Blooming- 
ton, two of the ablest men of the State, who were 
also candidates before the Convention. Francis A. 
Hoffman, of DuPage County, was nominated for 
Lieutenant Governor. This was the year when Mr. 
Lincoln was a candidate for President, a period re- 
membered as characterized by the great whirlpool 
which precipitated the bloody War of the Rebellion. 
The Douglas Democrats nominated J. C. Allen of 
Crawford County, for Governor, and Lewis W. Ross, 
of Fulton County, for Lieutenant Governor. The 
Breckenridge Democrats and the Bell-Everett party 
had also full tickets in the field. After a most fear- 
ful campaign, the result of the election gave Mr. 
Yates 172,196 votes, and Mr. Allen 159,253. Mr. 
Yates received over a thousand more votes than did 
Mr. Lincoln himself. 

Gov. Yates occupied the chair of State during the 

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RICHARD YATES. 



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most critical period of our country's history. In the 
fate of the nation was involved that of each State. 
The life struggle of the former derived its sustenance 
from the loyalty of the latter; and Gov. Yates 
seemed to realize the situation, and proved himself 
both loyal and wise in upholding the Government. 
He had a deep hold upon the affections of the 
people, won by his moving eloquence and genial 
manners. Erect and symmetrical in person, of pre- 
possessing appearance, with a winning address and .1 
magnetic power, few men possessed more of the ele- 
ments of popularity. Mis oratory was scholarly and 
captivating, his hearers hardly knowing why they 
were transported. He was social and convivial. In 
the latter respect he was ultimately carried too far. 

The very creditable military efforts of this State 
during the War of the Rebellion, in putting into the 
field the enormous number of about 200,000 soldiers, 
were ever promptly and ably seconded by his excel- 
lency ; and the was ambitious to deserve the title of 
"the soldier's friend." Immediately after the battleof 
Shiloh he repaired to the field of carnage to look 
after the wounded, and his appeals for aid were 
promptly responded to by the people. His procla- 
mations calling for volunteers were impassionate 
appeals, urging upon the people the duties and re- 
quirements of patriotism; and his special message 
in 1863 to the Democratic Legislature of this State 
pleading for material aid for the sick and wounded 
soldiers of Illinois regiments, breathes a deep fervor 
of noble sentiment and feeling rarely equaled in 
beauty or felicity of expression. Generally his mes- 
sages on political and civil affairs were able and com- 
prehensive. During his administration, however, 
there were no civil events of an engrossing character, 
although two years of his time were replete with 
partisan quarrels of great bitterness. Military ar- 
rests, Knights of the Golden Circle, riot in Fulton 
County, attempted suppression of the Chicago Times 
and the usurping State Constitutional Convention of 
1862, were the chief local topics that were exciting 
during the Governor's term. This Convention assem- 
bled Jan. 7, and at once took the high position that 
the law calling it was no longer binding, and that it 
had supreme power; that it represented a virtual 
assemblage of the whole people of the State, and was 
sovereign in the exercise of all power necessary to 
effect a peaceable revolution of the State Government 



and to the re-establishmcnlof one for the "happiness, 
prosperity and freedom of the citizens," limited only 
by the Federal Constitution. Notwithstanding the 
law calling the Convention required its members to 
take an oath to support the Constitution of the State 
as well as that of the general Government, they 
utterly refused to take such oath. They also as- 
sumed legislative powers and passed several import- 
ant "laws!" Interfering with the (then) present 
executive duties, Gov. Yates was provoked to tell 
them plainly that " he did not acknowledge the right 
of the Convention to instruct him in the performance 
of his duty." 

In 1863 the Governor astonished the Democrats 
by " proroguing " their Legislature. This body, after 
a recess, met June 2, that year, and soon began to 
waste time upon various partisan resolutions; and, 
while the two houses were disagreeing upon the 
question of adjourning sine die, the Governor, having 
the authority in such cases, surprised them all by 
adjourning them " to the Saturday next preceding the 
first Monday in January, 1865 ! " This led to great 
excitement and confusion, and to a reference of the 
Governor's act to the Supreme Court, who decided in 
his favor. Then it was the Court's turn to receive 
abuse for weeks and months afterward. 

During the autumn of 1864 a conspiracy was de- 
tected at Chicago which had for its object the liber- 
ation of the prisoners of war at Camp Douglas, the 
burning of the city and the inauguration of rebellion 
in the North. Gen. Sweet, who had charge of the 
camp at the time, first had his suspicions of danger 
aroused by a number of enigmatically worded letters 
which passed through the Camp postofnee. A de- 
tective afterward discovered that the rebel Gen. 
Marmaduke was in the city, under an assumed 
name, and he, with other rebel officers — Grenfell, 
Morgan, Cantrell, Buckner Morris, and Charles 
Walsh — was arrested, most of whom were convicted 
by a court-martial at Cincinnati and sentenced to 
imprisonment, — Grenfell to be hung. The sentence 
of the latter was afterward commuted to imprison- 
ment for life, and all the others, after nine months' 
imprisonment, were pardoned. 

In March, 1873, Gov. Yates was appointed a Gov- 
ernment Director of the Union Pacific Railroad, in 
which office he continued until his decease, at St. 
Louis, Mo., on the 27th of November following. 



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GO VERNORS OF ILLINOIS. 




Michard J. Oglesby 



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RICHARD J. OGLESBY, Gov- 
ernor 1865-8, and re-elected 
in 1872 and 1884, was born 
July 25, 1824, in Oldham Co., 
Ky., — the State which might 
be considered the " mother of 
Illinois Governors." Bereft of 
his parents at the tender age 
of eight years, his early education 
was neglected. When 12 years of 
age, and after he had worked a year 
and a half at the carpenter's trade, 
he removed with an uncle, Willis 
Oglesby, into whose care he had 
been committed, to Decatur, this 
State, where he continued his ap- 
prenticeship as a mechanic, working six months for 
Hon. E. O. Smith. 

In 1844 he commenced studying law at Spring- 
field, with Judge Silas Robbins, and read with him 
one year. He was admitted to the Bar in 1845, and 
commenced the practice of his chosen profession at 
Sullivan, the county seat of Moultrie County. 

The next year the war with Mexico was com- 
menced, and in June, 1846, Mr. Oglesby volunteered, 
was elected First Lieutenant of Co. C, Fourth Illinois 
Regiment of Volunteers, and participated in the bat- 
tles of Vera Cruz and Cerro Gordo. 

On his return he sought to perfect his law studies 
by attending a course of lectures at Louisville, but 
on the breaking out of the California "gold fever " in 
1849, he crossed the plains' and mountains to the 
new Eldorado, driving a six-mule team, with a com- 



pany of eight men, Henry Prather being the leader. 

In 1852 he returned home to Macon County, and 
was placed that year by the Whig party on the ticket 
of Presidential Electors. In 1856 he visited Europe, 
Asia and Africa, being absent 20 months. On his 
return home he resumed the practice of law, as a 
member of the firm of Gallagher, Wait & Oglesby. 
In 1858 he was the Republican nominee for the 
Lower House of Congress, but was defeated by the 
Hon. James C. Robinson, Democrat. In i860 he 
was elected to the Illinois State Senate ; and on the 
evening the returns of this election were coming in, 
Mr. Oglesby had a fisticuff encounter with " Cerro 
Gordo Williams," in which he came out victorious, 
and which was regarded as " the first fight of the 
Rebellion." The following spring, when the war 
had commenced in earnest, his ardent nature 
quickly responded to the demands of patriotism and 
he enlisted. The extra session of the Legislature 
elected him Colonel of the Eighth Illinois Infantry, 
the second one in the State raised to suppress the 
great Rebellion. 

He was shortly entrusted with important com- 
mands. For a time he was 'stationed at Bird's Point 
and Cairo ; in April he was promoted Brigadier Gen- 
eral ; at Fort Donelson his brigade was in the van, 
being stationed on the right of General Grant's army 
and the first brigade to be attacked. He lost 500 
men before re-inforcements arrived. Many of these 
men were from Macon County. He was engaged in 
the battle of Corinth, and, in a brave charge at this 
place, was shot in the left lung with an ounce ball, 
and was carried from the field in expectation of im- 



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RICHARD J. OGLESBY. 



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mediate death. That rebel ball he carries to this 
day. On his partial recovery he was promoted as 

Major General, lor gdlantry, his commission to rank 
from November, [862. In the spring bf 1863 he 
was assigned to the command of the 16th Army 
Corps, but, owing to inability from the effects of his 
wound, he relinquished this command in July, that 
year. Gen. Grant, however, refused to accept his 
resignation, and he wis detailed, in December follow- 
ing, to court-martial and try the Surgeon ( ', ineral of 
the Army at Washington, where he remained until 
May, [864, whan he returned home. 
The Republican, or Union, State Convention of 

1864 was held at Springfield, May 25, when Mr. 
Oglesby was nominated for the office of Governor, 
while other candidates before the Convention were 
Allen C. Fuller, of Boone, Jesse K. Dubois, of Sanga- 
mon, and John M. Palmer, of Macoupin. Wm. 
Bross, of Chicago, was nominated for Lieutenant 
Governor. On the Democratic State ticket were 
James C. Robinson, of ('lark, for Governor, and S. 
Corning Judd, of Fulton, for Lieutenant Governor. 
The general election gave Gen. Oglesby a majority 
of about 31,000 votes. The Republicans had also a 
majority in both the Legislature and in the repre- 
sentation in Congress. 

Gov. Oglesby was duly inaugurated Jan. 17, 1865. 
The day before the first time set for his installation 
death visited his home at Decatur, and took from it 
his only son, an intelligent and sprightly lad of six 
years, a great favorite of the bereaved parents. This 
caused the inauguration to be postponed a week. 

The political events of the Legislative session of 

1865 were the election of ex-Gov. Yates to the 
United States Senate, and the ratification of the 13th 
amendment to the Constitution of the United States, 
abolishing slavery. This session also signalized 
itself by repealing the notorious " black laws," part 
of which, although a dead letter, had held their place 
upon the statute books since 1819. Also, laws re- 
quiring the registration of voters, and establishing a 
State Board of Equalization, were passed by this Leg- 
islature. But the same body evinced that it was cor- 
ruptly influenced by a mercenary lobby, as it adopted 
some bad legislation, over the Governor's veto, nota- 
blv an amendment to a charter for a Chicago horse 
railway, granted in 1S59 for 25 years, and now 
sought to be extended 99 years. As this measure 
was promptly passed over his veto by both branches 
of the Legislature, he deemed it useless further to 
attempt to check their headlong career. At this 
session no law of a general useful character or public 
interest was perfected, unless we count such the 
turning over of the canal to Chicago to be deepened. 
The session of 1867 was still more productive of 
private and special acts. Many omnibus bills were 
proposed, and some passed. The contests over the 
location of the Industrial College, the Capital, the 




Southern Penitentiary, and fhe canal enlargement 

and Illinois River improvement, dominated even 
thing else. 

During the year r872, it became evident that if 
the Republicans could re-elect Mr. Oglesby to the 
office of Governor, they could also elect him to the 
United States Senate, which they desired to do. 
Accordingly they re-nominated him for the Execu- 
tive chair, and placed upon the ticket with him for 
Lieutenant Governor, John L. Beveridge, of Cook 
County. On the other side the Democrats put into 
the field Gustavus Koerner for Governor and John 
C. Black for Lieutenant Governor. The election 
gave the Republican ticket majorities ranging from 
35,334 to 56^74, — the Democratic defection being 
caused mainly by their having an old-time Whig and 
Abolitionist, Horace Greeley, on the national ticket 
for President. According to the general understand- 
ing had beforehand, as soon as the Legislature met 
it elected Gov. Oglesby to the United States Senate, 
whereupon Mr. Beveridge became Governor. Sena- 
tor Oglesby 's term expired March 4, 1S79, having 
served his party faithfully and exhibited an order of 
statesmanship beyond criticism. 

During the campaign of 1884 Mr. Oglesby was 
nominated for a "third term" as Executive of the 
State of Illinois, against Carter H. Harrison, Mayor 
of Chicago, nominated by the Democrats. Both 
gentlemen "stumped " the State, and while the peo- 
ple elected a Legislature which was a tie on a joint 
ballot, as between the two parties, they gave the 
jovial " Dick" Oglesby a majority of 15,018 for Gov- 
ernor, and he was inaugurated Jan. 30, 1885. The 
Legislature did not fully organize until this date, on 
account of its equal division between the two main 
parties and the consequent desperate tactics of eai h 
party to checkmate the latter in the organization of 
the House. 

Gov. Oglesby is a fine-appearing, affable man, with 
regular, well defined features and rotund face. In 
stature he is a little above medium height, of a large 
frame and somewhat fleshy. His physical appear- 
ance is striking and prepossessing, while his straight- 
out, not to say bluff, manner and speech are well 
calculated favorably to impress the average masses. 
Ardent in feeling and strongly committed to the pol- 
icies of his party, he intensifies Republicanism 
among Republicans, while at the same time his jovial 
and liberal manner prevents those of the opposite 
party from hating him. 

He is quite an effective stump orator. With vehe- 
ment, passionate and scornful tone and gestures, 
tremendous physical power, which in speaking he 
exercises to the utmost; with frequent descents to 
the grotesque; and with abundant homely compari- 
sons or frontier figures, expressed in the broadest 
vernacular and enforced with stentorian emphasis 
he delights a promiscuous audience beyond measure. 



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J|OHN Mc AULEY PALMER, Gov- 
t's?** ernor 1869-72, was born on 
Eagle Creek, Scott Co., Ky., 
Sept. 13, 1817. During his in- 
fancy, his father, who had been 
a soldier in the war of 181 2, re- 
moved to Christian Co., Ky., 
where lands were cheap. Here 
the future Governor of the great 
Prairie State spent his childhood 
' and received such meager school- 
ing as the new and sparsely set- 
tled country afforded. To this 
he added materially by diligent 
reading, for which he evinced an 
early aptitude. His father, an ardent Jackson man, 
was also noted for his anti-slavery sentiments, which 
he thoroughly impressed upon his children. In 1831 
he emigrated to Illinois, settling in Madison County. 
Here the labor of improving a farm was pursued for 
about two years, when the death of Mr. Palmer's 
mother broke up the family. About this time Alton 
College was opened, on the "manual labor " system, 
and in the spring of 1834 young Palmer, with his 
elder brother, Elihu, entered this school and remained 
j 8 months. Next, for over three years, he tried 
variously coopering, peddling and school-teaching. 

During the summer of 1838 he formed the ac- 
quaintance of Stephen A. Douglas, then making his 



first canvass for Congress. Young, eloquent and in 
political accord with Mr. Palmer, he won his confi- 
dence, fired his ambition and fixed his purpose. The 
following winter, while teaching near Canton, he be- 
gan to devote his spare time to a desultory reading 
of law, and in the spring entered a law office at Car- 
linville, making his home with his elder brother, 
Elihu. (The latter was a learned clergyman, of con- 
siderable orginality of thought and doctrine.) On 
the next meeting of the Supreme Court he was ad- 
mitted to the Bar, Douglas being one of his examiners. 
He was not immediately successful in his profession, 
and would have located elsewhere than Carlinville 
had he the requisite means. Thus his early poverty 
was a blessing in disguise, for to it he now attributes 
the success of his life. 

From 1839 on, while he diligently pursued his 
profession, he participated more or less in local 
politics. In 1843 he became Probate Judge. In 
1847 he was elected to the State Constitutional Con- 
vention, where he took a leading part. In 1852 he 
was elected to the State Senate, and at the special 
session of February, 1854, true to the anti-slavery 
sentiments bred in him, he took a firm stand in op- 
position to the repeal of the Missouri Compromise; 
and when the Nebraska question became a party 
issue he refused to receive a re-nomination for the 
Senatorship at the hands of the Democracy, issuing 
a circular to that effect. A few weeks afterward. 



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however, hesitating to break with his party, he par- 
ted in a Congressional Convention which nomi- 
T. L. Harris against Richard Yates, and which 
unqualifiedly approved the principles of the Kansas- 
Nebraska act. But later in the campaign lie made 
the plunge, ran for the Senate as an Anti-Nebraska 
Democrat, and was elected. The following winter 
he put in nomination for the United States Senate 
Mr. Trumbull, and was one of the five steadfast men 
who voted for him until all the Whigs came to their 
support and elected their man. 

In 1856 he was Chairman of the Republican State 
Convention at Bloomington. He ran for Congress in 
1859, but was defeated. In i860 he was Republican 
Presidential Elector for the State at large. In 1861 
he was appointed one of the five Delegates (all Re- 
publicans) sent by Illinois to the peace congress at 
Washington. 

When the civil conflict broke out, he offered his 
services to his country, and was elected Colonel of the 
14th III. Vol. Inf., and participated in the engagements 
at Island No. 10; at Fannington, where he skillfully 
extricated his command from a dangerous position ; 
at Stone River, where his division for several hours, 
Dec. 31, 1862, held the advance and stood like a 
rock, and for his gallantry there he was made Major 
General; at Chickamauga, where his and Van Cleve's 
divisions for two hours maintained their position 
when they were cut off by overpowering numbers. 
Under Gen. Sherman, he was assigned to the 14th 
Army Corps and participated in the Atlanta campaign. 
At Peach-Tree Creek his prudence did much to avert 
disaster. In February, 1865, Gen. Palmer was as- 
signed to the military administration of Kentucky, 
which was a delicate post. That State was about 
half rebel and half Union, and those of the latter 
element were daily fretted by the loss of their slaves. 
He, who had been bred to the rules of common law, 
trembled at the contemplation of his extraordinary 
power over the persons and property of his fellow 
men, with which he was vested in his capacity- as 
military Governor; and he exhibited great caution in 
the execution of the duties of his post. 

Gen. Palmer was nominated for Governor of Illi- 
nois by the Republican State Convention which met 
at Peoria M ty 6, 1868, and his nomination would 
probably have been made by acclamation had he not 
persistently declared that he could not accept a can- 




didature for the office. The result of the ensuing 
election gave Mr. Palmer a majority of 44,707 over 
John R. Eden, the Democratic nominee. 

On the meeting of the Legislature in January, 
1869, the first thing to arrest public attention was 
that portion of the Governor's message which took 
broad State's lights ground. This and some minor 
points, which were more in keeping with the Demo- 
cratic sentiment, constituted the entering wedge f.>r 
the criticisms and reproofs he afterward received 
from the Republican party, and ultimately resulted 
in his entire aleniation from the latter element. The 
Legislature just referred to was noted for the intro- 
duction of numerous bills in the interest of private 
parties, which were embarrassing to the Governor. 
Among the public acts passed was that which limited 
railroad charges for passenger travel to a maximum 
of three cents per mile; and it was passed over the 
Governor's veto. Also, they passed, over his veto, 
the "tax-grabbing law" to pay railroad subscriptions, 
the Chicago Lake Front bill, etc. The new State 
Constitution of 1870, far superior to the old, was a 
peaceful " revolution" which took place during Gov. 
Palmer's term of office. The suffering caused by the 
great Chicago Fire of October, 187 1, was greatly 
alleviated by the prompt responses of his excellency. 

Since the expiration of Gov. Palmers's term, he has 
been somewhat prominent in Illinois politics, and 
has been talked of by many, especially in the Dem- 
ocratic party, as the best man in the State for a 
United States Senator. His business during life has 
been that of the law. Few excel him in an accurate 
appreciation of the depth and scope of its principles. 
The great number of his able veto messages abun- 
dantly testify not only this but also a rare capacity to 
point them out. He is a logical and cogent reasoner 
and an interesting, forcible and convincing speaker, 
though not fluent or ornate. Without brilliancy, his 
dealings are rather with facts and ideas than with 
appeals to passions and prejudices. He is a patriot 
and a statesman of very high order. Physically he is 
above the medium height, of robust frame, ruddy 
complexion and sanguine-nervous temperament He 
has a large cranial development, is vivacious, social 
in disposition, easy of approach, unostentatious in his 
habits of life, democratic in his habits and manners 
and is a true American in his fundamental principles 
of statesmanship. 



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GO VERNORS OF ILLINOIS. 





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oj -''r-^T^^ 0HN L< ^ WRIE BEVER- 
IDGE, Governor 187 3-6, was 
" born in the town of Green- 
wich, Washington Co., N. Y., 
July 6, 1824. His parents 
were George and Ann Bever- 
ly idge. His father's parents, An- 
drew and Isabel Beveridge, be- 
fore their marriage emigrated 
from Scotland just before the 
Revolutionary War, settling in 
Washington County. His father 
was the eldest of eight brothers, the 
youngest of whom was 60 years of 
age when the first one of the num- 
ber died. His mother's parents, 
James and Agnes Hoy, emigrated 
from Scotland at the close of the 
Revolutionary War, settling also in 
Washington Co., N. Y., with their 
first-born, whose " native land " was 
t he wild ocean. His parents and 
grandparents lived beyond the time 
allotted to man, their average age 
being over 80 years. They belonged to the " Asso- 
ciate Church," a seceding Presbyterian body of 



America from the old Scotch school ; and so rigid 
was the training of young Beveridge that he never 
heard a sermon from any other minister except that 
of his own denomination until he was in his 19th 
year. Later in life he became a member of the 
Methodist Episcopal Church, which relation he still 
holds. 

Mr. Beveridge received a good common-school ed- 
ucation, but his parents, who could obtain a livelihood 
only by rigid economy and industry, could not send 
him away to college. He was raised upon a farm, 
and was in his 18th year when the family removed 
to De Kalb County, this State, when that section was 
very sparsely settled. Chicago had less than 7,000 
inhabitants. In this wild West he continued 
farm laborer, teaching school during the winter 
months to supply the means of an education. In the 
fall of 1842 he attended one term at the academy at 
Granville, Putnam Co., 111., and subsequently several 
terms at the Rock River Seminary at Mount Morris, 
Ogle Co., 111., completing the academic course. At 
this time, the fall of 1845, his parents and brothers 
were anxious to have him go to college, even though 
lie had not money sufficient; but, njt willing to bur- 
den the family, he packed his trunk and with onlv 
§40 in money started South to seek his fortun . 



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Poor, alone, without friends and influence, he thus 
entered upon the battle of life. 

First, he taught school in Wilson, Overton and 
rackson Cos., Tenn., in which experience he under- 
considerable mental drill, both in book studies 
.1 id in the ways of the world. He read law and was 
admitted to the Bar, in the South, but did not learn 
to love the institution of slavery, although he ad- 
mired many features of Southern character. In De- 
cember, i' s i;. he returned North, and Jan. 20, 1848, 
he married Miss Helen M. Judson, in theold Clark- 
M I .church in Chicago, her father at that 
time being Pastor of the society there. In the spring 
of 1848 he returned with his wife to Tennessee, 
where his two children, Alia May and Philo Judson, 
; * irn. 

In the fall of [849, through the mismanagement 
of an assoi iate, he lost what little he had accumu- 
lated and was left in debt. He soon managed to 
earn means to pay his debts, returned to De Kalb 
Co., HI., and entered upon the practice of his pro- 
fession at Sycamore, the county seat. On arrival 
:he South he had but one-quarter of a dollar in 
money, and scanty clothing and bedding for himself 
and family. He borrowed a little money, practiced 
law, worked in public offices, kept bonks for some of 
the business men of the town, and some railroad en- 
gineering, till the spring of 1S54, when he removed 
to Evanston, 12 miles north of Chicago, a place then 
recently laid out, under the supervision of the 
Northwestern University, a Methodist institution. 
Of the latter bis father-in-law was then financial 
agent and business manager. Here Mr. Beveridge 
prospered, and the next year (1^55) opened a law 
office in Chicago, where he found the battle some- 
what hard; but he persevered with encouragement 
and increasing succi 

Aug. 12, 1861, his law partner, Gen. John F. 
Farnsworth, secured authority to raise a regiment of 
Iry, and authorized Mr. Beveridge to raise a 
company for it. He succeeded in a few days in rais- 
ing the company, of course enlisting himself along 
with it. The regiment rendezvoused at St. Charles, 
111., was mustered in Sept. 18, and on its organiza- 
tion Mr. B. was elected Second Major. It was at- 
■ d, Oct. 11, to the Eighth Cavalry and to the 
Army of tin- Potomac. He served with the regiment 
until November, 1863, participating in some 40 bat- 

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ties and skirmishes : was at Fair Oaks, the seven days' 
light around Richmond, Fredericksburg, Chancellors- 
ville and Gettysburg. He commanded the regiment 
the greater part of the summer of 1863, and it was while 
King in camp this year that he originated the policy 
of encouraging recruits as well as the fighting capac- 
ity of the soldiery, by the wholesale furlough system. 
It worked so well that many other officers adopted 
it. In the fall of this year he recruited another com- 
pany, against heavy odds, in January, 1S64, was 
commissioned Colonel of the 17th 111. Cav., and 
skirmished around in Missouri, concluding with the 
reception of the surrender of Gen. Kirby Smith's 
army in Arkansas. In 1865 he commanded various 
sub-districts in the Southwest. He was mustered 
out Feb. 6, 1866, safe from the casualties of war and 
.1 stouter man than when he first enlisted. His men 
idolized him. 

He then returned to Chicago, to practice law, with 
no library and no clientage, and no political experi- 
ence except to help others into office. In the fall of 
1866 he was elected Sheriff of Cook County, serving 
one term; next, until November, 1870, he practiced 
law and closed up the unfinished business of hi> 
office. He was then elected State Senator; in No- 
vember, 187 1, he was elected Congressman at large; 
in November, 1872, he was elected Lieutenant Gov- 
ernor on the ticket with Gov. Oglesby ; the latter be- 
ing elected to the U. S. Senate, Mr. Beveridge became 
Governor, Jan. 21, 1873. Thus, inside of a few 
weeks, he was Congressman at large, Lieutenant 
Governor and Governor. The principal events oc- 
curring during Gov. Beveridge 's administration were: 
The completion of the revision of the statutes, begun 
in 1869; the partial success of the "farmers' move- 
ment;" " Haines' Legislature " and Illinois' exhibit at 
the Centennial. 

Since the close of his gubernatorial term ex-Gov. 
Beveridge has been a member of the firm of Bever- 
idge & Dewey, bankers and dealers in commercial 
paper at 7 1 Dearborn Street (McCormick Block), 
Chicago, and since November, 1881, he has also been 
Assistant United States Treasurer : office in the 
Government Building. His residence is still at Ev- 
anston. 

He h3s a brother and two sisters yet residing in 
De Kalb County — James H. Beveridge, Mrs. Jennet 
Henry and Mrs. Isabel French. 



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GOVERNORS OF ILLINOIS. 



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HELBY M. CULLOM, Gover- 
nor 1877-83,15 the sixth child 
of the late Richard N. Cullom, 
and was born Nov. 22, 1829, in 
Wayne Co., Ky., where his fa- 
ther then resided, and whence 
both the Illinois and Tennessee 
branches of the family originated. In 
the following year the family emi- 
grated to the vicinity of Washington, 
Tazewell Co., 111., when that section 
was very sparsely settled. They lo- 
cated on Deer Creek, in a grove at 
the time occupied by a party of In- 
dians, attracted there by the superior 
hunting and fishing afforded in that 
vicinity. The following winter was 
known as the " hard winter," the snow being very 
deep and lasting and the weather severely cold; and 
the family had to subsist mainly on boiled corn or 
hominy, and some wild game, for several weeks. In 
the course of time Mr. R. N. Cullom became a prom- 
inent citizen and was several times elected to the 
Legislature, both before and after the removal of the 
capital from Vandalia to Springfield. He died about 
1873- 

Until about 19 years of age young Cullom grew up 
to agricultural pursuits, attending school as he had 
opportunity during the winter. Within this time, 
however, lie spent several months teaching school, 




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and in the following summer he "broke prairie "with 
an ox team for the neighbors. With the money ob- 
tained by these various ventures, he undertook a 
course of study at the Rock River Seminary, a 
Methodist institution at Mt. Morris, Ogle County; 
but the sudden change to the in-door life of a stu- 
dent told severely upon his health, and he was taken 
home, being considered in a hopeless condition. While 
at Mt. Morris he heard Hon. E. B. Washburne make 
his first speech. 

On recovering health, Mr. Cullom concluded to 
study law, under the instruction of Abraham Lincoln, 
at Springfield, who had by this time attained some 
notoriety as an able lawyer; but the latter, being ab- 
sent from his office most of the time, advised Mr. 
Cullom to enter the office of Stuart & Edwards. 
After about a year of study there, however, his health 
failed again, and he was obliged to return once more 
to out-door life. Accordingly he bought hogs for 
packing, for A. G. Tyng, in l'eoria, and while lie re- 
gained his health he gained in purse, netting $400 in 
a few weeks. Having been admitted to the Bar, he 
went to Springfield, where he was soon elected City 
Attorney, on the Anti-Nebraska ticket. 

In 1856 he ran on the Fillmore ticket as a Presi- 
dential Elector, and, although failing to be elected as 
such, he was at the same time elected a Representa- 
tive in the Legislature from Sangamon County, by a 
local coalition of the American and Republican par- 
tie^. On the organization of the House, he received 
the vote of the Fillmore men for Speaker. Practicing 

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law until 1 86 >, he was thi I legisla- 
ture, as a Republican, while the county wenl D 

cratic on the Presidential ticket. In Janu 

ing he was elected Speaker, probably the youngest 
man who had ever presided over an Illinois Legis- 
lature. After the session of 1861, he was a candidate 
for the State Constitutional C ition calle 

that year, but was del I d thus escaped the 

disgrace of being 1 I with that abortive parly 

scheme to revolutionize the s te Government, In 
1862 he was a can. lid ue for the State Senate, 
was defeated. The same year, however, he was ap- 
pointed by President Lincoln on a Government 
Commission, in company with Gov. Boutwell of 
Massachusetts and Charles A. Dana, since of the 
New York Sun, to in- the affairs of the 

Quartermaster's and Commissary Departments at 
Cairo. He devoted several months to this duty. 

In 1S64 he entered upon a larger political field, 
being nominated as the Republican candidate lor 
Congress from the Eighth (Springfield) District, in 
opposition to the incumbent, JohnT. Stuart, who had 
been elected in 1862 by about 1,500 majority o\ 1 1 
Leonard Swett, then of Bloomington, now of Chicago. 
The result was the election of Mr. Cullom in Novem- 
ber following by a majority of 1,7X5. In 1866 he 
was re-elected to Congress, over Dr. E. S. Fowler, by 
the magnificent majority of 4,103! In 1868 he was 
again a candidate, d ; the lion. U.S. Edwards, 

another of his old preceptors, by 2,884 votes. 

During his first term in Congress he served on the 
Committee on Foreign Affairs and Expenditures in 
the Treasury Department; in his second term, on 
the Committees on Foreign Affairs and 0:1 Territories ■ 
and in his third term he succeeded Mi. Ashley, of 
Ohio, to the Chairmanship of the latter. He intro- 
duced a bill in the House, to aid in the execution of 
law in Utah, which caused more consternation among 
the Mormons than any measure had previously, but 
which, though it passed the House, failed to pass the 
Senate. 

The Republican Convention which met May 25, 
1876, nominated Mr. Cullom for Governor, while the 
other contestant was Gov. Beveridge. For Lieuten- 
ant-Governor they nominated Andrew Shuman, editor 
of the Chicago Journal. For the same offices the 
Democrats, combining with the Uti-Monopolists, 
placed in nomination Lewis Steward, a wealthy 





tanner and manufacturer, and A. A. Glenn. The 

1 of the election was rather close, Mr. Cullom 
obtaining only 6,800 majority. He was inaugurated 
I in. 8, 1X77. 

Great depression prevailed in financial circles at 
this time, as a consequence of the heavy failures of 
[873 and afterward, the effect of which had seemed 

1 her force from that time to the end of Gov. 
1 'idiom's first administration. This unspeculative 
period was not calculated to call forth any new 
issues, but the Governor's energies were at one time 
put to task to quell a spirit of insubordination that 
had been begun in Pittsburg, Pa., among the laboring 
classes, and transferred to Illinois at Chicago, East 
St. Louis and Braidwood, at which places laboring 
men for a short time refused to work or allow others 
to work. These disturbances were soon quelled and 
the wheels of industry again set in motion. 

In May, 1880, Gov. Cullom was re-nominated by 
the Republicans, against Lyman Trumbull, by the 
Democrats; and although the former party was some- 
what handicapped in the campaign by a zealous 
faction opposed to Grant for President and to Grant 
men for office generally, Mr. Cullom was re-elected 
by about 314,565, to 277,532 forthe Democratic State 
ticket. The Greenback vote at the same time was 
about 27,000. Both Houses of the Legislature again 
be one Republican, and no representative of the 
Greenback or Socialist parties were elected. Gov. 
Cullom was inaugurated Jan. 10, tS8l. In his mes- 
i ige he announced that the last dollar of the State 
debt had been provided for. 

March 4, 18S3, the term of David Davis as United 
Suites Senator from Illinois expired, and Gov. Cul- 
lom was chosen to succeed him. This promoted 
Lieutenant-Governor John M. Hamilton to the Gov- 
ernorship. Senator Cullom 's term in the United 

s Senate will expire March 4, 1889. 
As a practitioner of law Mr. C. has been a member 
of the firm of Cullom, Scholes Ov: Mather, at Spring- 
field ; and he has also been President of the State 

rial Bank. 

II lias been married twice, — the first time Dec. 
155, to Miss Hannah Fisher, by whom he had 
two daughters; and the second time May 5, 1863, 
to Julia Fisher. Mrs. (' is a member of the Method- 
i E] i i( opal Church, with which religious body Mr. 
• '. is also in sympathy. 



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GOVERNORS OF ILLINOIS. 




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OHN MARSHALL HAMIL- 
TON, Governor 1883-5, was 
born May 28, iS47,inalog 
house upon a farm about two 
miles from Richwood, Union 
County, Ohio. His father was 
> Samuel Hamilton, the eldest son 
of Rev. Wm. Hamilton, who, to- 
gether with his brother, the Rev. 
% Samuel Hamilton, was among the 
early pioneer Methodist preachers in 
Ohio. The mother of the subject of 
this sketch was, before her marriage, 
Mrs. Nancy McMorris, who was 
born and raised in Fauquier or Lou- 
doun County, Va., and related to the 
two large families of Youngs and Marshalls, well 
known in that commonwealth ; and from the latter 
family name was derived the middle name of Gov. 
Hamilton. 

In March, 1854, Mr. Hamilton's father sold out 
his little pioneer forest home in Union County, O., 
and, loading his few household effects and family 
(of six children) into two emigrant covered wagons, 
moved to Roberts Township, Marshall Co., 111., being 
2 1 days on the route. Swamps, unbridged streams 
and innumerable hardships and privations met them 
on their way. Their new home had been previously 
selected by the father. Here, after many long years 
of toil, they succeeded in paying for the land and 
making a comfortable home. John was, of course, 



brought up to hard manual labor, with no schooling 
except three or four months in the year at a common 
country school. However, he evinced a capacity 
and taste for a high order of self-education, by 
studying or reading what books he could borrow, as 
the family had but very few in the house. Much of 
his study he prosecuted by the light of a log fire in 
the old-fashioned chimney place. The financial 
panic of 1S57 caused the family to come near losing 
their home, to pay debts; but the father and two 
sons, William and John, "buckled to" and perse- 
vered in hard labor and economy until they redeemed 
their place from the mortgage 

When the tremendous excitement of the political 
campaign of i860 reached the neighborhood of Rob- 
erts Township, young Hamilton, who had been 
brought up in the doctrine of anti-slavery, took a zeal- 
ous part in favor of Lincoln's election. Making special 
efforts to procure a little money to buy a uniform, he 
joined a company of Lincoln Wide- Awakes at Mag- 
nolia, a village not far away. Directly after the 
ensuing election it became evident that trouble 
would ensue with the South, and this Wide-Awake 
company, like many others throughout the country, 
kept up its organization and transformed itself into a 
military company. During the ensuing summer they 
met often for drill and became proficient ; but when 
they offered themselves for the war, young Hamilton 
was rejected on account of his youth, he being then 
but 14 years of age. During the winter of 1863-4 lie 
attended an academy at Henry, Marshall County, 



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in the following May he again enlisted, for the 
fourth time, when he was placed in the 141st 111. 
Vol. Inf., a regiment then being raised at Elgin, 111., 
for the 100-day service. He took with him 13 other 
lads from his neighborhood, for enlistment in the 
service. This regiment operated in Southwestern 
Kentucky, foi about five months, under Gen. Paine. - 

I'he following winter, 1864-5, Mr. Hamilton taught 
school, and during the two college years 1865-7, he 
went through three years of the curriculum of the 
Ohio Wesleyan University at Delaware, Ohio. The 
third year he graduated, the fourth in a class of 46, 
in the classical department. In due time he received 
the degree of M. A. For a few months he was the 
Principal of Marshall " College " at Henry, an acad- 
emy under the auspices of the M. E. Church. By 
this time he had commenced the study of law, and 
after earning some money as a temporary Professor 
of Latin at the Illinois Wesleyan University at 
Bloomington, he entered the law office of Weldon, 
Tipton & Benjamin, of that city. Each member of 
this firm has since been distinguished as a Judge. 
Admitted to the Bar in May, 1S70, Mr. Hamilton 
was given an interest in the same firm, Tipton hav- 
ing been elected Judge. In October following he 
formed a partnership with J. H. Rowell, at that time 
Prosecuting Attorney. Their business was then 
small, but they increased it to very large proportions, 
practicing in all grades of courts, including even the 
U. S. Supreme Court, and this partnership continued 
unbroken until Feb. 6, 18S3, when Mr. Hamilton 
was sworn in as Executive of Illinois. On the 4th 
of March following Mr. Rowell took his seat in Con- 
gress. 

In July, 1871. Mr. Hamilton married Miss Helen 
M. Williams, the daughter of Prof. VVm. G, Williams, 
Professor of Greek in the Ohio Wesleyan University. 
Mr. and Mrs. H. have two daughters and one son. 

In 1876 Mr. Hamilton was nominated by the Re- 
publicans for the State Senate, over other and older 
competitors. He took an active part " op the stump " 
in the campaign, for the success of his party, and was 
elected by a majority of 1,640 over his Democratic- 
Greenback opponent. In the Senate he served on 
the Committees on Judiciary, Revenue, State Insti- 
tutions, Appropriations, Education, and on Miscel- 
lany ; and during the contest for the election of a 
U. S. Senator, the Republicans endeavoring to re- 




elect John A. Logan, he voted for the war chief on 

every ballot, even alone when all the other Republi- 
cans had gone over to the Hon. E. B. Lawrence and 
the Democrats and Independents elected Judge 
David Davis. At this session, also, was passed the 
first Board of Health and Medical Practice act, of 
which Mr. Hamilton was a champion, against so 
much opposition that the bill was several times 
"laid on the table." Also, this session authorized 
the location and establishment of a southern peni- 
tentiary, which was fixed at Chester. In the session 
of 1879 Mr. Hamilton was elected President pro tern. 
of the Senate, and was a zealous supporter of John 
A. Logan for the U. S. Senate, who was this time 
elected without any trouble. 

In May, 1880, Mr. Hamilton was nominated on 
the Republican ticket for Lieutenant Governor, his 
principal competitors before the Convention being 
Hon. Win. A. James, ex-Speaker of the House of 
Representatives, Judge Robert Bell, of Wabash 
County, Hon. T. T Fountain, of Perry County, and 
Hon. M. M. Saddler, of Marion County. He engaged 
actively in the campaign, and his ticket was elected 
by a majority of 41.200. As Lieutenant Governor, 
he presided almost continuously over the Senate in 
the 32d General Assembly and during the early days 
of the 33d, until he succeeded to the Governorship. 
When the Legislature of 1883 elected Gov. Cullom 
to the United States Senate, Lieut. Gov. Hamilton 
succeeded him, under the Constitution, taking the 
oath of office Feb. 6, 1883. He bravely met all the 
annoyances and embarrassments incidental upon 
taking up another's administration. The principal 
events with which Gov. Hamilton was connected as 
the Chief Executive of the State were, the mine dis- 
aster at Braidwood, the riots in St. Clair and Madison 
Counties in May, 1883, the appropriations for the 
State militia, the adoption of the Harper high-license 
liquor law, the veto of a dangerous railroad bill, etc. 

The Governor was a Delegate at large to the 
National Republican Convention at Chicago in June, 

1884, where his first choice for President was John 
A. Logan, and second choice Chester A. Arthur; but 
he afterward zealously worked for the election of Mr. 
Blaine, true to his party. 

Mr. Hamilton's term as Governor expired Jan. 30, 

1885, when the great favorite "Dick" Oglesby was 
inaugurated. 






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DE KALB COUNTY, 





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INTRODUCTORY. 





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JHE value of history lies, in a 
great degree, in the biogra- 
phy of the personages con- 
cerned therein. The annals 
of the settlers delineate the 
pioneer period, while those 
of the later residents exhibit 
the progress of the country and the 
status of the present generation. 
De Kalb County gives a vivid illus- 
tration of these statements; but its 
wonderful pioneer era laps upon 
its present period in a manner so 
'l^sv gradual that there is really no dis- 
^^K/y-, v tinctive line of demarcation. Many 
vy)%%f c efy of those whose efforts gave the 
">%. g) country its earliest impetus may 

still be seen upon its thorjugh fares; many of the 
characters in the day of its first things are still on 
the stage, and watch with keen-eyed alertness the 
manipulations, successes and reverses of the present 
day, still jealous for the reputation of the county and 
eagerly solicitous for her substantial and permanent 
progress. 

The compilers of these records strive to establish 
their claim for biographical integrity, preparing the 
matter from the stand-point of no man's prejudice. 
The full scope of the personal record here is to 



demonstrate the exact relation of every individual 
represented to the generations of the past and of the 
present. 

Succeeding ages sweep away the debris of human 
errors and perpetuate the real greatness of a com- 
munity. Character stands out statuesque, and events 
cluster about individuals, forming the grandest and 
truest historical structure of which any age is capa- 
ble. Only biography can fitly represent the founda- 
tion, progress and ultimatum of local history, and 
portray with perfect justice the precise attitude and 
relation of men to events and conditions. 

This County is justly proud of her pioneer record, 
and, so far as possible, the publishers have endeav- 
ored to honor the representatives of that period as 
well as those of to-day. Labor and suffering, under- 
gone in the light of hope and the earnestness of 
honest effort and toil, established this county in per- 
manent prosperity, and is rounding up a period of 
glorious completeness. Her villages are creditable, 
her agricultural community is composed of the best 
class, and her professional men are of marked in- 
tegrity. 

In collecting the following sketches the purpose 
has been to collect the main points of personal 
record, through which the enterprise of decades to 
follow may complete a perfect and continuous his- 
torical outline from the earliest settlement of the 
county to the present time. 



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ON. REUBEN ELLWOOD, 
Member of Congress from 
the Fifth District of Illi- 
nois, resident at Sycamore, 
was born Feb. 17, 1821, 
in Minden, Montgomery 
Co., N. Y., and is the son 
^r§'ft? of Abraham and Sarah (Delong) Ell- 
*cfr wood. He was a boy of robust phy- 
sique, active, vigorous and energetic, 
and possessing ambitions and aspir- 
ations which were the direct out- 
growth of his temperament and were 
fostered by the circumstances which 
surrounded him and the period in 
which his consciousness awoke to 
the possibilities before him. His primary education 
was obtained in a desultory manner, — the result, 
partly of a boy's restlessness and impatience with 
deterring conditions, and partly arising from uncon- 
trollable causes. 

At 16 years of age he was fully imbued with 
a determination to get on in the world, and in the 
summer of 1837 he came to De Kalb County, in 
the belief that he should find the requisite opportu- 
nity, and willing to confront any necessity and make 
any effort to secure the desired end. He entered a 
claim of 160 acres of land in the vicinity of Sycamore 
and continued to find employment among the farmers 
of that township about four years, when he was com- 

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pelled to return to his father's home in the State ot 
New York, his health having become materially im- 
paired. His experience had impressed him with the 
necessity of a broader mental culture, and after a rest 
of six months he became a student of Cherry Valley 
Academy, an institution which was even then famous 
and exerting a sensible influence throughout adjoin- 
ing districts. Mr. Ellwood studied under its excel- 
lent regulations with resolution and purpose. 

He was a youth with convictions. Public affairs 
in his native State and national conditions shaped 
his sentiments and guided his ideas of business and 
politics into channels in which he has moved un- 
swervingly. In those good old days, which trained 
and developed the element upon which the peerless 
West planted her feet with audacious courage and 
rose to her matchless supremacy, the necessity of 
achievement incumbent on every human soul was 
instilled into every youth who was moving away 
from boyish things and toward the good of man- 
hood. 

Mr. Ellwood early resolved on a career of business 
activity, and accordingly embraced the first oppor- 
tunity which offered, to set himself about doing some- 
thing. He went to Glenville, Schenectady County, 
which adjoined that of his nativity, and engaged in 
raising broom-corn and in the manufacture of brooms, 
operating in that line of business about eight years. 

In 1857 lie came to Illinois, again tempted by the 
example of others who had come hither earlier and 
made satisfactory tests of the promise of the State so 






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rich and full that they bore with them the impress of 
fable, and also impelled by the craving for broader 
and less crowded fields for action and advancement. 
He became associated in the hardware business with 
his brother, Alonzo Ellwood, at Sycamore, and at the 
same time operated in real estate. 

A fundamental principle upon which Mr. Ellwood 
has always based any scheme of business is, that 
general progress affords substantial foundation for the 
upbuilding of individual interests, and, in view of 
this opinion, about the year 1870 he embarked in the 
manufacture of agricultural implements at Sycamore. 
In 1875 he entered upon the construction of the 
buildings now constituting the factory of the R. Ell- 
wood Manufacturing Company, in which he invested 
$50,000, and which were completedMn October of the 
same year. The result has demonstrated the wisdom 
of the project, as the enterprise has proved most 
valuable for the growth and prosperity of Sycamore. 
The excellent quality of the products and the judi- 
cious administration of the business relations of the 
incorporated company, have established its repute in 
point of importance and value to De Kalb County, 
and as second to none of similar scope in Northern 
Illinois. The machinery produced acquired speedy 
popularity from its adaptability to the needs of the 
farmers and the period in which it was introduced, 
agricultural industries being at the acme of their suc- 
cess. The substantial condition of the business and 
its importance to the section in which it is located is 
primarily due to its inceptor, founder and promoter. 

The mental organism peculiar to Mr. Ellwood gave 
him an early impetus toward politics. He became 
" eager for the fray," into which the nation was hur- 
ried by the rapid march of events, precipitated by the 
agitations which took on alarming proportions during 
the administration of Van Buren and expanded the 
innate principles of the Whig party to a completeness 
of development in which they have since stood forth 
with statuesque perspicuity. The manifest candor of 
Mr. Ell wood's attitude in political affairs gave him 
prominence from the outset, and his activity in local 
matters while a resident of Glenville, where he was a 
member of the Board of Supervisors, brought him be- 
fore the people of his district as a candidate for the 
State Assembly, whither he was sent as a Legislator 
in 1 85 1. He identified himself with the issues of 
tin Republican party in the same energetic spirit 
which had hitherto characterized his actions, and he 



was made a Delegate to the Convention at Philadel- 
phia which nominated Fremont in 1856. 

Coming to Illinois, he developed the same acumen 
in political as in business possibilities, and the Re- 
publican element of De Kalb County speedily 
recognized his fitness for official advancement. In 
1868 he was the unanimous choice of the Repub- 
licans of De Kalb County for Representative to 
the 42d Congress of the United States from the 
Fourth District of Illinois. He was elected to that 
position in 1872, scoring a success over the candidate 
of the opposition by 7,800 majority. His renomina- 
tion in 1884 was a signal triumph, not a dissentient 
vote in either town caucus, County or Congressional 
Conventions being cast against him, and he was 
elected by 11,076 majority. The facts pertaining to 
his second election to Congress are sufficient evi- 
dence of the quality of the services he rendered his 
constituency in the Legislative halls of the nation. 

Mr. Ellwood has been active and efficient in local 
politics and was the first Mayor of Sycamore after 
the incorporative act was passed which made that 
municipality a city. In 1S66 he was appointed 
United States Assessor of Internal Revenue, and oc- 
cupied the position until it was abolished. In the 
various public projects for the advancement of the 
city, Mr. Ellwood has been among the foremost, and 
in all his movements is controlled by consideration 
for the permanent progress and prosperity of his 
town, county and State. He is the heaviest stock- 
holder in the manufacturing company which is 
designated by his name, and is also its presiding 
official. He was one of the organization which 
built and established the Sycamore Preserving Works, 
and is still one of the stock-holders. He also holds 
the same relations in the Marsh Binder Company of 
Sycamore. On the occasion of the building of the 
Sycamore & Cortland Railroad, he was a prime 
actor in securing its construction, was one of its 
chief stock-holders and expended a vast deal of time 
in the accomplishment of the project. 

Mr. Ellwood is the proprietor of the business 
building at Sycamore known as the Georges Block, 
one of the most valuable of the edifices of that city, 
three stories high and built of brick. His residence, 
located on State Street opposite Ward's Hotel, and 
the grounds a ttached, cost $28,000. The structure 
is tasteful and elegant, and is fitted with steam heat- 
ing apparatus and with gas for lighting purposes. 



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Mrs. ElUvood, formerly Miss Eleanor Vedder, was 
born in Schenectady Co., N. Y., and became the 
wife of Reuben Ellwood Aug. 8, 1849. Six children 
constitute the issue of their union, and were born in 
the following order: Abram, Albert, Frank, Katie, 
fennie and Alida. The second and third sons are 
deceased. The oldest is interested in the R. Ell- 
wood Manufacturing Company and is the sole pro- 
prietor of the department for the manufacture of 
Barbed Wire Stretchers. Katie married Frank All- 
port, M. D., of Minneapolis. 

Biography, pure and simple, is an exact portrayal 
of the relations a man bears to his generation. The 
definitive traits which characterize Mr. Ellwood, the 
spirit of enterprise by which he is actuated, his 
probity and rectitude, his tplerant estimate of his 
fellow men and his capacity to recognize, seize and 
mold opportunity to the accomplishment of a pur- 
pose, distinguish him in all his associations, public 
and private. His thorough identification with the 
people of whom he is one, and his devotion to their 
paramount interests is the animating cause of his 
popularity as a man and citizen of Sycamore, in which 
he is second to none. 

The Portrait and Biographical Album of De 
Kalb County presents the unique feature of por- 
traying the lineaments of the six members of the 
Ellwood brothers who are among its citizens. That 
of the Hon. Reuben Ellwood, M. C, appears on a 
preceding page, and will be warmly received, for 
obvious reasons. Like the others of the Ellwood 
fraternity, he is a fine sample of physical develop- 
ment, and the value of his portrait as an addition to 
the collection in this volume is commensurate with 
his public and private character. 

Charles H. Chamberlain, fanner and stock- 
ed 

Jl man, located on sections 22 and 8, Frank- 
lin Township, was born March 18, 1849, near 
fjl? Belvidere, Boone Co., 111. William H. Cham- 
berlain, his father, was a native of Massachu- 
setts and of Yankee lineage. He married 
Sarah Hart, a lady of the same nativity and similar 
descent. They located in Boone County, about 1840, 
the father becoming an extensive landholder and a 
prominent citizen. His death occurred in Septem- 





ber, 1873, when he was 55 years of age. He was a 
Democrat in political preferences. The "mother is 
67 years of age (1885) and still remains at Belvidere. 
Mr. Chamberlan obtained a district-school educa- 
tion, and was a pupil in that variety of institution 
until he was 16 years of age, when he began his ca- 
reer as an independent farmer, taking possession of a 
farm owned by his father in Franklin Township, in 
whose interest he conducted his operations until his 
father died. He received 280 acres from the division 
of the estate and has since engaged without intermis- 
sion in the prosecution of his agricultural interests. 
He rents an additional 120 acres, and makes a spe- 
cialty of raising sheep, breeding the Merinos. He is 
the eldest of six children, and inherits his father's 
political views. 



ames Warner, merchant at Sandwich, 
was born Aug. 7, 1833, in Jackson, 
Washington Co., N. Y. His parents, Will- 
iam S. and Sarah (Coulter) Warner, were born 
It in the State of New York and died in Wash- 
ington County. Mr. Warner is the second of 
eight children, six of whom are living. Mary is the 
wife of A. Williams, a wholesale grocer of Troy, 
N. Y. Elizabeth is a widow, and is a resident of 
Cambridge, N. Y. Sylvester is a farmer, and Sarah 
is now Mrs. William J. Stevenson. Both live in their 
native State. Henry and Fannie are deceased ; Lilly 
is the wife of Henry Billings. 

The early years of the life of Mr. Warner were 
spent on the farm and as a clerk in his father's store 
at Cambridge. He had just passed his majority, 
when, in 1855, he came to Sandwich. During the 
four years ensuing he taught four terms of winter 
school and alternated his labors as. 3 pedagogue by 
clerking. When the Illinois & Mississippi Telegraph 
Company opened an office at Sandwhich, Mr. War- 
ner became an operator, and officiated at intervals 
in that capacity several years. 

In 1S59 he embarked in a mercantile enterprise 
with an associate under the firm style, of J. Warner 
& Co, and engaged in the sale of clothing about 
five years. In 1865, in partnership with I; 
Stewart, he established a local trade in clothing, 
boots, shoes and also managing a tailor shop, ami .1 




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shop tor the manufacture of boots and shoos. A few 
latei Mi. Stewart sold his interest to George W. 
Davis, and the new firm continued operative about 
four years. Since that time Mr. Warner has prose- 
cuted liis business interests singly. In April, 1868, 
he located at his present stand, where lie exhibits a 
fine line of goods common to his branch of trade 
and is doing a properous business. 

He was united in marriage at Sandwich, July 4, 
1 86 1, to Charlotte B. Townsend. Their five children 
were born in Sandwich in the following order: 
Frankie, James Leroy, Eslella, Bessie and Henry S. 

Mr. Warner belongs to the Masonic fraternity. 




iij illiam L. Pierce, farmer, section 16, Ge- 

\(Mj ; noa Township, has been a resident of De 
F^ Kalb County since he was 21 years of age, 
ft He was born Oct. 11, 1832, in Delaware Co., 
■v N. Y., and is the eldest of seven children. 
His parents, Martin and Mary (Carpenter) 
Pierce, were born in the State of New York, 
married and settled there continuing to reside in the 
Empire State until their migration to Genoa Town- 
ship, in De Kalb County in 1S54. In 1873 they 
transferred their residence and interests into Belvi- 
dere. The mother is no longer living, and the 
father Iras since been twice married. The brothers 
and sisters of Mr. Pierce were named, William L., 
Daniel W., Emmeline, Orrin, Charles, James and 
Oliver. James is deceased. (See sketch of Orrin 
l'ierce.) 

Mr. Pierce spent the years of his boyhood and 
youth in obtaining his education in the common 
schools and in farm labor under his father's instruc- 
tions. Soon after he came to De Kalb County he 
bought 40 acres in Genoa Township. He has in- 
creased his estate by the further purchase of 50 acres 
of land, and of the whole, 60 acres are improved 
and cultivated. In political faith Mr. Pierce is a 
Republican, and he has held several township offices. 
His marriage to Sarah Smith occurred Oct. 16, 
1857, at Sycamore, and they have been the parents 
of three children, Maryetta, Robert J. and Arthur E. 
The first-born son was killed by the kick of a horse 
when lie was five years of age, while leading the 



animal to water. Mrs. Pierce is the eldest of three 
children, and was born Dei:. 24, 1839, in New Jersey. 

Her parents, Robert and Smith were natives 

of New Jersey. 



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acob Seibert, farmer, in Franklin Town- 
ship, was bom Sept. 12, 1825, in Hesse 
Darmstadt, Germany. His parents were 
>orn, lived and died in that country. 




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i, ; Z born, lived and died in that country. Mr. 
Seibert was educated in accordance with the 
laws of his native land and remained there 
until 1854. In the summer of that year he emigrated 
to the New World, and on landing in this continent 
made his way to Belvidere, Boone Co., 111., where 
he passed sonic time as a general laborer. 

He was married Jan. 4, 1S61, at Belvidere, to 
Christina Stenner. She was bom Nov. 17, 1844, in 
Hesse Darmstadt, and is the daughter of Valentine 
and Macalina (Click) Stenner. The family took a 
final leave of the old country in 1S54, coming to 
Illinois and locating in Boone County. The children 
of Mr. and Mrs. Seibert were bom as follows: Ade- 
lia, Nov. 8. 1861 (married Dec. 25, 1878, to William 
Adams, a farmer of Franklin Township); Fred, born 
Jan. 23, 1866; and Reuben, born Feb. 26, 1873. 
After their marriage Mr. and Mrs. Seibert settled on 
a farm in Boone County, where they resided two years, 
and at the end of that time the former entered the 
United States Army, enlisting Aug. 12, 1862, in Co. 
G, 95th Reg. Vol. Inf., which was commanded by 
Captain Bush, of Belvidere. The regiment was at- 
tached successively to the corps of Generals Logan 
and Grant, and Mr. Seibert was a participant in it 
battles, the most important of which were: Vick;- 
burg, Memphis, Corinth and Mobile. He was slight- 
ly wounded at Vicksburg, and sustained serious in- 
jury to his hearing, from an explosion on the field at 
that place. At Mobile his left arm was shot away 
by a mortar shell from a mortar boat, and he was re- 
moved to the marine hospital at New Orleans. On 
sufficiently recovering to enable him to travel, he was 
honorably discharged, obtaining his papers June 23, 
1865. On returning to his family Mr. Seibert pur- 
chased 40 acres of land in Franklin Township, to 
which he has added a similar quantity by later pur- 
chase, and his entire farm is under excellent im- 



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provements. He is a Republican in political con- 
nection and is a Steward and Trustee in the Metho- 
dist Episcopal Church, of which Mrs. Seibert is also 
a member. 



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eorge W. Kirk, marketman at Kirkland, 
was born May 8, 1850, in Franklin Town- 
ship, De Kalb County. He is the son of 
William T. and Louisa (Riddle) Kirk, whose 
biographical narrative maybe found elsewhere. 

' Mr. Kirk was brought up on his father's farm 
and obtained his elementary education at the com- 
mon schools, after which he entered the excellent 
schools at Rockford, where he fitted for matriculation 
at Beloit College, Wis., and completed a course of 
study there in 1S70. He returned to De Kalb County 
and located as a practical agriculturist on a farm of 
160 acres, of which he became proprietor by an 
arrangement with his father. He devoted his attention 
wholly to farming and raising stock, and spent some 
years in that avenue of business, finally relinquish- 
ing farming and becoming interested in shipping 
stock for the Chicago market. After operating ex- 
clusively in that branch for some years, he added a 
meat market to supply local trade at Kirkland, and 
is now doing an extensive business. He is a Repub- 
lican in political faith and action and has held the 
offices of Village Treasurer and Road Commissioner. 

He was married March 11, 1880, in Kingston 
Township, to Betsey Foster, daughter of Thomas 
Foster. Her father is deceased and her mother is 
the wife of H. P. Grout. She was born June 18, 
■8S7- 



bherman A. Hall, farmer, on section 13, 

«"lt De Kalb Township, was born Oct. 17, 

1829, in Watertown, Jefferson Co., N. Y. 

j\v> ^ e was rearec ' to tne a » e °f *6 in the county 
where he was born, and in 1S45 he came to 
Kane County, where he was a resident two 
years previous to his removal to De Kalb County. 
He bought r6o acres in the township of Clinton, De 
Kalb Co., wherein he was engaged in farming until 
1S80, and in that year sold out and removed to De 




Kalb Township, where he is now the owner of 160 
acres of finely cultivated land, situated as above 
stated. Mr. Hall is a Democrat. His father, Sher- 
man Hall, was born in Connecticut, and married 
Betsey (Hutchins) Hall, who was born in New York. 
They came in 1845 to Illinois and lived two years in 
Kane County, removing thence to De Kalb County, 
where they resided during the remainder of their 
lives. The mother died Nov. 19, 1856, and thedeath 
of the father transpired Oct. 3, 1863. 

The marriage of Mr. Hall to Percis Lyon took 
place May 25, 1859, and they have had three chil- 
dren, — Harold E., Asahel S. and another child who 
died in infancy. The second son died when nearly 
five years of age. Mrs. Hall was born May 5, 1839, 
in Essex Co., N. Y.. and is the daughter of Asahel 
and Adaline D. (Woodruff) Lyon. The latter was a 
native of Essex Co., N. Y.; the former of the State 
of Connecticut. In the fall of 18S4 they settled in 
De Kalb, where Mr. Lyon died, March 9, 1874; the 
mother is still living. 



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Tikohn McDowell, farmer, resident on section 
1, Franklin Township, is a pioneer of De 
Kalb County and the oldest living settler 

of the township where he made his claim Sept. 
]Z 16, 1833. On that day, in company with 

Robert Stewart, Reuben Penwell and Leisier 
Carver, Mr. McDowell came to Franklin Township 
from La Porte, Ind. The country was in a wholly 
wild and unbroken condition, and the Indians still 
loitered about the grove. Mr. McDowell remained 
through the winter; his companions returned to 
their homes. He was then 23 years of age and un- 
married. 

He was born in York Co., Pa. His father, William 
McDowell, descended from Scotch parents and was 
a farmer, in moderate circumstances. The mother 
of the subject of this sketch, Sarah (McLean) Mc- 
Dowell, was of Irish birth. Both parents are de- 
ceased. The son was " bound out " by his father 
when quite young, and when he w.is iX he was ap- 
prenticed to learn the trade of shoemaking. During 
this time he went to Bartholomew Co., Ind., and set- 
tled there with the man to whom he was indentured. 




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Later they went to La Porte Co., Ind. In the year 
named above he came, as stated, to De Kail) County, 
and has been a resident on the claim he then made. 
It consisted of 155 acres, to which he added by later 
purchase, increasing his estate to 213 acres of valua- 
ble land, 75 acres of which is still covered with an 
original growth of limber. The exact point of the 
location is designated Forest drove. 

Mr. McDowell is a Democrat of a decided and in- 
llexible type. 

lie was married Jan. 31, 1839, to Martha Riddle, 
at the farm house of her parents situated on the 
Kishwaukee River. They had eight children, five of 
whom ate deceased. The parents of Mrs. McDowell, 
John and Susan (Anderson) Riddle, were respectively 
of English and Irish descent, the father being a na- 
tive of Tennessee and the mother of North Carolina. 
Both are deceased. They belouged while in the 
South to the better class of society, and while there 
were adherents of the Christian Church. Later they 
adopted the tenets of the Seventh-L>ay Adventists. 
The daughter was born April 2, 1822, in Jefferson 
Co., Tenn., and came with her parents to Illinois, 
the family locating on a farm in Franklin Township. 



'nomas Dodge, farmer, section 27, De Kalb 
Township, was born Feb. 2, 1809, in Dur- 
p* ham, Lower Canada. His father, Abraham 
^eT 1 Dodge, and his mother, Elcy (Cook) Dodge, 
were born respectively in New York and Ver- 
mont. After their marriage they resided a few 
years in Canada, going thence to Vermont, where 
they passed the remaining years of their lives. 

Mr. Dodge was about the age of two years, when 
his parents transferred their family and interests to 
Vermont, and he was occupied in farming thereuntil 
the spring of 1863, the date of his removal to De 
Kalb Co., 111. Previous to that event, he had in- 
vested to a considerable extent in land, and on re- 
moval hither he added to his proprietorship, and has 
continued in that line of operation until he is now the 
owner of 1,400 acres of improved land in the county, 
chiefly under the management of renters. His herds 
include roo cattle, 84 swine and 15 horses. 

Mr. Dodge was married Feb. 6, 1836, in Mt. Holly, 
Rutland Co, Vt. to Fli/.a Gonant. She was born 



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Sept. 12, 1807, in Townsend, Mass., also the birth- 
place of her parents, Levi and Eunice Conant. 
Three children were born of this union, Thomas \V., 
Rollin and Lucien. The mother died March 23, 
1875, in De Kalb Township. 

In political views and connections Mr. Dodge is a 
Republican. He has officiated four years as Justice 
of the Peace. He was a member of the Vermont 
Legislature in 1860-1 ; and is a member of the Me- 
thodist Church. 

Mr. Dodge is a true son of New England in char- 
acter and achievements, bringing hither the thrift, 
economy and industry which typify the best elements 
of the eastern section of the United States. 



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J: rrin Pierce, farmer, section 1 6, Genoa Town- 
ship, was born July 4, 1839, in Otsego Co., 
N. Y. His parents, Martin and Mary 
? W (Carpenter) Pierce, were natives of the Empire 
J (3 State, where they married and settled, remain- 
ing until 1S54, when they located in Genoa 
Township. In the fall of 1873 they removed to Bel- 
videre, Boone Co., 111., where the mother died a few 
days later. Their family consisted of seven children, 
— William L., Daniel W., Emmeline, Orrin, Charles, 
James and Oliver. James died from an injury re- 
ceived while leading a horse to water, he having in 
some way become entangled in the halter. 

Mr. Pierce was 13 years of age when he accom- 
panied his parents to Genoa Township, and he has 
continued a resident of that section of De Kalb 
County since, with the exception of five years, dur- 
ing which he was a resident of the Territory of Mon- 
tana, engaged in mining and fanning. His efforts 
there met with only moderate success, and he re- 
turned to the land of promise, Genoa Township. He- 
is the proprietor of 130 acres of land, which is all 
under tillage with the exception of about 10 acres. 
He has been a Republican since reaching man's 
estate, and has served in several local official posi- 
tions. ■ 

He was married Jan. 2, 1S71, in Madison Co., N. 
Y., to Mary Pyne, and they have four children, — 
Mary L., John M., Harvey G. and Ruth H. Mrs. 
Pierce was born Nov. 29, 1846, in Oneida Co., N. 



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Y., and is the daughter of John and Sarah Pyne. 
She is the second in order of birth and has three sis- 
ters, — Hannah, Lucy and Sarah. 



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^on. Charles Kellum, Judge of the Twelfth 
s Judicial C'rcuit of Illinois, resident at Syca- 
more, was bom in the (now) township of 
Dimock, Susquehanna Co., Pa., March 16, 
1821. Samuel Kellum, Jr., his father, was born 
in New London Co., Conn., which was for many 
years the home of his paternal grandsire, Samuel 
Kellum, Sr. The latter was prominent in the affairs 
of the Nutmeg State, and held a Captain's commis- 
sion in the State militia after the close of the Revolu- 
tionary War. Samuel Kellum, Jr., followed in the 
traces of his forefathers; he was a farmer by in- 
heritance and adopted the principles which were 
promulgated in the community where he was bred to 
man's estate by voice and deed ; he was a Whig in 
politics, and when the issues of that element merged 
into those of the Republican party he fell into line 
and remained the stanch adherent of the organization 
while he lived. 

About the year 1832 he became interested in lum- 
bering in the forests of the Keystone State, and 
operated vigorously in that line of business for a 
number of years. Later, he became a Justice of the 
Peace. His death occurred Jan. 2, 1869, at Syca- 
more, at the residence of the subject of this sketch. 
Lucretia (Eldridge) Kellum, his wife, mother of 
Judge Kellum, was a native of New London Co., 
Conn., and died at Prophetstown, 111., Jan. 2, 1879, 
her demise occurring on the same day of the same 
month, ten years subsequent to that of her husband, 
beside whom she lies buried at Sycamore. 

His ancestry, the period of his birth, and the occu- 
pations of his father, were all instrumental in forming 
the character and shaping the career of Judge Kel- 
lum. He early developed the positive traits of his 
maternal progenitors, who were of Scotch-Irish line- 
age. It is an established fact that many of the most 
prominent characters in the history of the United 
States, and who exercised a molding influence upon 
its leading institutions in law, politics and religion, 

%§§^ ^^ £-^11118 



had their origin in the class who inherited traits so 
distinctive as to virtually constitute a race. In men- 
tal organism their predominating traits partake al- 
most invariably of the same characteristics. They 
are, as a rule, industrious, cautious, persistent, in- 
flexible in morals and probity, and possess inherently 
the quality which leads them to great opportunities. 
Hardihood in effort invariably marks every step of 
their progress; and young Kellum exemplified this 
latter trait in early boyhood. Previous to his twelfth 
year he assisted on the farm. In his father's venture 
as a lumberman he found opportunity for effort, and 
he began as a teamster, later becoming a saw-mill 
hand, going to school meanwhile and completing his 
educational course at the academies of Montrose and 
Mannington in his native county. 

When he was about 18 years of age he was con- 
nected with an engineering corps, employed in the 
construction of the North Branch of the Pennsylvania 
Canal, in which he was occupied nearly two years. 
The year 1841 he passed as a clerk at Towanda and 
at Troy in his native State, and in the year following 
he began to read for the profession of law in the office 
of Lusk & Little, of Montrose, where he passed the 
time to good advantage, meanwhile devoting two 
winters to teaching. In August, 1844, he was ad- 
mitted to the Bar, and obtained employment in the 
office where he had been a student, at $10 a month, 
remaining there between one and two years. His 
health became impaired and he passed about three 
years in a desultory manner, praticing law occasion- 
ally, and rafting on the Susquehanna, the latter 
employment affording the opportunity he needed for 
relaxation from office confinement and the exercise 
required to prevent a condition of confirmed dyspep- 
sia, with which he was menaced. The practice of 
law being his natural element, he went to Towanda 
and formed a partnership with Hon. Henry Booth, 
now of Chicago, a relation which existed about iS 
months. In 1S54 he went to La Porte, Ind., and 
passed nine months as assistant cashier of the In- 
diana (stock) Bank, with his brother, Isaac S. Kellum. 

In February, 1855, he came to Sycamore and en- 
tered into a partnership with William Fordhara. 
Their connection remained operative about a yeai 
and was dissolved by mutual consent. Since that 
date Judge Kellum has been temporarily associated 
with others, but has operated chiefly alone, and \\a.s % 

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won a widely merited distinction as a practitioner 
and jurist. 

In the pursuit of his profession he has proceeded 
in the even, equable method which is one of his 
characteristic traits, and has earned a wider influence 
than any other local attorney, never failing to secure 
the same quality of respect from associates and 
opponents while practicing as an attorney. The 
strongest evidence of this is that during the course of 
his legal practice he was retained on nearly every 
case of importance tried in the courts of De Kalb 
County, and his local popularity obtained for him a 
large amount of business in other counties. His 
arguments were logical, set forth in clear-cut, incisive 
terms and bearing an irresistible influence, to which 
his prestige is largely due. But above all is the dis- 
criminating sense of honor which imbues his every 
word and act concerning his fellow men, and which 
commands the respect and esteem of his friends and 
also of his antagonists in business, for he has no 
adversaries in the exact significance of the term. 

The records of the Courts in which he practiced 
afford abundant proof of the superior forensic quali- 
ties of Judge Kellum, as he has been connected with 
some of the most notable cases in the Judicial his- 
\/ tory of Northern Illinois. His executive abilities 
/ " have been recognized in Sycamore from the outset, 
' ) and his appreciative townsmen have availed them- 
selves of his eminent, powers in local positions- 
He was early made President of the Board of Trus- 
tees, when that city was a village, and he afterwards 
became City Attorney. He also served four years 
Me's Attorney of his Judicial District. 
In June, 1879, he was elected Circuit Judge, a 
position he has since occupied, and whose obligations 
and responsibilities he has discharged in the efficient 
manner which lias characterized his entire public and 
private career. 

The mental caliber of Judge Kellum is of the 
quality that constitutes leaders in the profession to 
which lie belongs. We quote from the United States 
Biographical Dictionary for Illinois, 1883: 

" Judge Kellum was endowed by nature with a 
*<• judicial mind; lie was not only made for a lawyer, 
£¥. but for a Judge, and his natural endowments have 
^ been enlarged by a liberal education and long prac- 
tice at the Bar. His mind readily grasps the most 
difficult legal problems, and his decisions are not 

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11 




only generally correct, but are marked universally by 
the Utmost fairness and impartiality. Seldom is it 
that any error creeps into the record of a cause heard 
before Judge Kellum, and consequently his decisions 
are not often reversed by the higher Courts. On the 
bench he is urbane and gentlemanly, and is universally 
esteemed by the members of the Bar who practice in 
his Court; he is especially the friend of the young 
attorney and, whenever possible, smoothes over the 
rough path which that class are compelled to travel 
before reaching eminence at the Bar. These quali- 
ties make him one of the most popular Judges in the 
State, and his friends confidently predict that he will 
yet be called to sit on the bench of the Supreme 
Court." 

Politically, he was a Whig in the days of his early 
manhood. The portentous events from the date of 
his citizenship could have but one significance to a 
mentality like his, and, true to his unerring instincts, 
he became a Republican on the inception of the 
party. Previous to his accession to his position as 
Judge, he was a zealous worker in iis ranks and 
served as Delegate in the District and State Conven- 
tions. Locally, lie wielded a powerful influence, 
and for a succession of years officiated as Chairman 
of the Republican County Committee. In his own 
county he was second to none in ability, and in 1872 
was its unanimous choice for Congress, but failed in 
the Convention. When candidate for Circuit (udge 
the next year, the Judicial Convention was ex- 
actly divided between him and his competitor, and 
the conflict between the opposing elements was 
maintained through one entire day, through the suc- 
ceeding night and far into the day following. There 
being no indications of yielding from any quarter, 
the assembly broke up without definite action, leav- 
ing the people to settle the point. He experienced 
defeat by a small majority. In 1878 a nomination to 
Congress was tendered him, and the District urged 
his preferment for the position; but in view of his 
judicial prospects he was inflexible in his adverse- 
decision, his wisdom and judgment in the matter be- 
ing fully sustained by succeeding events. 

Judge Kellum has recognized and discharged his 
obligations as a citizen of Sycamore in the most fit- 
ting manner, and has lent his aid and influence to 
the furtherance of the public interests of the place 
and assisted personally in placing them on a sub- 



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stantial basis. He has been a prominent factor in 
the maintenance of her manufacturing enterprises, 
and was a stock-holder in the Sycamore & Cortland 
Railroad, in the Marsh Harvester Manufacturing 
Company and, later, in tire Marsh Binder Manufact- 
uring Company. He also aided materially in the 
earlier enterprises. He is a member of the Masonic 
fraternity and of the Order of Knights Templar. 

His marriage to Chloe Clement occurred March 
15, 1855, at La Porte, Ind., and two children were 
born of their union. William C. Kelluni was born at 
Sycamore, Dec. 14, 1855, and is an attorney in the 
place of his nativity, promising, by his application to 
business, to wear worthily the mantle of his sire. He 
married Laura A. McKinnon, and they have one 
child — Charles S. Samuel Kellum was born Dec. 22, 
1857, is a salesman in the clothing house of Will- 
oughby, Hill & Co., at Chicago, and is one of the 
most exemplary and popular young men that Syca- 
more ever produced. Mrs. Kellum was born at La 
Porte, Dec. 31, 1833, and is the daughter of Wm. and 
Caroline Clement. She is a lady of more than ordin- 
ary strength of character, and in her domestic circle 
her fine womanly traits shine pre-eminent. To her 
the words, " Her children arise up and call her bless- 
ed ; her husband also, and he praiseth her," apply 
with peculiar force and truth. 

Judge Kellum's portrait appears on a previous 
page. The reprint of his features in this work will 
afford a general satisfaction. His mobile face has 
been for many years one of the most welcome on the 
streets of Sycamore. It bears the impression of a can- 
did, manly, generous character, and a spirit wholly 
untainted by selfishness. The photograph from which 
the portrait was engraved was taken in 1885. 





\ illiam H. Rowen, farmer and stockman on 
section 26, Franklin Township, was born 
on the farm on which he is a resident 
'> Sept. 25, 1858. He is the son of Wm. H. 
and Mercy (Caswell) Rowen. The for- 
mer was born December 3, 1799, in Hebron, 
Washington Co., N. Y., and came to De Kalb County 
in June, 1843, and entered the farm where he died 
April 4, 1880. The family was among the earliest 
settlers of the township. The senior Rowen was 

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twice married. Of the first marriage, to Betsey Gor- 
ham (see sketch of S. G. Rowen), nine children 
were born, and after the death of the first wife he 
was married Dec. 25, 1856, to Mrs. Mercy Caswell. 
She was born Jan. 7, 1822, in Union, Broome Co., 
N. Y., and came to Illinois with her grandparents 
when she was 13 years old. She was married Aug. 

2, 1840, to Marcus Caswell, a native of the State of 
New York, born March 15, 1820. He was killed in 
California in July, 1855, by the accidental bursting 
of a gun. Mr. Caswell is survived by two children, 
— Charles H., born Nov. 2, 184 1, a resident of Bre- 
mer Co., Iowa, and Josephine L., born Nov. 30, 1849. 
She married Edward Gorham March 15, 1866, and 
is a resident of Franklin Township. Of her marriage 
lo Mr. Rowen two children were born, — W. H. and 
Samuel P. G. The birth of the latter occurred Dec. 

3, 1863. Mrs. Rowen, with her two sons, occupies 
the family homestead. 

4 — 



Brown, Mayor of De Kalb, and ^ 



(;%avid D. 

kSl ( member ot the lumber and real-estate firm 
•yl'tSV' of Brown & Young, was born Aug. 26, 
"$* i8 45> U1 Belvidere, N. J. His parents, C. M. 
(k and Catherine A. (De Pue) Brown, were natives 
* of New Jersey, and were respectively of English 
and French origin. The family came to Illinois and 
settled in Sycamore, where the father established 
mercantile interests and became prominent in official 
positions, among which were those of Circuit Clerk 
and Recorder of De Kalb County. The family in- 
cluded three sons, of whom the two younger were 
Fred C. and Marshall L., and were the issue of the 
second marriage of the senior Brown, in 1850, to 
Louisa Jackman, of Sycamore. She was born in 
Vermont and is still living in Sycamore. The mother 
of Mr Brown died at Sycamore in 1S49. His father 
died there March 14, 1872. 

Until the age of 16 years Mr. Brown was a pupil 
at school, and in 1861 obtained a position as captain 
of a steamboat plying on the Tennessee River. He 
was employed at a later period as clerk in a store at 
Sycamore, and was occupied in that capacity until 
1874. In the spring of that year lie entered into 
partnership with C. A. Tyndall, of De Kalb, under 
the style of Tyndall & Brown, and established a mer- 



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cantile enterprise. In September, 1876, Mr. Brown 
became sole proprietor oi the business by purchase 
and continued its management until April, 1SS3, 
when he sold to C. A. Reed & Co. In the same 
month his present business relation was founded for 
@/ the purpose of engaging in the lumber trade. 

Mi. Brown is a decided Republican and has been 
actively interested in the administration of the mu- 
nicipal affairs in De Kalb. fie served three terms as 
Councilman, and in the spring of 1883 was elected 
Vlayoi foi a biennial term. He is prominent in the 
Mi onic fraternity, and has risen to the 33d degree 
in the order. 

lie was married Feb. 8, 1S72, to Alice J., daughter 
of Hiram and Sarah (Dygart) Ellwood, and they 
have two children. Xaida E. was born July 29, 1S78. 
Sarah L. was born Nov. 27, 1881. 



*9«- 




parley B. Rowcn, grocer and Deputy Post- 
master at Kirkland, was born on section 26, 
Franklin Township, May 29, 1861, and is 
the sun of Stephen G. and Emmeline (Baker) 
Rowen. The record of the parents appear on 
another page. 
Mr. Rowen grew to man's estate on the family 
homestead, and passed the winters at school in Kirk- 
land. When he was 20 years of age he entered up- 
on the duties of clerk of the Rowen House at Kirk- 
land, which was under the management of his 
brother, Frank S. Rowen, and occupied that position 
until his marriage. Soon after that event he estab- 
lished the business in which he is at present engaged, 
commencing with limited means in an unassuming 
way. His energy and popularity, coupled with ex- 
cellent management, has greatly increased his busi- 
ness relations, and he is fast rising to a position of 
equality with older firms in the same line of business. 
Mr. Rowen is a young Republican of ardent type 
and has been the deputy of his father several years. 
He represents several insurance companies. 

His marriage to Georgia A. Bell occurred Jan. 1, 
1883. Mrs. Rowen was born Sept. 7, 1862, on the 
farm of her father in Kingston Township. She is 
the daughter of George M. and Sarah M. (Little) 





Bell. Her father is a native of Pennsylvania, and was 
an architect and builder by profession. He was of 
mixed German and Irish descent. The mother was 
born in the State of New York, of English and 
French parentage. They came to Illinois before 
marriage and settled on a farm in Kingston after that 
event. In 1867 they removed to Belvidere, Boone 
County, and thence one year later to Sycamore. Mrs. 
Rowen was educated at the latter place and in Chi- 
cago, where she attended school about 18 months. 
She began teaching when she was 17 years of age, 
and continued her vocation in De Kalb County until 
her marriage. With her husband, she attends the 
Congregational Church, and is a member of the choir. 
Both are actively interested in Sunday-school work, 
and are valued and esteemed members of society. 



-*-<-HHHH->-^ — 



^;j,yrus B. Hopkins, farmer, sections 34 and 

sSii 27, (Portland Township, and owning in all 

165 acres, was born in Erie Co., N. Y., 




pfc in the town of Clarence, Aug. 7, 1812, and is 
the son of Cyrus and Charlotte (Bissell) Hop- 
kins. His mother, who was born Oct. 30, 
1793, in Rutland, Vt., of Puritan stock, is still living, 
near Beloit, Wis. His father, also of Puritan ances- 
try, was born in June, 1784, in Great Barringtou, 
Berkshire Co., Mass., and died at Beloit, Wis., at the 
age of 82 years. 

The subject of this sketch, whose portrait ap- 
pears on the opposite page, lived in his native 
county until he was 26 years of age, on the farm with 
his father, in the meantime obtaining a common- 
school education. He then came to Squaw Grove 
Township, this county, and worked as a common 
laborer by the day and month the first season. The 
next year he took a farm, and rented farms for five 
years, when he went out upon the " raw " prairie, 
which he has improved and since made his home. 
He first built a log house upon the place and moved 
into it in 1844. Fifteen years afterward he built a 
frame house, east of where he is now living, 

Mr. H. has held the office of Constable in Squaw 
Grove, Road Commissioner for several terms and 



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School Director a number of years. In politics he is 
a Republican, and in religious matters he was for- 
merly a Methodist. 

He was married Dec. 6, 1836, to Fannie Larkin, 
who was born May r, 1815, in Green Co., N. Y., and 
died May 7, 1873, on the old homestead in this 
county. She was a Baptist. The' second marriage 
of Mr. Hopkins occurred July 3, 1877, in Blackberry, 
Kane Co., 111., to Mary J. Gandy, daughter of George 
\V. and Mary (Meacham) Gandy. Her mother was 
born Aug. 13, 1S00, in Woodstock, Ct, and died 
April 4, 1876, in this township; and her father was 
born Feb. 3, 1804, in New Jersey, and is deceased. 
By his first wife Mr. Hopkins had eight children, as 
follows: Cyrus E., born Oct. n, 1837, and |was 
married Feb. 22,1863 ! Charles H. was born Aug. 6, 
1839, and married Dec. 7, 187 1; William J., born 
Nov. 29, 1840, died Dec. 27 following; John E., 
born June n, 1842, married June 14, 1870, and died 
Aug. 1, 1SS4; Sarah J., born Aug. 6, 1844, was mar- 
ried July 4, 1869; Albert J, born Aug. 15, 1846, was 
married Sept. 3, 1873; Phebe A., born Aug. 14, 
1848, was married Dec. 6, 1870; Fanny A., born 
Dec. 27, 1850, was married Oct. n, 1S70; and Mel- 
vin M., born Oct. 3, 1853, was married Feb. 25, 
1879. By his second marriage Mr. H. has had three 
children, as follows: Pearl, born July 20, 1880, 
died Aug. 14 following; Ross, born July 9, 1882, 
died Nov. 3 following; and Daisy I., born Jan. 3, 
1884. 



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aptain Henry C. Whittemore, senior 

c ' ^-**j}. : 1 member of the firm of Whittemore, ( 'h.un- 
berlain & Co., dealers in hardware, stoves, 
agricultural implements, wagons and carriages 
at Sycamore, was born Oct. 31, 1S41, at Au- 
burn, N. Y. He was seven years of age when 
his parents, Lorenzo and Hannah (Kelsey) Whitte- 
more, removed their family to Sycamore. His father 
was born March 1 r, 1807, in Leicester, Mass., and is 
still a resident of Sycamore, where he operated as a 
mechanic nearly a quarter of a century. The Cap- 
tain's mother was born Dec. 25, 1805, in Ulster Co., 
N. Y., and died in March, 1879. They had two 




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children. Floyd K., the younger, is a banker in 
Springfield, 111. 

Captain Whittemore passed his boyhood and youth 
in the acquisition of his education, and about the age 
of 18 years secured the position of Deputy Circuit 
Clerk, in which he was occupied until the era of 
1 86 1, which tried the mettle of every man and boy 
within the Federal Union. The stuff of which Cap- 
tain Whittei»ore is made was proven early in that 
memorable year by his enlistment as a private soldier 
in Company G, Second Illinois Light Artillery. He 
was transferred, a few weeks later, to Company H, 
which was detailed for service in the Ordnance De- 
partment of the Army of the Tennessee, the office 
being established at Cairo, during the winter of 
1861-2, and also at Columbus, Ky. 

In the spring of 1863 the command was transferred 
to the Army of the Cumberland. In December, 
186 1, young Whittemore was made Lieutenant, and 
he held that rank until July, 1863, when he was 
commissioned Captain of Battery H. He performed 
the duties of the position until February, 1865, when 
he was detailed as Assistant Adjutant General on 
the staff of Gen. L. H. Rousseau, and served until 
the termination of the war. 

Captain Whittemore was mustered out of the 
military service of the United Stales July 29, 1865, 
and entered the postal service of the Government, 
operating in South Carolina. In the spring of 1867 
he returned to Sycamore, and embarked in the busi- 
ness of tanning, in which he was interested about 
two years ; at the expiration of that time turning his 
attention to insurance, and later, entering the office 
of the County Clerk as a Deputy. In 1873 he formed 
a partnership with John B. Harkness and his brother 
F. K. Whittemore, and founded the business in 
which he^has since operated. The members of the 
present firm are Captain Whittemore, W. G. Cham- 
berlain and A. W. Brower. Their trade and business 
relations in their line of traffic is the leading one in 
the county, their invested capital being about $15,000. 

Captain Whittemore is a member of the Masonic 
fraternity and belongs to Lodge No. 134, at Syca- 
more. He is a Republican in political convictions, 
and has served his township several years as Super- 
visor. In the fall of 1884 he was elected to the 
State Legislature, receiving a gratifying majority of 
2,400 votes. 

His marriage to Amelia E. Martin occurred at 

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Sycamore, March 14, 1864. Mrs. Whittemore was 
born April 19, 1841, in the place where she has 
always lived, and she is the daughter of Harry and 
Jane Martin. Four of five children horn to Captain 
and Mrs. Whittemore are living. They were born as 
follows: Charles F., Aug. 24, 1S65, died Oct. 20, 
187 1 ; Mary, Sept. 20, 1867; Harry, Sept. 25, 1869; 
Cora, Jan. 19, 1872; Floyd, Dec. 8, 1874. 



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"ames M. Elliott, farmer, having 132 acres 
jlEaHf' on sections 1 and 2, Cortland Township, 
^^ was born in Springfield, Clark Co., Ohio, 
March 27, 1S20. His father moved to Union 
Co., that State, whence he, when 16 years of 
age, in company with a half brother, John, 
came with a four-horse team to this county, arriving 
Oct. 8, 1835. John entered a claim east of Mr. E.'s 
present place, but the climate aggravating his 
rheumatism, he returned to Union Co., Ohio, where 
he now lives. 

The subject of this sketch made his home with 
his half brother and worked around by the month 
until his marriage, Jan. 4, 1839, to Miss Dilla Perry, 
who was born Sept. 2r, 1822, in Yates Co., N. Y., 
in Potter Township, and was 13 years old when her 
parents emigrated to Illinois, coming all the way by 
team and being six weeks on the road. Her father, 
Matthew H. Perry, was born in Berkshire Co., Mass., 
in August, 1796, of American ancestry, and is now 
residing temporarily in Iowa, while his home is in 
Burlington Township, Kane Co., 111. Her mother, 
Pamelia, nee Briggs, was born in Providence, R. I., 
in April, 1801, of American parentage. Her grand- 
father on her mother's side, Caleb Briggs, was a 
Revolutionary soldier. Mr. and Mrs. Perry moved 
to Ottawa, 111., in the fall of 1835, and the next 
spring to Big Rock Township, whence, in the fall of 
1837, they removed to Burlington Township, Kane 
County, where they have since lived, although Mr. P. 
resided a short time in this (Cortland) township, 
while he was building a house on his farm. 

Mr. Elliott's father, Alexander Elliott, was born in 
Chenango Co., Pa., and died in 1829, in Union Co., 



Ohio, of milk-sickness, while he was building a house 
upon a tract of land he had purchased there, and 
while his residence was in Clark Co., that State. He 
had been married three times. He first married 
Jane Chatfield, and she died, leaving four children. 
His second wife was the mother of the subject of this 
sketch, who left three children, ill sons, James being 
the youngest. His third wife was Sarah Moore, nee 
Custer. Two years after his father's death the re- 
mainder of the family moved to their new home in 
Union County. The mother of the subject of this 
sketch, Polly, nee Sweet, was a native of Tennessee 
and died in Clark Co., Ohio, in 182 1, when he was 
but a year old. 

Mr. and Mrs. Elliott have three children, viz.: 
Henry M., born Sept. 18, 1840; Morris M., Aug. 12, 
1842; and Clarence, Jan. 4, 1850, — the first two in 
Kane County and the last in this township. 

Mr. Elliott is a Republican in his political views, 
and has held the office of School Director. Mr. E. 
had five brothers in the army during the last war. 
Two, Hale and Samuel, died of disease in the hospi- 
tal, and one — Oliver H. Perry — lost an arm at Savan- 
nah, Ga., when Sherman captured the city. 




if lexander H. Durham, farmer, section 10, 
Genoa Township, has been a resident of 
" w " that municipality most of the time since 
his birth within its borders, which event oc- 
curred Aug. 26, 1841. Henry and Jane 
(Wager) Durham, his parents, were natives of 
the State of New York. They were pioneers in 
Genoa Township and residents of the village of that 
name, where they died. Their deaths occurred 
respectively in 1854 and in 1855. They were the 
parents of 10 children, five of whom are still living: 
Sarah, Sabrina, Ursula, Ethan A. and Alexander H. 
Mr. Durham received a common-school education, 
and when he was 14 years of age his mother died. 
Being then wholly orphaned, he became an inmate of 
the family of his brother-in-law, Julius Chipman, ot 
Kingston Township. Eighteen months later he re- 
turned to the place of his nativity and lived about a 
year and a half with one of his brothers. On the 



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death of the latter he engaged as a farm assistant 
with his brother-in-law, James Merriman, for whom 
he worked two years. During that time he married 
and located on a farm nearly half a mile east of the 
village of Genoa, to whose ownership he succeeded 
by the provisions of his father's will. He occupied 
the place seven successive years, when he sold it 
and bought 80 acres, where he established his per- 
manent homestead. He already having 160 acres on 
section 15, adjoining that which was left him by the 
death of his father, he now owns 260 acres in all, 
170 acres under tillage, and 20 acres of timber on 
section 31. Mr. Durham is in sympathy with the 
Democrat element in political sentiment. 

His marriage to Jennie Farr took place in Spring 
Township, Boone Co., 111., Jan. 1, 1862, and they 
are now the parents of four children, — Elmer E., 
born Oct. 2, 1863; Leonard P., born May 18, 1868; 
Amber S., born March 2, 1870; and Roy H., born 
Dec. 30, 1883. Mrs. Durham is the fourth daughter 
and child of Oliver and Roxana Farr, and was born 
Jan. 27, 1843, in Pennsylvania. Her brothers and 
sisters were named Nancy, Mary, Armina, William, 
Millard, Martha and Maynard. 



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oseph F. Glidden, patentee of the Glidden 
§yt jrf barb-wire fence, residing at De Kalb, was 
£p^* bom Jan. 18, 1813, in Charleston, Sullivan 
* Co., N. H. He is the son of David and Polly 
(Hurd) Glidden, both of whom were natives of 
the Granite State and were there married. 
About the year 18 14 they removed their family and 
interests to Orleans Co., N. Y., and were there resi- 
dent until 1844, when they came to Illinois. They 
made a brief stay in Ogle County, removing thence 
to the home of their eldest son, then a farmer in 
De Kalb Township, and were inmates of his house- 
hold through the closing years of their lives. They 
had six children, — Joseph F., Betsey, Eunice, Wil- 
lard J., Abigail and Stephen H. 

Mr. Glidden was in the second year of his life 



when his parents settled in Clarendon, Orleans Co., 
N. Y., and entered upon agricultural pursuits. He 
was brought up on the farm, acquired a thorough and 
practical knowledge of its details, and interspersed 
the seasons of labor by attendance at school. Pri- 
marily, he was a pupil in the ordinary educational 
institutions of the township, and later became a stu- 
dent at the Middlebury Academy in Genesee County 
he afterwards attended a seminary at Lima, Living- 
ston County, in the same State. He formed educa- 
tional plans with reference to a collegiate course, and 
taught some months; but, being of a practical turn of 
mind, the field for immediate action, to which he was 
accustomed by training, possessed an almost irre- 
sistible attraction, and he engaged as a renter of 
farms for some years, that being the common mode 
of operation adopted by those who had their way to 
make from the beginning. The figure at which the 
acres of the Empire State were held precluded almost 
the slightest promise of the advancement of a laborer 
to a proprietorship, and Mr. Glidden began to con- 
sider the feasibility of making his way westward. 

In the fall of 1842 he proceeded to Detroit, with 
two threshing-machines, of the primitive construction, 
then in use, and spent 30 days in Michigan on the 
wheat farms of that State, operating his threshers, 
assisted by. his brother Willard and two other men. 
Finally reaching St. Joseph, on the east side of Lake 
Michigan, he shipped the machines to Chicago and 
proceeded to De Kalb County, where he passed two 
years in the same avenue of business. During the 
winter of 1842-3 he bought 600 acres of land located 
on section 22, De Kalb Township, of his cousin, 
Russell Huntley, and which he still owns. He resi- 
ded two years in Ogle County, not taking possession 
of his property until 1S45. 

Mr. Glidden's first marriage took place in Claren- 
don, Orleans Co., N. Y., in 1837, when he formed a 
matrimonial union with Clarissa Foster. He left his 
wife and two children behind him when he started 
for the West with his machines, and before his wife 
joined him in Illinois the children had passed to the 
spirit world. She came to Ogle County in June, 
1843, and died the next j'ear in childbirth. The lit- 
tle daughter, for whom her own life was given, died 
in early infancy. The children of this marriage were 
named Virgil, Homer and Clarissa. 

The second marriage of Mr. Glidden, to Lucinda 



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Warne, took place in Kane County, in October, 185 1, 
and they have one child— Elva F. — now the wife of 
W, It. Bush, a merchant of Chicago. 

In 1845 Mr. Glidden took possession of his farm, 
remaining its resident proprietor until 1877, adding 
to its extent and increasing it to more than 800 acres. 
It is a fine sample of the perfection of attractions and 
value to which a prairie farm may be brought. In 
the year named Mr. Glidden relinquished the per- 
sonal management of his farm and removed to the 
city of De Kalb, where he became an inmate of the 
Glidden House, which he had built a few years 
before. 

The summary of the triumphs of American inven- 
tive genius present a splendid array. Their relative 
importance has developed a saying, which, perhaps, 
in general significance, cannot be gainsaid, — that 
"those who add to the material wealth of nations are 
greater than those that contribute to the comfort or 
convenience of mankind." But analysis and time 
must weaken the force of the statement. The man 
who " made two blades of grass grow where one grew 
before " may be a benefactor, but the beneficence of 
his achievement becomes a question if the extra blade 
is superfluous. It has become trite that the " inven- 
tion of the cotton-gin advanced the South 50 years," 
and the progress of the North consequent upon the 
invention of the reaping-machine is similarly estima- 
ted. Hut for 40 years the question of fencing the 
broad, beautiful acres of the prairie section of the 
United States remained unanswered, and hampered 
the farmers in all their projects; and there seemed 
for years no remedy for the existent condition but in 
legislation, — a forlorn hope in view of the fate com- 
mon to legal provisions in the hands of sagacious and 
interested interpreters of the statutes. Stone walls 
were utterly impracticable; the raids of the agents 
selling ( >sage orange and willow cuttings, which 
should produce selfqjerpetuating fences with the 
celerity of Aladdin's lamp, were profitable to none 
but their companies. With every tree that fell be- 
neath the woodman's devastating ax, receded farther 
and farther the hopes for fencing material. 

Mr. Glidden solved the problem which had been 
a standing perplexity of increasing proportions for 
almost half a century, and by his invention of the 
barb-wire fence placed his name on the list of en- 
during fame with those of Whitney, Arkwright, Howe 

— ^^k — ^A^nfl % 




V<v'V- 



and McCormick and a long catalogue of others, who 
will move through the records and traditions of the 
future as the benefactors of the world. The history 
of the invention is interesting and belongs to the per- 
sonal biography of Mr. Glidden and to the lasting 
records of De Kalb County. The earliest patents 
for barb-wire fencing were issued in 1867, but the 
material lacked practical merit and attracted com- 
paratively little notice. Mr. Glidden interested him- 
self in it, and, recognizing the utility and profit of a 
saccessful method of constructing wire fence, pushed 
a course of experiments as he found opportunity. 
He cut barbs by hand and extemporized a process 
by which they could be twisted about the wire. A 
piece 30 feet long |was armed with the spiteful ap- 
pearing prongs and twisted with a piece of smooth 
wire by attaching the two to the axle of a grindstone, 
the twist being obtained by turning the crank. The 
fence was stretched in the barn-yard of Mr. Glidden 
and proved a success. The result of the experiment 
is still a fixture and feature of the barn-yard where it 
was originally placed, and is demonstrating the prac- 
tical utility of the device as thoroughly as at first. 
The gratified inventor applied in October, 1873, for 
letters patent, which he received in the spring of 
1874. 

Meanwhile, Isaac L. Ell wood, a hardware mer- 
chant of De Kalb, had expended considerable time 
and money in experimenting with various kinds of 
fencing, and Mr. Glidden laid before him the results 
of his experiments, and they formed an association 
for the purposes of manufacture. They rented a 
small building and employed a corps of laborers, 
consisting chiefly of boys ; but the speedy increase 
of their business necessitated their removal to more 
extensive and centrally located quarters, and in the 
winter of 1874-5 they took possession of their factory 
at De Kalb. In the spring they opened business 
with a working force of 30 men. Changes were 
made from time to time, which were protected by ad- 
ditional patents, and the manufacture of barb-wire 
fence was continued by Messrs. Glidden & Ellwood 
until March, 1876. At that date, the Washburn & 
Moen Manufacturing Company, of Worcester, Mass., 
purchased the half interest of Mr. Glidden and the 
present firm of I. I,. Ellwood & Co. was established. 

Mr. Glidden received $60,000 and a guarantee of 
25 cents on every 100 pounds of fencing material 



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constructed. The tatter rate has been reduced to 
five cents per hundred weight, the enormous produc- 
tion of the barb-wire fence yielding even at the roy- 
alty of one-fifth the original stipulation a generous 
income to the inventor. 

Since 1876 Mr. Glidden has devoted his attention 
to his first love — farming — -and superintends the 
management of his extensive tracts of farming land 
in De Kalb County, comprising an extent of 1,500 
acres. He is also engaged to a considerable extent 
in stock-raising, and, associated with H. B. Sanborn, 
is the owner 0/ a cattle ranch in the portion of coun- 
try known as the Panhandle of Texas, where they 
are herding about 16,000 head of cattle. They own 
280 sections of land, constituting 280 square miles 
of territory, and requiring 150 miles of fencing, which 
was erected at a cost of $40,000. Mr. Glidden owns 
also a half-interest in a flour-mill at De Kalb. 

He has also been active in the duties of his citi- 
zenship in De Kalb County and Township, and in 
1852 was elected Sheriff. He possesses the distinc- 
tion of being the last Democratic official of the 
county. He has served his townsmen as Supervisor 
several terms, and performed the duties of other local 
offices of minor importance. Mr. Glidden is a mem- 
ber of the Masonic fraternity. 

Of his character and prominence a reliable esti- 
mate may be formed by the sketch given. He is 
essentially a member of the class descended from 
the "grand old gardener," and he has remained true 
to his lineage, which may be regarded as closely 
akin to dignity itself. The farmer comes of a descent 
whose antitype was molded in the freshness of God's 
plan of man, and found fitting to inhabit Paradise. 
The man who spends his life in tilling the ground 
proves his birthright in the inheritance of a redeemed 
world. Mr. Glidden has found no allurement in the 
career of a capitalist, nor availed himself of the op- 
portunity afforded by his sudden accession to wealth, 
which has since flowed with a lavish tide into his 
coffers, to grasp by the throat men of less fortunate 
hap and turn their disasters to his own profit. He 
remembers his days of toil and struggle, and takes 
justifiable pride in the spreading beneficence of his 
invention and in the well earned title of a farmer of 
De Kalb County, pure and simple. 

The portraits of Mr. and Mrs. Glidden are pre- 



sented on other pages. Their value to the biograph- 
ical records of De Kalb County is manifest without 
elaboration of statement. 




V£ 




fames P. Seaman, farmer on section 15, 
f Cortland Township, has land also on sec- 
tions 14 and 16, — 120 acres in all. He 



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it 

^•S was born in the town of Bovma, Delaware Co., 
]C N. Y., Aug. 21, 1830. His parents were 
Ephraim and Naomi (Carman) Seaman, both 
of whom have long since deceased. His father, who 
was born in 1805. was killed Dec. 21, 1847, in 
the township of Preston, Chenango Co., N. Y. 
While cutting down a tree for a sick neighbor, it 
broke in two about 16 feet up, and in chopping it 
down from this awkward position it fell upon his 
neck and broke it! He was thus found by James P., 
the subject of this sketch, and by a man who after- 
ward became his brother-in-law. The senior Seaman 
was also a native of Bovina Township. 

When the subject of this sketch was 11 years old, 
his parents emigrated with him to Chenango Co., N. 
Y., where he lived until 1854. He then came to 
Cortland Township, this county, and worked in 
company with Amos Rogers three years, when his 
mother purchased the present homestead. At her 
death it was divided among the three children of her 
first marriage, James being the administrator. Her 
second marriage was to Robert Clark, a sea captain. 
She was born Feb. 19, 18 10, in the town of Bovina, 
N. Y. Both her parents were of Yankee ancestry. 
A great-great-grandfather was a seaman in the Rev- 
olutionary War, a Major, and on that account re- 
ceived a large tract of land, which he sold at six cents 
per acre, it being in the Southern States. 

Mr. Seaman was married Nov. 15, 1S57, in Oxford, 
Chenango Co., N. Y., to Miss Mary A., daughter of 
Levi B. and Caroline E. (Olds) Jackson. Her father 
was born Feb. 24, 1808, was a shoemaker by vocation, 
and died Sept. 2, 1876, in Oxford, N. Y. Her mother 
was born Feb. 24, 1 8 10, in Oxford N. Y. Mrs. S., 
the second child in the above family, was born Dec. 
28, 1837, in Erie Co., N. Y., and was a year old when 
her parents moved to Oxford. Of the six children 



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DE KALB COUNTY. 



in the family of Mr. and Mrs. Seaman, three are de- 
ceased. The record stands: Carrie L., born July 10, 
i860, in this (Cortland) Township; Arthur C, July 
8, 1865, in this township, and died March 16, 1876, 
and is buried in Ohio Grove Cemetery; Nonie C, 
born Feb. u, 1868, and died in Cortland, Jan. 16, 
1SS1; Frankie, born July 12, 1870, died Aug. 25, 
following, and is also buried in Ohio Grove Cem- 
etery; May L., Aug. 4, 1871; and Lizzie H., 
Aug. 28, 1875. — the last two born also in Cortland. 
Mr. Seaman is a Republican in his political views, 
and both himself and wife are members of the Free- 
will-Baptist Church. 





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i<enry N. Olmstead, farmer, section 16, 

Genoa Township, is a native of the place 

where he has passed his entire life to the 

present date. He was born March 4, 185 1, 

and is the son of Caleb and Samantha (Wager) 

Olmstead, natives of the State of New York. 

(See sketch of Caleb Olmstead.) 

Mr. Olmstead obtained a fair common-school edu- 
cation, which he completed by attendance at the 
High School at Sycamore. When he was 22 years of 
age he embarked in his career of independent man- 
hood, and in 18S4 purchased the family homestead, 
which included 160 acres of valuable land, nearly all 
being under cultivation. 

Mr. Olmstead has been identified throughout his 
career in political matters with the Republican party, 
and has officiated in the discharge of the duties per- 
taining to several local offices. 

His marriage to Jane Wright took place at Genoa, 
March 4, 1877. They have had four children, viz.: 
Caleb, born Oct. 23, 1878; Olin H., June 22, 1879; 
Nellie and Jay G. The two youngest are not living. 
Mrs. Olmstead was born Aug. 9, 1857, in Sycamore, 
and is the daughter of Royal and Mary (Siglin) 
Wright, the former a native of New York, the latter 
born in Pennsylvania. Her parents located at Syca- 
more soon after marriage, and her father there en- 
gaged m farming. He died March 1, 1872. Her 



mother lives in Iowa. Mrs. Olmstead is the eldest 
of eight children. Her brothers and sisters were 
named Frank, Asa, Charles, Amos, Jacob, Flora and 
I [iram. 




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harles D. Carter, M. D., physician and 
SsSfi surgeon at De Kalb, is a native of De 
KRs Kalb County, having been born within its 
^'t? limits Nov. 19, 1858. He is the son of Or- 
A lando and Huldah (White) Carter. (See 
sketch of O. Carter.) Mr. Carter passed his 
early life in the manner common in the training and 
rearing of farmers' sons, and he obtained a fair edu- 
cation in the common schools which he attended as 
opportunity served, until he was 19 years of age, after 
which he began the study of medicine with the 
purpose of making it the vocation of his life. He 
alternated his periods of study with farm labor, and 
studied three years at Rush Medical College in 
Chicago, receiving the authority of that institution to 
enter upon the practice of medicine in 1882. He 
established his business at De Kalb, and is steadily 
gaining a substantial repute as a practitioner and 
founding a successful career in his profession. 

Dr. Carter is a Democrat in his political convic- 
tion, and is one of the foremost in character and 
promise of the young men of De Kalb County on 
whom is the dependence of the future generation. 



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rederick S. Crane, farmer and stock-raiser, 

^Jjfjg sections 15, 14, 22 and 23, Cortland 
"^j|% r V Township, was born in the town of Mar- 
Mp vin, Wayne Co., N. Y., June 6, 1833, and was 
ijfc, only two years old when the family moved to 
I Du Page Co., 111., in 1835, coming in a two- 
horse wagon, and settling on a tract of land before it 
was surveyed. When it came into market his father 
purchased it, and it is now owned by his brother. 



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He was brought up on the farm. When 16 years 
old his father died, and when of age he commenced 
to establish himself near his father's homestead, 
where he lived until the spring of 1869, when he 
purchased 225 acres of land where he has since re- 
sided. To this purchase he has since added, until 
he now has a total of 400 acres. He received a 
common-school education at Naperville; has been 
School Trustee and Director; and in politics he is a 
Republican. Both himself and wife are members of 
the Baptist Church. 

He was married Dec. 20, 1855, at Naperville, 111., 
to Miss Mary A. Bristol, who was born Feb. 18, 1834, 
in Wethersfield, N. Y., and was brought by emigration 
of her parents to Naperville in 1843, where they have 
ever since lived, excepting the last few years. Mr. 
and Mrs. Crane have five children, as follows : 
Hiram D., born Nov. 3, 1856; Frank H., May 13, 
1858; Myron F., March 7, i860; S. Jennette, April 
5, 1865; and Carrie M., Feb. 5, 1869, — all at Naper- 
ville. 

Mr. Crane's father, David Crane, was a farmer, 
and died in Naperville in 1849, at the age of 42 
years. His mother, Catherine W., nee Stolp, was 
born Jan. 21,1814, in Pultneyville, Wayne Co., N. Y., 
and is now living in Merriain, that county. Mrs. 
Crane's father, Hiram Bristol, was born March 22, 
1800, in Fairhaven, Vt , and is now living in Aurora, 
111. Her mother, Sarah, nee Spink, was born June 
17, 1804, in Whitehall, Washington Co., N. Y., and 
died May 9, 1869, at Aurora, 111. 



-<-HHHN->- 



^.enry H. Wagner, merchant at De Kalb, 
was born July 6, 1847, m La Salle Co., 111. 
He passed the years of his early life on the 
homestead of his grandparents in De Kalb 
County, coming to De Kalb in 1863. After 
operating a few months as a clerk, he entered 
the army of the United States, enlisting in Co. K, 
i32d Regiment of Illinois Infantry. After a service 
of five months, he received his discharge and re- 
sumed his former occupation of salesman for Win- 
ship Brothers, of De Kalb, operating in their interests 
but a short time, the business of the firm being inter- 





rupted by the death of the senior partner. Mr. 
Wagner entered the employment of R. K. Chandler, 
whose death in 1875 terminated the business, and 
Mr. Wagner embarked in a mercantile enterprise in 
his own behalf. He began on a limited scale, pro- 
ceeded safely and secured a permanent foundation 
for his present extensive relations. He is the lead- 
ing dealer in general merchandise at De Kalb. 
Politically Mr. Wagner is a decided Republican and 
is a member of Merritt Simonds Post, No. 283 
G. A. R. 

His marriage occurred March 24, 187 1, to Nancy 
E. Waite, a lady who was born in the State of New 
York, April 14, 1847. Of s ' x children born of their 
union, four survive, namely, Eva L., Cora F., Elvin 
H. and Nina L. Those deceased died in infancy. 



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lldolph Elten, of the firm of Deily & Elten, 
yjnk Guilders and dealers in coal at Sycamore, 
was born Dec. 15, 1841, in Germany. His 
parents, August and Bertha Elten, were born 
in Germany and died there. They had three 
children, — Adolph, August and Gustave. The 
latter is a builder in Chicago. The second son is 
deceased. 

Mr. Elten was instructed in his business by his 
father, who pursued the trade of builder through his 
life. He came to the United States in March, 1865, 
and embarked in his business in Chicago. He was 
occupied three years in that city as foreman in the 
sash and door factory of Frederick Schroeder, who 
tranferred his business from the Garden City to 
Sycamore, whither Mr. Elten accompanied and offi- 
ciated three years in the same capacity. In the 
spring of 1878 the latter formed an association with 
Jacob Deily for the prosecution of a joint relation as 
builders, and a year later began to deal in coal. 
They employ about half a dozen men commonly and 
have erected a number of prominent buildings at 
Sycamore and vicinity. 

Mr. Elten was married June 27, 1869, in Chicago, 
to Caroline Evers, and they have had four children : 
Hermann was born May 2, 1870, and died Sept. 19, 
1871; Julia was born Feb. 9,1872; Charles, April 







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1 9, 1 S75 ; George, Aug. 31, 1877. The latter was 
born in Sycamore and died Nov. 14, 18S0. The 
Others were born in Chicago. Mrs. Elten was born 
in Baltimore, Mil., and is the daughter of John and 
Hermine (Buttner) Evers. The family attend the 
Congregational Church. 



— +§4§§m- 



l hubal T. Armstrong, Deputy Clerk of 
', f.-Sii'v,' l>e Kalb County, resident .it Sycamore, 
was born Dec. 14, 1834, in Chautauqua 
Co., N. Y. I lis parents, Dr. Thomas and 
Joanna (Terry) Armstrong, were natives of 
Washington Co., N. Y., and in 183 1 removed 
thence to Chautauqua County. When the son, who 
is the subject of this sketch, was nine months old, 
the family transferred their residence to Erie Co., 
N. Y., settling in Evans Township. In 1S40 they 
went to Wisconsin and settled in Union, Rock 
County, where they were pioneer settlers. The 
father practiced his profession there 12 years, re- 
moving with his family thence to Sandwich, De Kalb 
County, where he established his business and has 
since continued its prosecution. 

Mr. Armstrong accompanied his parents in their 
varied migrations, and was an inmate of the parental 
household until 1861. When he was 16 years of age 
he became interested in civil engineering and began 
the practical pursuit of the business of operating as 
flagman. While in Wisconsin in 1852-5, he was 
employed at intervals in the Government survey. 
In the year named he set out foran overland journey 
to California. He prospected on the route and 
arrived in the Golden State in February, 1862. He 
had acquired a thorough knowledge of civil engineer- 
ing and entered into the prosecution of that business, 
in which he operated until 1865. In that year he 
returned to Wisconsin and engaged in farming in 
Rock County, in which he was engaged three years, 
coming to De Kalb County in 1868. He interested 
■ll in agrii ultural operations in Milan Township, 
in which pursuit he passed three years, removing at 
the expiration of that period to Sycamore. 

In 187 1 Mr. Armstrong was elected County Sur- 
veyor and continued to discharge the duties of the 



incumbency until 1884. During four years of the 
included period he operated in the interests of the 
Milwaukee & St. Paul Railroad, surveying lands in 
Iowa and Dakota. In 1884 he was appointed to 
the position whose duties he is discharging with 
entire satisfaction to all concerned. 

His marriage to Eunice Richardson took place in 
1855. She is a native of Chautauqua Co., N. Y., 
Seven children have been born of their union — 
Hattie, May, Annie, Elizabeth, Carlotta, Nevada and 
Arthur. 



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^avid Wood, deceased, formerly a farmer 

on the south half of section 1, Cortland 

(j<y- " Township, was born April 21, 1808, prob- 



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His parents were John 
and Phebe (Bradford) Wood, both of whom 
died in Union Co., Ohio. His father was a 
farmer. 

The subject of this sketch spent his early life in 
Union Co., Ohio, and emigrated thence to the place 
in this county where his widow now lives, and where 
he died, March 24, 1861 ; he was buried in Ohio 
Grove Cemetery. Having been brought up on a 
farm and received a common-school education, he 
continued working his father's farm on shares for a 
time, and in September, 1835, in company with 
George Gandy and four or five others, came to this 
county. He made a claim on section 1, township 
40 north, of range 5 east, now known as Cortland ; he 
erected a log house and lived here until 184 1, when 
he returned to Ohio, where he was married. He re- 
turned to this county in the fall of 1843, at which 
time the land came into market, and he entered it. 
In 1855 he built a frame residence, which his family 
is still occupying. 

Once in early day, he went to St. Charles with an 
ox team to get provisions, and on his return his team 
gave out. He remained over night under an oak 
tree, but could get no sleep, as he had to stir around 
continually to keep from freezing. He had some 
beef with him in the wagon, and the wolves were near 
by, howling around, all night. The next morning he 
had to break the ice to get his team over. 



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He was married Oct. 27, 1842, in Union Co., 
Ohio, to Miss Ruth Cary, daughter of Ephraira and 
Matilda (Gandy) Cary, both of whom died in that 
county, the former Dec. 12, 1878, and the latter July 
21, 1855. Mr. Cary, a farmer, was born April 9, 
1790, in Pennsylvania, and Mrs. C. Dec. 15, 1801. 
Mrs. Wood was born Sept. 24, 1825, in Madison Co., 
Ohio, and was two years old when her parents 
moved with her to Marvin Township, Union County, 
where she lived until her marriage. In her younger 
days she attained great skill in the art of spinning, — 
flax in winter and wool in summer. Would often do 
two day's work in one, without becoming very tired. 
Indeed, she followed this'Jjusiness more than ordinary 
house-work. 

Of her seven children, only one is deceased. The 
names of all and dates of birth are as follows : John, 
Jan. 9, 1844; Matilda J., Dec. 5, 1845; Phebe, 
April 21, 1848; Mary A., March 25, 1850, and died 
Dec. 23, 1880; Elizabeth, May 14, 1852; Rhoda, 
Nov. 3, 1S54; and Malinda E., May 1, 1859. 

Mrs. W. is a member of the Church of the United 
Brethren, as was also her husband, and in his 
political views he was a Republican. The landed 
estate now comprises 134 acres. 



-5 ^-^Sf-I^S-v^^-5- 





of New York, March 4, 1S46, and is the daughter of , 
Edwin and Millicent (Rowley) Hathaway, who had 
seven children, viz.: Alonzo, Lydia J., Nathan R., 
Mary A., Alonzo E. and Joel B. One child died in 
extreme infancy, and also Alonzo, the eldest child, is V- 
deceased. Mr. and Mrs. Preston were married at 
Sycamore, Jan. 1, 1866. They have one child, Sina 
M., born Aug. 31, 1872, in Genoa Township. Mr. 
Preston is identified with the Republican party in 
political views and connections. 



™|^ orman Preston, farmer, section 29, Genoa 
Township, is a native citizen of the place 
of which he is a resident, and was born 
Oct. 12, 1840. His parents, Justus and Sina 
(Hall) Preston, were natives of Connecticut and 
became pioneer citizens of De Kalb County in 
1836, settling in Genoa Township. The father died 
there June 2, 1847, aged 53 years, 5 months and 4 
days; and the mother's demise took place Feb. 25, 
1869, in that township. She was aged 67 years and 
and 26 days. Their children were named Henry. 
Augustus, Charles, George, Norman and Julia E. 

Mr. Preston acquired a common-school education 
and remained a member of the parental household 
until he was 25 years of age, when he was married 
and became the head of a family, settling in inde- 
pendent life in Genoa Township. Mrs. Preston, 
formerly Mary A. Hathaway, was born in the State 

— ^£ — &^%m 







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penry H. Gandy, farmer, section 10, Cort- 
fA land Township, occupying 115 acres on the 
^ southwest quarter, was born in Trumbull 

Co., Ohio, April 16, 18 10. Both his parents ' 
were natives of New Jersey. His father, H. H., ' 
was born Feb. 24, 1768, and died March 27, ' 
1849, in Union Co., Ohio; and his mother, Sally, nee j 
Harris, was born Feb. 7, 1785, and died Sept. 1, 
1846, in Union Co., Ohio. Mr. G.'s paternal grand- 1 
father died in the service of his country during the 
Revolutionary War, in a hospital at Valley Forge, 
and his maternal grandfather was also in the Revolu- 
tionary Army. 

When the subject of this sketch was only two years 
of age his parents removed with him to Madison Co. 
Ohio, where they lived 18 or 19 years, when his father 
bought land in Union County, same State, moved his 
family there and lived five or six years. Mr. Gandy, 
of this sketch, moved to this township when he was 
27 years of age, arriving 011 the very anniversary of 
his birth-day, in the spring of 1837, and has lived 
here ever since. To this place his brother George 
W. had preceded him in the fall of 1835, and also 
his brother-in-law, Henry Smith. Isaac Gandy, a 
nephew, was also here : he has since died. Only 
one man is now living who was a member of this first 
settlement on this side of the Grove. All the other 
settlements at that time were in the timber. 

Mr. Gandy was married Sept. 12, 1833,10 Lucinda 
Meacham, daughter of Joseph and Elizabeth (Snow) 
Meacham. Her mother was born in 1S0S, and died 
in Windham Co., Conn. Mrs. G.'s father was born 
about 1772, and died in April, 1857, also in Windham > 

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County. Mrs. Gi was bom Sept. 5, 1806, in the 
nty, probablj of Puritan English descent. 
01" tli lildren ol Mi and Mrs. Gandy, all are 

living, namel) : Joseph, born Nov. 1, 1S34, in Union 
Co., Ohio; Julia A, Oct. 7, 1836, same county; 
Marcus, March 8, 1839; Jerusha, Feb. 15, iSp; 
Matilda, June 4, 1843; Francis M., June 27, 1 S45 ; 
and Andrew J., March 15, 1848. The last five were 
born in this county. 

Mr. G h Vssessor tor many years, and has 

School Director. In politics he is a Democrat. 

The portrait of Mr. Candy, accompanying this 
sketch, will doubtless be welcomed in this Album by 
the people of De Kalb County, and accordingly it is 
with great pleasure that the publishers insert it in 
this connection. 



~<-*#3HN->-+ 



/,enry Larnson Boies, editor of the True 
Republican, published at Sy :amore, was 
born July 5, 1830, at South Hadley, Mass , 
and is the son of Artemas and Susan (Larnson) 
Boies. In the paternal line of descent he comes 
of Huguenot ancestry. His patronymic also 
unmistakably proclaims his French origin and refers 
to the estates which his earliest progenitors received 
from the sovereigns of France. By the persecution 
of the Huguenots under Cardinal Richelieu they 
were driven to Scotland, and, enlisting under Crom- 
well, were sent to Northern Ireland, from which as 
Scotch-Irish they emigrated to Massachusetts about 
1680. 

Artemas Boies, the father, was born in 1792, in 
Blandford, Mass. His natural abilities and educa- 
tion fitted him for a high sphere of usefulness and 
activity and he became a clergyman of the Congre- 
il Church, attaining distinction in his profes- 
sion and, dying, left his sons the heritage of the name 
he bore, unn >bled by a life of stainless integrity and 
eminent devotion to the trusts imposed by the obli- 
ins of his ministry. In 1S35 he moved his 
family and interests to Boston, and five years later 
m tde another transfer to New London, Conn., where 
he died Sept. 20, 1S45. The mother was born in 
ear 1800, in Kei e, N II. In her widowhood 






she returned to the place of her nativity and there- 
passed a score and a half of years, dying in Septem- 
ber, 1876. Mr. Boies was the parent of seven chil- 
dren, four of whom have pissed to the mystic realms 
of the life beyond. The oldest surviving son, Will- 
iam E. Boies, is his father's mantle-bearer, and has 
been a clergyman of the Congregational Church for 
a period of years extending nearly to the time of his 
father's demise. He resides at Long Meadow, Mass. 
Lauretta M. is the youngest living child, and resides 
at Rye, N. Y. 

Mr. Boies of this sketch inherited the consumptive 
tendencies of his family. He had been trained in- 
tellectually with much care in • his boyhood and 
youth, and at 20 was seized with pulmonary hemor- 
rhage. Change from the severe climate of New En- 
gland was necessary, and he passed the winter of 
1850 in the Azores, receiving benefit in more than 
one respect, and returning to America by the way of 
Liverpool and London. He went to Charleston, S. 
C, to pass the winter following and taught school .1 
year in the Palmetto State. His health had improved ^. 
so much that he returned North with renewed cour- 
age to engage in business. In 1852 he bought an 
interest in a gunpowder factory at Catskill, N. Y. 
Three months later he was again in the toils of his 
former disease, and he decided on a change of cli- 
mate and a career which would give him the benefit 
of open air. With this view he came to De Kalb 
Co., 111., in 1854, and became the proprietor of a 
farm situated in the town of South Grove. In 1S58 
he located at Sycamore. He now owns 20 acres of 
land within the corporation of Sycamore, and also a 
farm of 320 acres in Hand ('o., Dak. He platted 
Boies' First Addition to Sycamore in 1865. In 187 1 
he laid out a second addition, and a third in 1876. 
In 1858, associated with John R. Hamlin, he initi- 
ated the project which resulted in the construction of 
the Sycam>re & Cortland Railroad, connecting with 
one of the main routes of the Chicago & North- 
western Railway and now the property of that cor- 
poration. In 1863 Mr. Boies became connected with (& 
the True Republican, and in 1865 became its editor. 
It is one of the leading journals of the county. He 
is also the author of "Boies' History of De Kalb 
County," a valuable compilation for purposes of sta- 
tistical reference, which was published in 1867. 

Mr. Boies has been a valuable and important fac- 



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he development of Sycamore. His enterprise 
ublic spirit have added greatly to the rate of 
progress of this section, and he is widely known and 
justly esteemed in all his private and public rela- 
tions. He obtained the appointment of Postmaster 
at Sycamore and officiated four years. His latest 
public service was in 1870, when he was appointed 
Secretary of the Illinois State Senate. 

The marriage of Mr. Boies to Harriet S. Holmes 
took place Feb. 9, 1858, at Springfield, Mass. Mrs. 
Boies is the daughter of Alexander and Margaret 
(Rumrill) Holmes, and is a native of Sherburne, N. 
Y. Edward Irving, oldest son, was born Feb. 20, 
i860, and is assistant editor of the True Republican. 
Charles Artemas was born Jan. 3, 1863, and is a 
farmer in Hand Co., Dak. Lucy M. was born Feb. 
3. 1865- 



c — n — r ( 



rasmus D. Walrod, a pioneer of De Kalb 
County, was born June 16, 1816, at Oak 
Hill, Montgomery Co., N. Y. His parents, 
ter W. and Mary (Wayt) Walrod, as well as 
grandparents, were born in the State of 
jw York, but the stock from which they de- 
scended originated in Germany. 

The parents of Mr. Walrod removed to Wyoming 
Co., N. Y., when he was seven years of age, his 
father buying a farm in Eagle Township. (The 
municipality was then Allegany County, which was 
afterward divided and Wyoming County formed.) In 
1835 the family set out for Illinois, bringing with 
them all their household effects in two wagons drawn 
by horses. Mr. Walrod was then 19 years of age 
and drove three horses attached to a heavy wagon. 
In crossing the Black Swamp in Ohio, they were 
obliged to double teams with other immigrants in 
order to ford the mud into which the wagon wheels 
sunk to their hubs. The transit consumed six weeks. 
On arrival in De Kalb County the father and older 
brother located at Union Grove in De Kalb Town- 
ship, or what is now thus designated, the date of 
their location preceding the Government survey. 
The father and two oldest sons each secured a 
claim on which log cabins had been erected, which 





they occupied, and made puncheon for doors, floors 
and tables. The senior Walrod retained ownership 
of his claim about three years, when he sold and ob- 
tained one in what is now the township of Sycamore. 
He built a log house, entered vigorously upon the 
improvement of the property, and died upon his 
homestead, in 1844. The mother died in 1856. 
They were the parents of nine children. 

Mr. Walrod is next to the youngest in order of 
birth. As soon as he arrived in De Kalb County he 
made a claim in Mayfield Township, which was 
"jumped" from him, and he secured another by 
purchase fr&m his brother in the same township, 
built a log house and took possession. In 1839 he 
sold the property for $1,050 and bought a claim of 
L. D. Walrod situated on section 32 in Sycamore 
Township, a part of which is now included within the 
limits of the city. This was previous to its coming 
into market, and when the opportunity for securing 
his patent arrived he borrowed money and made the 
entry according to the regulations made and pro- 
vided. With the exception of a period of seven years 
this estate has since been his residence. In 1850 
Mr. Walrod made an overland journey to California, 
which occupied four months and three days. The 
party were well provisioned and spent their nights in 
camp. The route would have been made in entire 
comfort but for having overtaken three men without 
provisions, with whom they divided, which necessi- 
tated rationing the entire party. Mr. Walrod re- 
mained two years in the Golden State and returned 
by the isthmus route to New York, coming again to 
Sycamore, where his family had remained during his 
absence. 

Mr. Walrod was married Aug. 1, 1839, to Melintha 
Powell, a daughter of Rachel and Ruth (Pierce) 
Powell. Her father was born in England and was 
married after his emigration to America, her mother 
being of Massachusetts origin. Mrs. Walrod was 
born in the township of Perinton, Monroe Co., N. 5? . 
Nov. 9, 1817. Her father died while she was an 
infant, and her mother afterwards became the wife of 
James Cartwright. The family migrated in 1837 to 
Illinois and located at Union Grove in De Kalb 
County. The land included in the claim which Mr. 
Cartwright entered is now the county poor farm and 
under the finest class of improvements. Mr. and 
Mrs. Walrod have but one surviving child, Walter 



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D., bom March 13. 1843. He was educated in the 
public si hools "i s \ 1 amore, and lias been twice mar- 
ried. Mary (W itkins) Walrod died three years after 
marriage, leaving one child, Willie E. W. D. Wal- 
rod married Amanda Denmark tor his second wife, 
and they have four children, — Malintha, George, 
Lewis anil Walter. Ransom ('■., the eldest child of 
E. 1 ). Walrod, was born Oct. 30, 1 840. He was ed- 
ucated at Princeton, Bureau Co., 111., his health fail- 
in- while at school, and he died Aug. 15, 1857. 
Edward died in infancy. George C. was born Aug. 
23, 1849. He attained to a fine degree of scholarly 
advancement and was graduated at a commercial 
1 ollege in Chicago, and afterward engaged in teach- 
ing. He died Feb. 9, 1875. James R. died in infancy. 










i* 






Lharles C. Pond, member of the firm of 

if 

Warren & Pond, dealers m watches, clocks, 

jewelry, plated ware and musical instru- 
ments, at Sycamore, was born Dec. 24, 1856, 
in the to wt. ship of Sycamore. His father, 
Americus H. Pond, was born in Pennsylvania, 
and came to Sycamore abo.it 1850, where he married' 
Amy Hollenbeck. They have five children : Emily 
E. is the wife of D. S. Brown, a banker at Genoa ; C. 
C. was born next in order; William L. is an attorney 
at De Kalb; Harry A. is a farmer on the family 
homestead'; and Lizzie is the youngest. 

Mr. Pond became a teacher at the age of 20 years, 
and continued in the pursuit of that vocation until 
the spring of 1882, operating in this county continu- 
ously, with the exception of one term, when he 
taught at Laddonia, Audrain Co., Mo. In April of 
the year named, he entered into the partnership 
known as Pond & Bacon, in the sale of jewelry, the 
business of that firm continuing until March 3, when 
he purchased Mr. Bacon's interest, and on the 20th 
nl March, 1884, Mr. Pond consolidated his business 
relations with those of George O. Warren. They are 
managing a prosperous enterprise, one of the largest 
in the line in the county. Mr. Pond belongs to the 
order known as the Modern Woodmen of America. 

He was married Sept. 30, 1880, at Sycamore, to 
Etta, daughter of Edmond B. and Susan Sivwright 



Harned, and they have one child, Ethel C, born 
Jan. 30, 1883. Mrs. Pond was born Dec. 7, 1858, 
in the township of Mayfield. 




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|f,®9^.ndrew H. Olmstead, farmer, section 17 
~~%^ Genoa Township, is the son of Caleb and 
*SJ Samantha (Wager) Olmstead, whose biograph- 
X ical notice appears on another page. He was 
born Jan. 12, 1836, in Delaware Co , N. Y. 
His parents came to De Kalb County in 1846, 
and he has been a resident of Genoa Township 
since he was 10 years of age, with the exception of 
several months in 1874, which he spent in travel in 
Colorado and California for the benefit of his health. 
He is one of the leading agriculturists of his town- 
ship, where he owns nearly 1,000 acres of land, all 
under improvements. His stock includes an average 
of 150 head of cattle, 10 horses, and he fattens for 
market about 75 hogs yearly. 

He was married Dec. 29, 1859, in Genoa Town- 
ship to Rebecca J. Eiklor, and they have been the 
parents of three children, — Cora M., born June 6, 
1866; Ada M., Sept. 13, 1869; and Effie R., Jan. 
15, 1879. The latter died when two years and four 
months old. Mrs. Olmstead was born Aug. 2°} '844> 
in Erie Co., Ohio. She is the daughter of Frederick 
and Jeannette Eiklor, both of whom were natives of 
Ohio. Mr. Olmstead is Republican by principle 
and inheritance and has held several local offices. 



t{ ells G. Chamberlain, of the firm of Wliit- 




JjL temore, Chamberlain & Co, at Sycamore, 
was born July 27, 1S37, in Williamstown, 
Mass. Emery Chamberlain, his father, was 
a farmer and was born in Connecticut, Dec. 
28, 1791. His death occurred Feb. ir, 1876. 
The mother of the subject of this sketch, Mary 
(Brownell) Chamberlain, was born in May, 1794, in 
Vermont, and died Feb. 13, 187 1. Their marriage 
took place in 1810, and the period of their lives to- 
gether embraced 60 years and 10 months. Eight of 
their 13 children are now living (1XX4). Mary, the 



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wife of R. Starkus Buckley, died in Little Rock, Ark. 
Betsey died in youth. Laura married Charles Gard- 
ner, and they went to the Indian Territory, where 
Mr. Gardner was a teacher among the Choctaw In- 
dians, in the employment of the United States Gov- 
ernment. William Gardner, their son, was the first 
white child born in the Territory. Mr. Gardner is now 
teacher in the city of New York, where his wife died. 
Porter E. is a retired farmer, resident at Rockford, 
111. Emmeline is the widow of Dr. Sherwood, of 
Chicago. Thomas M. is a retired farmer living at 
Belvidere, 111. Lucy is the wife of F. Sanderson, a 
merchant tailor of Beloit v , Wis. Henry M. entered 
the Union army and returned thence to Madison, 
Wis., where he died. Warner E. is a farmer in Ash- 
land, Minn. Jane S. married L. M. Van Buren, M. 
D., of Spirit Lake, Iowa. Kate died at Williams- 
town, Mass., when she was 19 years old. 

Mr. Chamberlain is the next in order of birth. 
When he was 16 years of age his father's family re- 
moved to Beloit, Wis., and he was placed at the 
Mills Boarding School for boys at South Williams- 
town, where he was a student two years. He went 
to Beloit and became a clerk in the hardware store of 
A. P. Waterman and continued in that employment 
two years, after which he was occupied as an as- 
sistant on his father's farm until he reached his 
majority. 

Mr. Chamberlain celebrated his attaining to man's 
estate by his marriage Aug. 19, 1858, to Emily A., 
daughter of Clark and Sally Giles. She was born 
Nov. 16, 1 84 1, in Farmersville, Cattaraugus Co., N. Y. 
Six children have been born to Mr. and Mrs. Cham- 
berlain, five of whom are still living. Mark was born 
Oct. 29, 1861, and is a carpenter and machinist, 
resident at Sycamore. Clark was born Aug. 30, 
1864, and died April 5, 1865. Myrtie was born Dec. 
25, 1865; Mary, Aug. 23, 1S70; Grace, Nov. 17, 
1874; Fenton, Dec. 7, 1877. 

In the fall of 1866 Mr. Chamberlain bought a farm 
in the township of South Grove, De Kalb County, 
consisting of 80 acres situated on section r6, where 
the family resided six years, the proprietor being oc- 
cupied in the improvement and cultivation of his 
property. In T872 he rented the farm and removed 
to Sycamore. In 1875 he sold the place and entered 
the hardware store of Warren & Ell wood as a sales- 
man. A year later the proprietors sold their inter- 
ests to Harkness & Whittemore, who conducted the 



establishment until 1878, when Mr. Chamberlain 
became a partner by the purchase of an interest, 
and the firm style became Whittemore, Chamberlain 
& Co. Their establishment is one of the largest in 
the line of hardware, and all branches commonly 
connected therewith, in the county, and they also 
have a jobbing department. Their business requires 
one general assistant and two tinners. 

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^J1@^H obert Holland, farmer on the southeast 
'■ US^f* quarter of section 32, and north half of the 
: 5 i \ ,] " northeast quarter of section 33, Cortland 
& Township, was born in Fermanagh, Ireland, 
' March 26, r8is. His parents, Thomas and 
Ellen (Graham) Holland, passed all their life 
in their native land, Ireland. At the age of 23 or 24 
Mr. Robert Holland left his native land, where he 
was brought up on a farm and obtained a limited 
education in a boys' school, and came to the "land 
of opportunity," in a sail vessel, landing at New York 
in May, 1839. He first labored for three months in 
a brick-yard at Poughkeepsie, N. Y., then a year for 
a hotel-keeper in the country near by (Dutchess 
County); next, he followed manual labor for five 
years, farming and gardening, in the town of Rich- 
field, Fairfield Co., Conn.; then for nine years more 
he worked by the day and followed ox-teaming, in 
the same town; and finally, in 1854, he came to 
Kaneville, this State, purchased 80 acres of land, 
and began to make a home. Finding a few tempor- 
ary improvements on the place, he extended them 
and rendered the place more valuable for ten years, 
when he sold it and bought his present farm of 240 
acres. It also was partly improved when he took 
possession of it, and he has raised its value from $30 
to $65 per acre. He has enlarged the dwelling, and 
now has a good frame house ; also a good grain and 
stock barn and all the necessary out-buildings. 

Mr. Holland was married June 28, 1S43, m R'dge- 
field, Conn., to Miss Grace, daughter of Thomas S. 
and Emily (Gilbert) Iveeler. Mrs. H.'s parents died 
in Connecticut, her father a little over 40 years of 
age and her mother at the age of 62. One of her 
grandfathers was a Revolutionary soldier. Five chil- 
dren have been born in the family of Mr. Holland, 
viz.: Thomas, April 2S, 1846; George, May ?r, 1 S ( S ; 



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Nathan G.,Aug. 8, 1852 ; Elizabeth J., April 22, 1859; 
and Ellen, July 2S, 1 S44, who died Oct. 24, 1867, on 
t he homestead. Elizabeth was born in Kaneville, 
111 , the rest in RidgeiicUl, Conn. 

Mr. H. is a Republican and lias been Road Over- 
seer, and Mrs. H. is a member of the Methodist 
Episcopal Church. 



eorge O. Warren, of the firm of Warren & 
Pond, jewelers, at Sycamore, was born July 
K 2, 1853, in Allegany Co., N. Y., and is the 
son of Luke A. and Ursula (Foster) Warren. 
He is one of a family of eight children, seven 
of whom are living. William H. is a gauger 
by profession, and resides in Dakota. Mary L. is 
the wife of J. E. Southworth and lives at Santa 
Clara, Cal, • Sarah E. married Arthur E. Wilbur, 
of Clinton, Iowa. Alta R. is the wife of William 
Campbell, a farmer near Mason, Michigan. Michael 
F. is a jeweler in De Kalb. John F. is a dealer in 
fruits and vegetables at Galveston, Texas. George 
O. was born next in order. Abi died Feb. 2, 1858, 
aged 21 months. In 1864 the family settled in Ful- 
ton, Whiteside Co., 111., and resided there about two 
yens, going thence to Ogle Co., 111., where they 
lived until the spring of 187 1. At that date the 
father bought 50 acres of land in Cortland Township, 
De Kalb County, of which he retained possession ro 
years. In 1882 he sold the farm and the parents 
remi ived to Sycamore. 

Mr. Warren began the acquisition of the details of 
his profession when he was 18 years of age, at Buda, 
111., continuing there about a year, when he came to 
Sycamore and entered the jewelry establishment of 
his brother, Michael F., and operated under his su- 
pervision until the fall of 1874, when, associated with 
his brother-in-law, J. E. Southworth, he opened a 
jewelry store in a part of the building now occupied 
by Ellwood & Sivwright. Mr. Southworth became 
sole proprietor of the business nearly two years later, 
and Mr. Warren purchased another stock of goods 
and founded a business in the same line, which he 
conducted about eight years. March 20, 1884, he 
and his present partner, C. C. Pond, consolidated 
their stocks and have since conducted a joint busi- 

^fi&Z 






ness, «lii( h they are nun aging with success and sat- 
isfai tion to the public. They trade in watches, clocks 
jewelry, table and pocket cutlery, optical goods and 
musical instruments. Mr. Warren is a member of 
the order of Modern Woodmen of America. 

His wife was formerly Jennie C. Smith, to whom 
he was married Jan. 13, 1875. She was born March 
6, 1854, near Detroit, and is the adopted daughter of 
Spafford and Eliza Smith, of Sycamore. One son, 
Spafford S., has been born to Mr. and Mrs. Warren. 
They are members of the Baptist Church. 



1- 



'!Tm|t emuel C. Harris, farmer, section 27, Genoa 
■\ uifl| £ Township, was born May 26, 1832, in 
IT Genesee Co., N. Y. His father, John 
0|(j Harris, was also born in the same State, Jan. 
13, 1784, and married Irena Curtis, a native of 
Vermont. After their marriage they settled in 
the Empire State, coming West later in life and set- 
tling in Oakland Co., Mich. The father died there 
Dec. 29, 1839. The mother died in Genoa Town- 
ship in the fall of 1865. They had four children, — 
Paulina, Philo, Sina and Lemuel C. 

Mr. Harris came to Michigan with his parents 
when he was but two years of age. In 1844 he came 
to Boone Co., III., and lived with his uncle, Philo 
Curtis, under whose charge he remained four years. 
He then opened an independent career for himself, 
engaging as a farm assistant and working by the 
month seven years. He came to De Kalb County 
in 1851 and bought a farm in Genoa Township, 
where he settled and resided two years. He then 
exchanged his estate for a farm of 120 acres in the 
same Township, where he established his homestead. 
The place is wholly under improvements. Mr. 
Harris is a Republican in political bias and supports 
the issues of the patty. He is a member of the 
Order of Odd Fellows. 

The first marriage of Mr. Harris occurred at Syca- 
more, Jan. 1, 1S55, when Caroline C. Durham be- 
came his wife, and of their union three children were 
born: Edgar I)., May 14, 1857; Edna C, Dec. 31, 
i860; and Caroline, Oct. 28, 1864. The latter died 
when six weeks old. The decease of the mother 



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occurred Nov. 21, 1864. Nov. 24, 1868, Mr. Harris 
was a second time' married, to Mary E. Stark, at 
Belvidere. She was born in the township of Syca- 
more, Jan. 1, 1845. Her parents, Marshall and 
Louisa (Tyler) Stark, were natives of Pennsylvania 
and in 1835 settled in the township of Sycamore, 
where her father died Dec. 26, 1882. Their ten chil- 
dren were named Herman, Martha, Mary, Jefferson, 
Henry, Theron, Ada, Ella, Emma and Hattie. Mr. 
and Mrs. Harris have one child, Jefferson S., born 
March 3, 1870. 



fj'Ri (Q^&aniel T. Lane, farmer on the southwest 

f <l-i' (' '' AT 

t kj>&4.\L quarter of section 21, Cortland Township, 

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where he has 40 acres, was born in San- 
j^jA" bornton, Belknap Co., N. H, June 6, 1825. 
) ^ His father, Simeon Lane, was a farmer, and died 



* in New Hampshire, aged 75 years. His mother, 
Huldah, nee Robinson, died also in that State, at the 
age of 59 years. 

The latter lived in his native State until 25 years 
of age, oii a farm, working by the month the several 
years of this period. In 1850 he came West and lo- 
cated in St. Charles, Kane Co., 111., where he en- 
gaged in manual labor by the day for seven years or 
more. He then went to Warrenville, Du Page Co., 
III., and rented a farm two or three years; then 
rented a farm near St. Charles for a year. By this 
time the need of the nation for soldiers became so 
great that Mr. Lane concluded to risk his life in the 
Union cause. In August, 1862, therefore, he en- 
listed, in Co. E, 127th III. Vol. Inf., Captain Gillett, 
Colonel Van Arman, in the 15th Army Corps, under 
Gen. John A. Logan. He took part in five battles, 
— two at Vicksburg, and one each at Little Rock, 
Resaca and Dallas (Ga.), — in which last he was 
wounded, May 7, 1864, by a minie ball that grazed 
the top of his head. He then went into the conva- 
lescent camp at Nashville, Tenn., where he did duty 
until he was discharged. 

Returning to Warrenville, he was on a farm for 
three years, when he sold^ihe place and took posses- 
sion of his present farm. Here he first had 80 acres, 
but has since sold half the place. He is a Republi- 
can in his political views, but neither he nor Mrs. L. 
is a member of any Church. 




He was first married June 1, 18:53, to Sarah Per- 
vere. Her parents, George and Hannah Pervere, 
both died in the Old Granite State. She was born 
Sept. 24, 1830, and died April 12, 1856, leaving one 
child, Luella, who was born July 31, 1854, in St. 
Charles, 111. Mr. Lane was married a second time 
Sept. 19, 1858, in Warrenville, 111., to Miss Helen 
Pelham, daughter of George and Louisa (Hovenden) 
Pelham, natives of England. Her father was born 
March 19, 1809, and died Jan. 27, 1884; her mother, 
born Dec. 28, 1809, is still living, in Warrenville, 
with a son. They, with a family of six children, 
emigrated to Huron Co., Ohio, in the winter of 1841, 
just after the death of one of their children. After 
residing in the latter place three years they came to 
Warrenville, locating upon a farm he purchased in 
the vicinity. Mrs. Lane was born July 29, 1833, in 
England, and was eight years old when the family 
emigrated to this country. Her parents came here 
poor, but by frugality they in time accumulated a 
handsome amount of property. Mr. Pelham, by his 
death, left a large circle of mourning friends. He 
had led a noble Christian life. 

Mr. and Mrs. Lane's children are the following : 
George S., born Jan. 7, 1S60; Albert M., Aug. 26, 
1861 ; Huldah L., Feb. 14, 1863, died March 21, 
following, and was buried in her grandfather's door- 
yard in Warrenville; Lillian B., Sept. 4, 1866; and 
Henry I., Aug. 28, 1870. The first two and the 
fourth were born in Warrenville; Huldah L. was 
born in Wheaton, 111., and the last in Cortland Town- 
ship, at the present place of residence. 



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I '! MjSp arry Ewing, photographer at Sycamore, was 
'■^fSa born Jan. 31, iS58,in New Brighton, Beaver 

JwJ Co., Pa., and is the son of Ebenezer and Sarah 

X C. (Bechtel) Ewing. His parents were natives 

] of Pennsylvania, and later in life removed to 

Galesburg, 111., where his father died, in 1880. 

His (Harry's) mothsr is still living there. Their four 

children are living: Ella married Leon Simon, a 

druggist of Chicago; Frances and Mattie are the two 

youngest. 

Mr. Ewing is the eldest. He passed his youth in 

the common schools, and in 1876 began to fit himself 



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DE KALB COUNTY. 



for his business at Galesburg, with Z. P. McMillen, 
under whose instructions he operated two years, and 
afterward was connected two years with C. A. Winsor 
of the same place. Going thence to Marshalltown, 
ierated two yeais and came thence to Sycamore 
in May, iNSi. He became an employee of G. W. 
Taylor, photographer, and alter six months purchased 
the establishment where he had been employed and 
is still engaged in its management. Many of the 
portraits in this Album are reproduced from photo- 
graphs taken by him. 

He was married at Sycamore, March 15, 1883, to 
Nellie, daughter of Azel and Mary (ShurtlefT) Stone. 
She was born June 22, 1859, at Kenosha, Wis. They 
have one child, Arthur Stone, born Dec. 18, 1884, 
at Sycamore. 





s illiam King, farmer, section 34, Genoa 
J„ Township, was born June 5, 1S17, in 
fc^ * Essex Co., N. Y., and is the son of Reuben 
and Roxana (De Wolf) King. His parents 
were natives of Massachusetts, where they 
resided some years after their marriage, and 
subsequently removed to the State of New York. 
On their emigration to De Kalb County they located 
in Genoa Township, going later to pass the last 
years of their lives with a daughter in Kane Co., 111., 
and there died. 

Mr. King is next the youngest in order of birth of 
1 1 children born to his parents. He lived in his 
native county until he was 19 years of age, when he 
went to Trumbull Co., Ohio, and there he maintained 
a residence until 1S49, the date of his removal to 
the State of Illinois. He settled in Genoa Township, 
where he has been a citizen since, with the exception 
of two years which he passed in Nebraska. He is a 
Republican in political connection and accepts the 
i of the party. He has held several of the 
minor local official positions. 

He was first mariied to Hannah (Dowd) Miller, 
widow of Willi. mi Miller, in Trumbull Co., Ohio. 
She bore him five children, — Nelson, Alva D., Alfred, 
Melvin and Emma. The mother was a native of 
New York, and died in the township of Sycamore, 
Feb. 12, 1877. Mr. King was married the second 




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time June 3, 1877, in Genoa Township, to Harriet L., 
daughter of Joseph and Julia A. (Haskins) Dano. 
Herbert; Reuben and Justin are the names of the 
children born of the second marriage. Mrs. King 
was born Jan. 3. 1856, in Leeds Co., Ont. Her par- 
ents were bom in the State of New York, and after 
their marriage settled in the Dominion of Canada, 
where her father died. Her mother lives at Syca- 
more. 

H ^v?^3§"fs^-v~---i- 

eorge M. Sivwright, of the firm of Ell- 
wood & Sivwright, grocers, etc., at Syca- 
K more, was born Dec. 2, 1837, in Comwallis, 
Kings Co., N. S., and is the son of James M. 
and Prudence (Eaton) Sivwright. His father 
was born in Windsor, N. S., Feb. 20, 1804, and 
began his business life as a tanner and boot and shoe 
manufacturer at Comwallis, where he operated until 
he removed his family to Sycamore in 1 .S 4 4 . He 
became a landholder in the township of May field, 
De Kalb County, and died on the homestead, Dec. 
24, 1878. George's mother was born in 1807, in 
Comwallis, N. S., and died at the home of her 
youngest son in Sycamore, Nov. 25, 188 r. Five of 
their seven children are living. David L. resides in 
Hutchinson, Mc Leod Co., Minn., is a farmer and 
farrier and ex-Sheriff of the county where he resides, 
is a man of wealth and position and a decided Re- 
publican. Susan H. married E. B. Harned, a farmer 
in the township of Sycamore and owning an extensive 
tract of land. Eunice died in the 17th year of her 
life. George M. is the next in order of birth. Alex- 
ander is a traveling salesman in the interests of the 
Marsh-Whitney Binder Company. Wentworth E. 
is a clerk in a hardware store at Sycamore. James 
L. resides on the homestead in Mayfield Township. 
William Wells is deceased. 

Mr. Sivwright was seven years of age when his 
parents located in De Kalb County, and he was 
brought up on the farm. On arriving at man's estate 
he became the proprietor of 120 acres of land in the 
township of Mayfield, and_ was actively engaged in 
agricultural pursuits until 1872. In that year he 
accepted a position as conductor on the Sycamore & 
Cortland Railroad and officiated six years. On the 
termination of that engagement he traveled some 



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months as collector of the R. Ell wood Manufacturing 
Company. He acceded to a half interest in the 
business in which he is engaged in March, [881, 
purchasing his claim of the senior member of the 
linn. The business is extensive and popular, and 
represents an estimated investment of $10,000. Their 
stock includes full lines of groceries, drugs, oils, paints, 
crockery, etc., and they utilize nearly the entire space 
of the three-story building which they occupy. 

Mr. Sivwright is a prominent member of the Order 
of Odd Fellows, and has filled successively all the 
chairs of the Subordinate Lodge and Encampment. 

He was married Dec. 26, i860, in Kingston, De 
ICalb County, to Maria L., daughter of Thomas and 
Temperance Fairclo. Mrs. Sivwright was born Dec. 
22, 1840, at Morristown, N. J. 

Guy T. Sivwright, only child, was born Aug. 30, 
i86r, in May field Township. He grew to manhood 
the idol of his parents, his succeeding years develop- 
ing the fulfillment of the promises of his childhood 
and youth. He was carefully educated, and finished 
his studies at Valparaiso, Ind., College, where he 
was graduated and afterwards was an assistant in his 
father's business about one year. He possessed an 
admirable character and won the esteem of young 
and old. He was fitted for a life of usefulness, but 
all he might have been on earth and the hopes of 
those who loved him were blotted out by the dark- 
winged destroyer. In the fall of 1883, he sustained 
an injury from a fall in the skating-rink, which re- 
sulted in spinal abscess, and from which he died June 
is. lS8 4- 



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- ' f^fcorace Haskins, farmer, section 34, Genoa 

'.'~'(T&. Township, is the son of John and Mary 

Jjnp (Talman) Haskins, both of whom were natives 

7$ of the State of New York, where the father was 

\ born Feb. 13, 17S1, and died March 17, 1856. 

The mother of Horace was born Aug. 28, 17 S3, 

and died March 22, 1825. Her ancestors came over 

in the Mayflower. Mr. Haskins was again married 

Nov. 3, 1825, to Mrs. Mary Winters. She had five 

children by her first husband. 

The subject of this sketch is the tenth in order of 
birth of a family of 13 children, and was born Nov. 
17, 1820, in Jefferson Co., N. Y. When he was 23 




22 5 'S, 



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years of age, he came to Illinois by the lake route, 
making his way to Chicago on board a sail-boat, 
which he assisted in building. He came from the 
Garden City directly to St. Charles, in Kane County, 
where he made a brief slay, and later proceeded to 
Genoa Township and engaged in the cultivation and 
improvement of 80 acres of land, of which he became 
the proprietor by purchase. To this he has added 
until he now owns 262 acres in De Kalb County, 
besides valuable farming tracts in the States of Ne- 
braska, Michigan and Iowa. His stock on his home 
farm comprises about 50 head of cattle, seven horses 
and a quantity of stock of other varieties. 

Mr. Haskins is one of the solid and influential 
citizens of De Kalb County. He was the possessor 
of $5-37 5^ when he arrived in Chicago, and is now 
the proprietor of an estate worth $50,000. He 
brought the first scouring plow into De Kalb County. 
In character he is justly rated as a generous, liberal 
and public-spirited man, enlisting warmly in all en- 
terprises which promise general benefit to the com- 
munity. 

The marriage of Mr. Haskins to Mariah Bebee 
occurred March ir, 1841, in Lorraine, Jefferson Co., 
N. Y. She was born in that place June 19, 1820, 
and is the daughter of. John and Sarah (Clark) lichee, 
who had a family of 10 children. The family of 
Mr. and Mrs. Haskins has included seven children, 
two of whom are living: Mary E., born May 19, 1846, 
is the wife of John Haines and resides in Syca- 
more Township; Martha M., born Nov. 22, 1852, 
and married to a farmer of Cortland Township, of 
the name of Daniel Beebe (not Bebee). Four chil- 
dren died in infancy, and one, the oldest, died on the ' 
lakes while the family were en route for Illinois, and c? 
was buried at Milwaukee. The adopted son of Mr. f 
and Mrs. Haskins was received into the family July 
27, 1870, and named Horace Clarence Haskins. 

The portrait of Mr. Haskins, accompanying this 
sketch, presents the features of a physiognomy indi- 
cating a solid man, a substantial citizen and a reliable 
support of all enterprises and principles that com- 
mend themselves to his intuition of right. He 
ever distinguished himself for his energy in pushing 
forward every enterprise inaugurated for the good of 
his community. None are more generous in aiding 
every such undertaking, and none more unselfish in 
in their devotion to the general welfare and progress 

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DE KALB COUNTY. 



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of his people than is Mr. Haskins. While he has de- 
voted much time and monej foi the good of others, 

he h.isby r. iri' good business sagacitj been able lo 
accumulate a goodly fortune since lie came to this 
county. The portrait of Mr. Haskins is engraved 
from a photograph taken in [884. 




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ames S. Russell. Police Magistrate, resident 
Vl^Jlc at De Kalb, was born Sept. 25, 1S34, in 
^* l Warren Co., Ind. His parents, John and 
Mary A. (Fleming) Russell, were natives of 
'111 Ohio and settled in De Kalb County in the 
spring of 1S4S. They located on a farm in 
Kingston Township, where the mother died Dec. 2S, 
1879. Their seven children were named James S., 
Westly I)., Robert W., Sylvester S., David F., Milton 
1)., Reuben A. and Sarah J. 

At the date of the removal of the family to De 
Kalb County, Mr. Russell was i.| years old. The 
tirst 19 years of his life were devoted to labor on his 
father's farm and in securing his education at the 
common schools. From that period until he was 22 
he attended Mount Morris Seminary, in ( >gle County. 
On completing his studies lie went to Wyoming, 
Iowa, and was occupied through the following year as 
a book-keeper. Returning to Kingston, he engaged 
in the management of a part of the homestead farm, 
which he worked on shares for nine years. 

In August, 1867, he came to De Kalb and pur- 
chased a half interest in the livery establishment of 
S. 1 Hilly, succeeding to the sole proprietorship in the 
spring of 1868. In 1881 he sold the livery with its 
equipments to Orlando Carter. He next engaged as 
traveling salesman in the interests of the Superior 
Barb Wire Company and occupied that position six 
months. In the fall of 18S1 lie became an owner by 
purchase of an interest in a hardware house, the 
property of a body of stockholders, of whom Mr. 
Russell was President. At the end of four months 
he terminated his connection with the company. In 
the spring of 1884 he was elected to the office of 
Police Magistrate of De Kalb, which position has 
since monopolized his time and attention. 

Mr. Russell is prominent as an agriculturist and 
owns 160 acres of improved land in Alton Township. 
He has officiated as President, Secretary and Treas- 



11 n 1 "i De Kalb Count] Vgrii ultural Society, and has 
discharged the duties ol /era! local official pil- 
lions, lie has been a membi 1 ol tin' Board of Edu- 
cation through several terms, an. I occupied the 
position of President ol that body. He has been 
active and influential in educational matters since he 
has resided in the county. He officiated one y< u is 
President of the City Council and was by virtue of 
that office Supervisor of his township. He was Clerk 
of Kingston Township during his residence there. 
Politicall) Mr. Russell is a Republican. He has 
been a sufferer from the results "I a severe attack of 
rheumatism since i860. He was violently ill during 
35 days, and has been seriousl) disabled siin e. 

lie was married June 14, [858, to M u ;aret, 
daughter of William and Ellison Cooper. The 
family of Mrs. Russell were at that date residents ol 
De Kalb County, but in [880 sold the homestead in 
Kingston Township and removed to their pi, ril 
location in I'.el viileu-, Boone County. Mr. and Mrs. 
Russell have three children. J. Alva was born Dec. 
28, 1862; R. Arthur, April .'.(, 1X70; Mabel C.Sept. 
1 |, 1872. 

Four brothers of Mr. Russell entered the military 
service of the United Slates dining the war of tin- 
Rebellion, three of whom lost their lives. Westly 
D. enlisted in the 13th 111. Vol. Inf, and died in 
Kingston Township, from the consequences of 
disease contracted in the army. Robert W. became 
a soldier in the 421I Regt. III. Vol. Inf. He was 
killed in a charge on a rebel battery in the battle of 
Stone River. David F. belonged to the 95th 111. 
Inf., and died in the hospital at Vicksburg. 



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f(tai- eander P. Kellogg, farmer, section 3, Genoa 

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Township, was bom Aug. 4, [826, in Es- 
Tf sex, Vt. His parents, Orlando and Mary 
A. (Place) Kellogg were natives of Massachu- 
setts and had to children. Mr. Kellogg is the 
eldest child of his father and mother, and was 
a resident of In State until he was 18 years 

of age, when, in 1844, he removed to Melfenry Co., 
111. He passed a winter there, and in the spring of 
the year following came to De Kalb County, locating 
in Genoa Township. He operated the greater por- 
tion of the time for 20 years as a teamster between 



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Chicago and De Kalb County and other portions of 
the State of Illinois. 

In 1846 he pre-empted 80 acres of land on section 
3, where he lias since maintained his homestead, and 
has doubled his acreage. His entire landed pro- 
perty is under cultivation. He is a Republican in 
political conviction and principle. Though often 
urged to accept local official positions he has per- 
sistently declined. In 1S52 he was appointed Post- 
master of Ney, in which position he served continu- 
ously eight years. He has since officiated as Assistant 
Postmaster. 

He was married Jan. 20, 1847, in Sycamore, to 
I [arriet M. Hutchason, and they have seven children, 
— Clarke O., Harriet J., Leslie \V., Hutchason A., 
Harlow O., Edward E. and L. D. The parents of 
Mrs. Kellogg, Clarke and Elizabeth (Bradley) Hutch- 
ason, were natives of "New York. The father died 
there and the mother married Ira Manning. They 
came to De Kalb County in 1846, and later in life 
settled in Michigan, where they died. Mrs. Kellogg 
is the third of a family of six children, and was born 
Sept. 2t, 1827, in Niagara Co., N. Y. She is a mem- 
ber of the Free Methodist Church, and Mr. Kellogg 
is a true Christian man. 




eorge E. Stafford, of the firm of Dayton & 

Stafford, stock dealers at Sycamore, was 
" born Sept. 22, iSji.in Preston, Chenango 
Co., N. Y. Isaac Stafford, bis father, was 
born in Vermont and married Lucy Seymour, 
a native of the State of New York, after his re- 
moval there. Later they came to Cortland Town- 
ship, De Kalb County, where the mother died Feb. 
16, 1876. The father died there July 21, 1883. 
Three of their live children are now living: Saxa 
is a farmer in Cortland Township; and Isaac is a 
physician in Harrison, Madison Co., Montana. 

Mr. Stafford was reared to the pursuit of agricul- 
ture, and came to De Kalb County in (857. He was 
about 24 years of age when he became the proprietor 
of 27 acres of land in Cortland Township, situated on 
sections 15 and 22. From this beginning he has in- 
creased his possessions until he is the sole owner of 
205 acres of land in that township, a half interest in 
1 1 1 acres, and a third interest in r6o acres, all lying 



within the same township. He remained there resi- 
denl until the spring of 1884, the date of his removal 
to Sycamore. In November of the same year he 
formed his present business relation with James 
Dayton and entered upon the purchase and shipment 
of stock to Chicago. 

Mr. Stafford was married Nov. 17, rSsS, in the 
township of Cortland, to Christina, daughter of Peter 
and Isabel Youngs. Two children resulted from this 
union, namely, Emily, who is the wife of Charles 
A. Lattin, and Frank G., who is a dealer in live stock 
in Sycamore. 



ohn Gould, farmer, section 22, Cortland 

£ Township, having 34 acres in the southern 

part of the section and r 20 acres in all, 





was born in town of Harmon, Kennebec Co., 
Maine, Oct. 8, r8 1 4. His parents, Abel and 
Mary (Kelly) Gould, are deceased and buried 
at Ohio Grove Church. They were probably natives 
of Maine, and moved to the State of New York when 
John was a babe, and soon to Meigs Co., Ohio, 
where a farm had been purchased and where they 
lived seven years or more; they then sold out and 
removed to Jefferson Co., Ind., rented a farm for a 
number of years, then lived in Dearborn County, in 
the southeastern corner of that State, until r84o, 
when they came to this county, with horse teams, ar- 
riving Nov. 15, not more than three miles from Mr. 
G.'s present residence. He died Dec. 7, 1858, aged 
about 77 years. John's mother was an orphan, 
brought up by Judge North in her native State 
(Maine), and died in September, 1865, at the age of 
83 years. 

Mr. John Gould, whose name heads this sketch, 
was first married Feb. 4, 1838, in Dearborn Co., Ind., 
to Mary Ann Johnson, who was born in that State in 
1X18, the daughter of- -and Elizabeth (Hinds) 
Johnson. She died in this (Cortland) township, in 
the spring of 1845, and is buried in the Ohio Grove 
(or Baptist Church) Cemetery. Her three children 
are: George II.. born April 25, 1839. and died Nov. 
4. [863, at Nashville, Tenn., and was a member ol 
Co. C, 105th 111. Vol. Inf., and died in the service; 
Mary E., born May i.S, 1841, married Win. Black- 
mail. Dec. 23, 1866, and lives in Dakota; and Sa- 



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brina A., born July 5, 1843, married Luther Wheeler, 
March 5, 1860, and is residing in this township. 
Oct. 1, 1 S4S, Mr. (iould married Miss Caroline, 
daughter of James and Hannah (Morrow) Wheeler. 
Her father was a native of Massachusetts and died 
in February, 1S61 (or thereabout), in Maine; and 
her mother, born in Winthrop, Me., died in the same- 
State, in 1867, at the age of about 78 years. Mrs. 
G. was also born in Winthrop, Jan. 29, 181 1, and she 
has two daughters, namely : Elvira R., born April 
18. 1850, and married Joseph Snyder, Dec. 24, 1868; 
and Clotilda Jane, born Aug. 5, 1852, married John 
I. Simons, Nov. 20, 1873, and lives in Dakota. 

Mr. Could had a very limited school education in 
his youth, especially in mathematics, as that seemed 
peculiarly difficult to him; but he has nevertheless 
battled successfully with the world. He is a vener- 
ble old settler here, having occupied his present 
farm ever since the year 1847. I" n ' s political prin- 
ciples he votes with the Republican party, and he, 
as well as Mrs. G., is a member of the Free-will 
Baptist Church at Ohio Grove, having been one of 
the first members of that congregation and has been 
an officer in the Church. 



li eorge H. Kesler, farmer, section 1 6, Genoa 
Township, has been a resident of De Kalb 
County since 1859, with the exception of 
two years, which lie passed in Burlington, Kane 
Co., 111., the date of his parents' removal hither. 
He was born Aug. 7, 1839, in Orleans Co., 
N. Y., and is next the youngest in birth of 10 chil- 
dren. His brothers and sisters were Abraham, 
Phebe, Mary, Eli/.a, Andrew, James, Lyman, Horace 
and John. His parents, Philip and Betsey (House) 
Kesler, were natives respectively of Germany and 
the State of New York. The father died in the 
township of Genoa Oct. 22, 1880; the mother's de- 
mise occurred July 3, 1S64. 

Mr. Kesler is one of the substantial farmers of his 
township and county, and is the owner of 325 acres 
of valuable farming land, which is nearly all under 
cultivation. He is a Republican in political faith 
and relations, and has held various local offices. 

His marriage to Mary A. Smith occurred at Kings- 
ton Inly 4, 186 i, and they have been the parents of 




eight children, four of whom are still living, namely: 
Lillie M., who married F. B. Fieste, Sept. 4, 1884; 
George C.., Luella and Elinor S. Those deceased 
were named Ira J., Adaliue, Robert S. and Emmett. 
The parents of Mrs. Kesler, Robert and Susanna 
(Ruth) Smith, were natives respectively of New Jer- 
sey and Pennsylvania. She is the second of four 
children, and was born Oct. 12, 1S41, in New Jersey. 




IMl[<P II 

ymfo m dolphus W. Brower, resident at Sycamore, 

$9AfflC was bom Aug. 13, 1S45, in Kenosha Co., 
a Wis. In paternal descent he is a repre- 
sentative of the Hollanders who settled the 
State of New York in 1620. His paternal 
great-grandfather came from the Netherlands, 
in a vessel commanded by Hendrick Hudson and 
called " Die Guten Frau " (the good woman), and, 
with his wife, Jemima (Quackenboss) Brower, settled 
at Nyack on the Jersey shore. Later he went to the 
State of New York, where he was a pioneer settler, 
and was identified with the class distinguished as 
" Knickerbockers." 

Adolphus Brower, son of the above, was born July 
31, 1777, and married Elizabeth Baker. She was 
born Feb. 25, 1775, and became the mother of three- 
sons and four daughters. The husband was fife- 
major in the war of 1812. The threatened invasion 
of the British aroused the latent indignation of the 
people, and men and women alike devoted them- 
selves to the labor of erecting intrenchments. The 
chorus of a song which was then popular and mani- 
fested the quality of the prevailing spirit, ran as fol- 
lows: 

■• Pickaxe, shovel, spade: 

• '1 n« bar, In"- and barrow ; 
You'd better not invade; 

Yankees ,n'°t the marrow." 

Adolphus Brower and his wife died at the age ol 
78 years. 

William B. Brower, their youngest son, was born 
Oct. 6, 1803, in Brooklyn, N. Y. He was married 
March 20, 1825, to Paulina Broadway. Her father, 
Frasier Broadway, was born April 16, 1778, and in 
1800 was married to Hannah Weed. She was born 
Sept. 1, 1777, and died aged 84 years. Their family 
comprised four daughters and four sons. All the 
latter, in later life, pursued the calling of their father, 
who was a butcher. T. E. and Alfred Broadway, 



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became prominent in their business and were located 
at 844 Broadway, New York, for many years. W. B. 
Blower went Lo Wisconsin in 1837, and was among 
the earliest pioneers of Salem, afterwards called 
Wheatland, and now known as Randall, the original 
township being now divided into three distinct towns. 
He left New York Aug. 7, of the year named, and 
arrived at what is now Kenosha on the first day of 
September following. At the date of his location the 
Menomonee or Black Hawk Indians were numerous 
in the vicinity. On the admission of Wisconsin as a 
Slate, in 1848, he was one of the first appointees to 
the position of Justice of the Peace by the Governor. 
Paulina (Broadway) Brower was born June 30, 1805, 
in Vermont, and became the mother of eight chil- 
dren. Elizabeth was born May r2, 1828, and is the 
wife of Henry Parmelee, of Geneva, Wis. John H. 
was born May 8, 1832, and is engaged in speculat- 
ing at Kenosha, Wis. William B., born May 20, 
1834, is the manager of the homestead. Hannah- 
born May s, 1839, is the wife of V. C. Reynolds, 
and resides on the home farm. Anna, born May 1, 
1843, is the wife of M. L. Hoffman, a stock dealer 
in Kenosha County. A. W. is the next in order of 
birth. Emmeline, born Aug. 27, 1849, married Will- 
iam Wilcox, of Geneva, Wis. One child died in in- 
fancy. 

Mr. Brower was brought up at home in the Badger 
State until he was 15 years of age, when he was 
placed at a business college in St. Louis, Mo. He 
made a special study of penmanship, and devoted 
six months to the acquisition of a complete knowl- 
edge of telegraphy. Soon after returning home he 
went to the city of New York, and a few months 
later became interested in travel. He came to Syca- 
more in 1872, and, associated with Marshall Stark 
(deceased), engaged in the sale of lumber, pursuing 
that enterprise about two years. He formed his 
present business connection May 1, 1877, by the 
purchase of an interest in the firm relations of 
Whittemore & Chamberlain, the copartnership now 
comprising three members. They carry an average 
stock of $13,500, including all the lines of goods 
common to such establishments and suited to their 
patronage. Their business embraces, besides the 
ordinary trade in hardware, a large amount of re- 
pairing. 

Mr. Brower was married May 20, 1874, to Ella 




Stark. She is the daughter of Marshall and Louisa 
Stark, and was born at Sycamore, Feb. 10, 1857. Mr. 
and Mrs. Brower have two children : Anna was 
was born Feb. 24, 1878; and Floyd E. was born 
Aug. 4, 1SS0. Their first child, Marshall William, 
was born Aug. 25, 1876, and died when about 10 
weeks old. 



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?!f is^Sf ester P. Wood, Sheriff of De Kalb County, 
resident at Sycamore, was born March 27, 



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t)(y" and Margaret (Conrad) Wood, belonged to the 
/\ agricultural class. The former was born in the 
!• city of Hartford, Conn., and died on his farm 
in the township of Kingston, De Kalb County, Jan. 
23, 1864. The mother of Lester P. was born in Erie, 
Pa., and died on the homestead Aug. 2, 1880. Of 
their children,! Elizabeth and Roxy, the oldest in date 
of birth, are deceased ; Abigail E. married John D. 
Dyer, marketman at Sycamore ; George E. is a resi- 
dent of Laporte, Ind., and is in the United States 
mail service ; and Jane M. is deceased. 

Mr. Wood is the oldest son and third child. He 
was reared on his father's farm, wliere he was in- 
structed in agricultural labor during the farming r ; 
seasons and attended school winters. He passed 
his boyhood and youth in this manner until he was 
19 years of age, when he went to the seminary at 
Wheaton, DuPage Co., 111., and completed his edu- 
cation. On coming of age he became proprietary 
owner of 360 acres of valuable land in the township 
of Spring, Boone Co., 111., twelve miles north of Sy< a- 
more, of which he took possession in i860 and con- 
tinued its management until 1874. In that year he 
sold the property and returned to Erie, where he 
maintained his residence two years, and was occu- 
pied in the purchase and shipment of stock from 
Chicago to Eastern markets. He pursued the same 
line of business until the fall of 1879, coming at that 
time to Sycamore. 

After a residence of a single year he secured, in 
the autumn of 1S80, the election of Sheriff of De Kalb 
County on the Republican ticket, and in 1882 was 
re-elected without opposition to the same incum- 
bency. The quality of the services rendered to the 
interests of De Kalb County by Mr. Wood are 



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attested l>y his re-election, a procedure which reflects 
much credit on his supporters, and proves that the 
voting community of De Kalb Comity are not delin- 
quent in the mattei of recognizing and rewarding 
efficiency and merit. Mr. Wood belongs to the 
Order of Knights Templars and other Masonic 
bodies. 

His marriage, to Ellen C. Zimmerman occurred 
Aug. 28, 1858, at Erie, Pa. Mrs. Wood is the 
daughter of Frederick Zimmerman, and was horn 
Oct. 6, 184 j, at Erie. The three children born of 
this union are as follows: Jane M. was born Aug. 18, 
i860, and is the wife of W. F. Sell, marketman of 
Sycamore. Addie /.. is the second child; George 
F., only son and youngest child, is Deputy Sheriff 
under his father. The children were born in Spring 
Township, Boone County. 

^ohn B. Whalen, real-estate, abstract and 
nsurance agent, at Sycamore, was born 
Vug. s, 1850, in Penfield, Monroe Co., N. 
V. Harvey Whalen, his father, was born Dec 
22, 1809, in Milton, Saratoga Co., N. V.; ami 
has been a farmer throughout the course of his 
long life, being now 75 years of age. lie was also a 
local politician of prominence and influence, and is 
still living in Penfield, N. Y. John li.'s mother, 
Lucinda (Watson) Whalen, was born in Monroe Co., 
N. Y., and died in [854. Their five children are liv- 
ing. Mr. Whalen is the second in order of birth. 
The oldest, Henry V., is an engineer and lives in 
Michigan. Charles H., Wilson and Howard live in 
Penfield with their father. 

Mi. Whalen was reared in the varied occupations 
incident to the life of a fanner's son, and when about 
18 years of age became a traveler in the Eastern 
States, engaging in that occupation one year. In 
1870 he came to Braidwood, III., and remained there 
eight months, ai ting as accountant in the mercantile 
establishment of I,. H. Goodrich. He went sub- 
sequently to Gardner, 111., where he operated a year 
in the same capacity. In 1X7 _• he became a resident 
of De Kalb County, his first engagement in business 
being as book-keeper for J. II. Rogers at Sycamore, 
where he was occupied nine months. He relin- 

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quished the ix>sition to accept an appointment as 
Deputy Circuit Clerk under E. F. Dutton. He filled 
the position three years and in 1876 bought the ab- 
stract office of De Kalb County, which he has since 
conducted and is the owner of the only complete set 
of abstracts in the county. He does a considerable 
business in real estate and represents eight fire in- 
surance companies and one life insurance, viz.: Royal, 
London, Liverpool & Globe, also the Lancashire of 
England, Hartford, Continental, National of Hartford, 
Westchester & Northwestern National and the Con- 
necticut Mutual Life Association. 

Mr. Whalen officiated as Alderman of Sycamore 
from 1879 to 1883. He is President of the Sycamore 
Athenaeum, and is President and General Manager 
of the Russell Manufacturing Company, at that place, 
an association engaged in the manufacture of paints 
and varnishes. He is the owner of his place of resi- 
dence and of a considerable amount of real estate 
variously located. 

Mr. Whalen was married April 25, 1876,111 Syca- 
more, to Nellie Farndon. Wallace W., only child of 
this union, was born May 5, 1S77. Mrs. Whalen 
was born Nov. 10, 1852, in Troy, N. Y. She has 
been a resident of Sycamore since four years of age, 
and was brought up in the family of the late fames 
S. Waterman. 



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; §']SPy°, eter N. Corson, a retired farmer, resident at 

tl.j <>euiia, was born Oct. 6, 1S19, in Pennsyl- 

I t v i-!^ vania, of which State his mother, Elizabeth 

I ') (Buck) Corson, was a native, his father, John 

■'/ly- Corson, having been born in New Jersey. The 

family of 11 children were born as follows: 

Hannah, Catherine A., Peter N., Sarah, Susan, Henry, 

Lavina, Daniel, Alfred, Harriet and Lucretia. 

Mr. Corson was a farmer in his native State until 
1869. In the spring of that year he bought 160 acres 
of land in Genoa Township in De Kalb County, of 
which he took possession and occupied it about eight 
years, selling a portion of his acreage in 1877, and re- 
moving in that year to the village of which he has 
since been a resident. In political faith he is a 
Republican. 

llistirst marriage occurred in Pennsylvania, Jan. 
29, 1X43, to Sarah Newman, and of their union eight 



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children were born,— Teresa, Lloyd V., Henry M., 
Emily, Ursaline and Amanda. Two children of that 
marriage are deceased : Teresa died when three years 
old and one child died in extreme infancy. The 
mother died Dec. 27, 1S75, in Genoa Township. Mr. 
Corson was again married March 7, 1878, to Amelia 
(( 'io(lding), widow of William Rochester Durham, who 
died Oct. 7, 1S73, in Genoa Township, and by whom 
she had eight children, — Rochester H., Sarah J. and 
Emily J. (twins), Francis M., Caroline A., Lillie Y.. 
Fannie M. and Olive M. Three children — Rochester 
H., Emily J. and Francis M. — are deceased. Mrs. 
Corson was born July 17, 1827, in England. 



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l ■V'@Mz enry Pooler, farmer, having 325 acres on 

1 M%3's section 19, Cortland Township, was born 

July 24, 1804, in Dutchess Co., N. Y. 

7PT When a year old his parents, Jacob and Betsy 

T (Price) Pooler, moved to the town of Schuyler^ 
Herkimer County, that State, and a year later to 
Warren Township, same county, then back to Schuy- 
ler, then to Warren a second time, and finally bought 
a faun in German Flats. The mother died in that 
county; the father died in Montgomery Co., N. Y.; 
and was buried in his son Joseph's burying-ground 
at Warren. 

Henry remained in Herkimer County most of the 
time until he was of age, then worked out by the 
year or month for about three years ; next, for three 
years he labored upon his father-in-law's farm for a 
consideration of 50 acres of land ; then he bought a 
farm of 65 acres, to which he subsequently added 
until he had an aggregate of 151 acres, in German 
Flats. In 1 86 1 he came to this county on a visit to 
his daughter, when he made a purchase of 150 acres, 
to which he has since added by further purchases 
until he has a total of 325 acres. He now has a fine 
farm and a splendid home, all earned by his own 
industry and wise economy, and without speculation. 
On the 5th of March, 1828, he married Miss 

Margaret, a daughter of Nicholas and Lana (Passage) 
Shoemaker, and of German ancestry. She was born 
June 7, 1802, in German Flats, N. Y. Of the five 
children born in the family of Mr. and Mrs. Pooler, 
three are living: Almira, born March 22, 1S29, and 
married John Christman Sept. 10, 1852, in German 




Flats, N. Y., and died December 16, following, in 
De Kalb County; Henry, born April 22, 1833, in 
Herkimer Co., N. Y., died in the same county Oct. 
28, 1834; Philany, born July 19, [S35, married John 
Christman in October, 1857; he died Oct. 9, 1863, 
from injuries received from a threshing-machine; 
Louisa, born Feb. 6, 1837, married Henry Christ- 
man, Dec. 28, 1854, who died Jan. 4, 1SS3; William 
F. was born April 26, 1S40, and is now living near 
Lake City, Iowa. The foregoing births all look 
place in Herkimer Co., N. Y. Mr. Pooler's grand- 
mother was of Low Dutch ancestry, and died in 
Schuyler Township, Herkimer Co., N. Y. His grand- 
father was of New England ancestry, and was killed 
in Schuyler Township by being thrown from a wagon. 
Mrs. Pooler's mother died at the age of 59, and 
her father, a farmer, died at the age - of S7 . 

Mr. Pooler has a good, large frame residence, .1 
large frame barn, and his farm is estimated at $65 
per acre. He is a Republican in his political sen- 
timents. 

A portrait is given of Mr. Pooler on the opposite 
page, which is a valuable addition to the portrait 
gallery of this Album. 



•«*ui&®%3 M —lk0i 



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y]p.eneea H. Willis, tanner, section 36, Geno 1 
2ll|r Township, has been a resident of De Kalb 
If^ff'W c oun ty since 1852, and has belonged to its 
, agricultural element since i860, when he be- 
gan his independent operations by working his 
father's farm on shares one year. He engaged 
with his father as an assistant and continued to 
operate in that capacity seven years. In 1S68 he 
bought a farm in Genoa Township, containing 117 
acres. He now owns 120 acres additional, and of 
the entire tract has placed 150 acres under improve- 
ment. In political faith he is a Republican. 

Mr. Willis was born Aug. 5, 1841, in Warren Co., 
N. Y. He was 10 years of age when his parents, 
David W. and Laura M. (Halladay) Willis, removed 
to De Kalb County. They are natives of Vermont, 
and after marriage settled in the State of New York, 
whence they removed to Illinois, settling in the town- 
ship of Sycamore, where they have since resided. 
Their children were named Seneca H., Morgan, 



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Harry I!, and Angelia. The second and fourth in 
ordei of birth arc deceased. 

The marriage of Mr. Willis took place in Genoa 
rownship, Dec. 24, 1865, to Mary M.. daughter of 
Alonzo and Rhoda (Rogers) Hedger. The parents 
ol Mrs. Willis arc natives of New York, and had 
three children, namely, Ann E., Mary M. and Enoch 
( >. The daughter was born Nov. 30, [844, in Hamp- 
shire, Kane Co., 111. Of her marriage to Mr. Willis 
three children have been liom — Lizzie A., Laura K. 
and Stella 1!. The latter died in infancy. 




-fTjj.iohn Waterbury, tanner on the northwest 
piarter of section 8, Cortland Township, 
^^ was horn in North Castle, Westchester Co., 
N. Y., May 12, 1S30; was brought up on a 
farm in his native place, living there until Sep- 
tember, 1S58, and learned the shoemaker's 
trade before he was 21. Commencing this trade at 
the age of 19, he followed it for six years, then went, 
at the above date, to the city of New York, where he 
spent three years in draying. He then came to this 
county and for ten years resided in the township of 
Pierce, and in 1868 came to his present place of resi- 
dence. It was then but partially improved, but Mr. 
W. has since made it one of the best farms in the 
township, having upon it a first-class frame residence, 
barns, etc. In his political views Mr. W. is a Re- 
publican, and he stands high in the estimation of his 
fellow citizens. 

He was married Dec. 25, 1855, to Miss Rebecca 
A. Bruodage, and they have had five children, all of 
whom arc living, viz.: George I., bom Nov. 6, 1857, 
in \.w York city, in December, (881, married Flor- 
ence Rathbun and is living in Iowa; Charles, born 
Oct. 27, 1861, in Pierce Township, this county, is 
living at home; Harvey C, born June 17, 1865, in 
same township; Mary K., Nov. 5, 1867, in same 
township; and John A., Oct. 23, 1880, in Cortland 
Township. 

Mr. W.'s father, John Waterbury, was a carpenter 
by occupation, and died in March, 1878, at the age 
of 81 years, on the old homestead; and his mother, 
Sarah H., nee Palmer, died in June, 1880, at the age 
of 79 years, also on the old homestead. Mr. Water- 
bury 's paternal grandfather was a guard in the 



Revolutionary War, but was never in action on the 
battle-field. Mrs. W. was born Jan. 20, 1838, in 
North Castle, Westchester Co., N. Y.,ol which county 
her parents were also natives. Her father, Allen 
Brundage, was a farmer, and her mother's maiden 
name was Fanny Smith. Mr. and Mrs. W. are 
members of the Methodist Episcopal Church, 



'enjamin Nilson, Clerk of the City of Syca- 
: more, and member of the grocery and pro- 




vision house of Nilson Pros., was born 
July 31, 1850, in Sweden. Pehr Nilson, his 
father, was a farmer and prominent in politics 
and public life. He was a member of the 
Legislature of Sweden in 1865-6 and held the posi- 
tion of State Juryman 14 years by election, eventually 
resigning. 

Mr. Nilson was a pupil at school until he was 1 .( 
years of age and passed three years subsequently on 
the farm where he was born. At 17 he entered the 
High School to complete his education, remaining a 
student there until 19 years old. He came to 
America in 187 1, and on landing proceeded at once 
to Sycamore, where he had friends. He obtained 
employment as a farm assistant, in which he was 
occupied three months. At the end of that time he 
went to Chicago and was employed in the Rock 
Island car-shops until Jan. 1, 1S72. At that date 
he returned to Sycamore and attended school to learn 
the English lanuguage. In the fall following he 
entered the grocery of Rowe & Shurtliff, where he 
was a clerk four years. In 1876 he became an as- 
sistant of C. Brown & Son, druggists and grocers. 
July 12, 1880, associated with his brother, Knut P. 
Nilson, he founded the business which they have 
since conducted. Their stock comprises lines of 
goods suited to their patronage and represents a cash 
value of about $6,000. The proprietors are enter- 
prising men and citizens of the best type, who have 
secured the confidence of the community. Mr. Nil- 
son of this sketch is a stock-holder in the Cornwall 
Silver Mining Company of Colorado, a corporation of 
seven members who own several mining claims. In 
the spring of 1879 he was elected Clerk of Sycamore, 



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and has been twice re-elected. He is a member of 
the Order of Odd Fellows. 

The marriage of Mr. Nilson to Betsey Swanson 
occurred at Sycamore, Oct. 3, 1873. Their family 
now (1884) includes three children, — Bertha Edusa, 
born Jan. 14, 1875; Elsa Urania, July 24, 1881 ; 
Edward Pehr, Nov. 17, 1SS3. Mrs. Nilson was born 
in Sweden in 1846, and is the daughter of Swen and 
Elsa Paulson, who are well-to-do farmers and own a 
large flouring-mill near the city of Sawesborg in 
Blikings Lan. 



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SV'^fiLenry Martin, general merchant at Cortland, 
?Ij|||s was born in Chelsea, Orange Co., Vt, Oct. 
£fe$ 10, 1840. His father, John Martin, was 
born Dec. 20, 1804, in Chelsea, was a farmer in 
his native State until 1855, then real-estate 
dealer here in Cortland until his death, in 
March, 18S0. His mother, Sarah, nee Percival, was 
born Dec. 15, 1803, and died Feb. 19, 1875, in Syca- 
more, this county. 

Henry passed the first 15 years of his life in his 
native county, and came with the family in 1S65 to 
Sycamore, was educated in common and graded 
schools and at an academy; and in 1862 he enlisted 
in the army for the cause of the Government. He 
was first employed for about eight months as chief 
clerk in the ordnance department at Columbus, Ky., 
furnishing ordnance to Grant's army at Corinth ; was 
then transferred to Memphis, Term., in the same de- 
partment; next to Huntsville, Ala.; then into Mc- 
Pherson's army, the Army of the Tennessee; followed 
Sherman's army from Chattanooga to Atlanta; or- 
dered back to Nashville, Tenn., where he awaited 
orders from November to February ; then was at 
Chattanooga until 1865; next, at the Macon (Ga.) 
Arsenal until the fall of 1866, when he was appointed 
Clerk for the Sub-Commissioner of the Freedmen's 
Bureau. He was thus stationed still at Macon until 
1868, and finally at Augusta, Ga., until the Bureau 
was abolished. Then, in 1869, he was appointed 
Deputy Marshal for the District of Georgia, in which 
relation he served until 1876, when he returned to 
Sycamore. 

Here he engaged in the produce business for a 
year, and then established a general merchandise 




store in partnership with Mr. Matteson, under the 
firm name of Martin & Matteson ; but soon they dis- 
solved and then he started alone. Was in Mr. 
Jordan's store for a time, then removed back to the 
old store, which he occupied until he built the new 
store, in the fall of 1883. This is the best building 
in the town, where Mr. Martin carries the largest 
stock in the place. 

In politics Mr. M. is a Republican. 

He was married March 3, 1870, to Miss Florence 
J. , daughter of George and Martha Flewellyn; she 
was born in Georgia, and is now 37 years of age. 
The two living children of Mr. and Mrs. M. are 
Sadie B., born Dec. 6, 1870, in Atlanta, Ga., and 
Bessie, May, 6, 1880; three were lost in infancy. 
" Johnnie " was born in 1875 and died when a month 
old, and Florence was born in 1877, and died in 
1879; the remaining one died at birth. 

Mrs. M. is a member of the Congregational 
Church. 



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^fayjfe.alvin Shurtlefif, druggist at De Kalb, is a * 

l2Ej| r native of the Province of Quebec, where £, 



he was born March 22, 1830. His parents ^ 



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and grandparents are natives of Massachu- 
setts. He was reared in the Dominion with 
the exception of a period of four years spent 
at Derby Academy in that town, just across the Can- 
adian border in Vermont. After the completion of 
his educational course he engaged in teaching in 
Canada, and was occupied three years in that. voca- 
tion in his native province. In 185 1 he decided on 
a change of base and came to Illinois, teaching two 
years at Rock Island. In 1853 he went to Ottawa, 
111., and passed about the same length of time simi- 
larly occupied. At the end of that time (about 1855) 
he bought a farm in Kane Co., 111., on which he set- 
tled and held his residence about eight years, en- 
gaging meanwhile in teaching. In 1863 he sold his 
farm, and, going to Sycamore, passed three years in 
the business of a lumber dealer, and afterwards de- 
voted his time and attention for several years to 
traffic in stock and produce. Making another ven- 
ture, he engiged in a mercantile enterprise at Syca- 
more, in which he was interested three years. 

In 1875 Mr. Shurtleff came to De Kalb and estab- 




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DK KALB COUNTY. 



lished his present business, which includes tbe sale 
of drugs, groceries and crockery. His place of 
business is of extensive proportions, being 120 feet 
deep. 

In politics Mr. Shurtleff is a Republican. He has 
officiated as Township Assessor and taken an active 
interest in all matters pertaining to education within 
his sphere. He has been connected with the Meth- 
odist Episcopal Church for 30 years ; is present Dis- 
trict Steward and President of the Board of Trustees. 
His family are also members of the same religious 
body. 

Mr. Shurtleff was married in Kane County to 
Sarah J. Arnold, their union taking place Oct. 22, 
1857. Their children were born as follows : Willis, 
who died when nine months old, Wilfred C, Jessie 
B., Elmer K. and Alice F. 



arnnin V. Viner, farmer in Cortland Town- 
ship, having 55 acres on sections 15 and 16, 
was born in the town of Parishville, St. 
^'Y Lawrence Co., N. Y., May 23, 1824. His father, 
Charles Viner, was born May 6, 1797, in Bris- 
tol, England, and was killed by a cyclone in 
Mazon, Grundy Co., 111., April 18, 1861. Mr. V.'s 
mother, Sarah, nee Banister, was born in Rutland, 
Vt., May 4, 1797, and died in January, 1868, in 
Grundy County. Mr. Charles Viner was a farmer, 
and came to America in 1812 as a British soldier. 
He afterward left the army, when Cor|>oral of the 
Guard, and with six others crossed the St. Lawrence 
into the States. He married in 1815, and had four 
sons and four daughters. 

The subject of this sketch is the third child in the 
order of birth in the above family. His parents 
moved, with him, when he was four or five years of 
age, lo Madrid, then to Pierpont, then to Canton, 
and when lie was 20 years old they emigrated West, 
locating in the town of Seneca, McHenry Co., 111. 
After living there eight years with his father, he was 
married, Jan. 1, 1847, to Miss Mary T., daughter of 
David S. and Catherine (Marshall) Wickes. Dr. 
Wickes was born in Troy, N. Y., Nov. 29, 1800, and 
died Oct. 15, 1844, in Meed's Creek, Steuben Co., 
N. Y. ; and Mrs. W. was born May 21, 1800, in 
Hyde Park, Dutchess Co., N. Y., and died Sept. 15, 

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1876, in Elliottville, Fillmore Co., Minn. Mrs. V. 
was born in Dundee, Yates Co., N. Y., July 30, 
1829. She suffered a paralytic stroke in 1876, losing 
the use of her left hand. Dr. W. was a successful 
physician of the old school, and died from the effects 
of overwork. 

Mr. Viner lived nine years at Seneca, McHenry 
County, and then moved to the township of Mazon, 
Grundy Co., 111., purchasing a farm of 80 acres, then 
a wild place, where he first attempted to make a 
home ; but he soon afterward sold it to his brother 
and returned to McHenry County and bought 122 
acres of improved land. After living there three or 
four years he sold out and moved again to Grundy 
County and purchased an improved farm of 80 acres, 
but a year afterward he sold this and removed to 
Portage Co., Wis., where he bought new land, built 
upon it and improved it some, and in four months 
went back to Grundy County again, purchased 80 
acres, built a house upon it and dwelt there a little 
more than a year. He sold again and moved to 
this (Cortland) township, bought a farm of 86 acres 
and lived upon it for 20 years. He then rented this 
farm and moved to Morris, Grundy County, lived 
there a year, returned here and sold his farm on sec- 
tions 26 and 27, and finally purchased his present 
place, in 1882. 

In his political views Mr. Viner is a Democrat, 
and in an official capacity he has been for several 
years a School Director. 

The children of Mr. and Mrs. Viner are: Sarah 
C, born May 10, 1849, in Mazon, Grundy Co., 111., 
and married March 5, 1868, Emery Willmarth, and 
lives in Cortland village ; Charles D., born in Seneca 
Township, McHenry Co., 111., Feb. 4, 1853, and 
March 2, 1876, married Ada Brown, and now living 
in this (Cortland) township; Thomas D., born also 
in Seneca Township, Sept. 1, 1855, married March 
28, 1883, Alice Smith, and is now living in Nebraska; 
Alva V., born in Mazon, 111., Dec. 21, 1857, married 
Maggie Ellis Jan. 31, 1883, and is now a merchant 
in Waverly, Iowa ; William E., born in Cortland 
Township, this county, Aug. 16, i860, is now a clerk 
in Morris, Grundy County; Frank L., born in this 
township, Feb. 26, 1867, lives in Nebraska; Joseph 
C, born May 25, 1869, also in this township, died 
Aug. 6 following; and Ellis F., born Dec. 23, 1871, 
in Cortland Township, is living at home. 



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Wm. L. Viner, oldest brother of Varnum V., while 
on a visit, by permission of his father, to an uncle in 
Pennsylvania, Jonathan Banister by name, taught 
school there during the winter of 1841-2, worked on 
a farm the next spring near his uncle's, then went 
down the Ohio River on a raft of lumber, and thence 
up the Mississippi River to Galena, from which point 
his family received a letter from him, and since that 
time he has never been heard from. His father went 
to Galena and spent three weeks in search of him. 




\ obert D. Lord, resident at Genoa, has been 
a citizen of the township since 1845. He 
was born Sept. 9, 18 17, in Saratoga Co., 
N. Y., and is the son of Ebenezer and Mary 
(Morris) Lord. His parents were natives re- 
spectively of Connecticut and New Jersey, and 
settled in Saratoga County, where they resided many 
years, removing thence to Yates County, in the Em- 
pire State, and there died. Of ten children born to 
them nine grew to mature years. 

Mr. Lord accompanied his parents at the age of 
eight years to Yates County, and he was a member 
of the parental household until his marriage. After 
that event he managed his father's farm three years, 
when he came to Illinois and bought 80 acres of land 
in Genoa Township, became resident thereon and 
continued its management until the summer of 1862- 
He enlisted at Sycamore in the 105th 111. Vol. Inf., 
and was elected and commissioned Second Lieuten- 
ant. After three months' service he resigned on 
account of ill health. On returning to De Kalb 
County, his medical adviser recommended change of 
climate and he went to California, returning nine 
months later for his family, and set out with them in 
the spring following, crossing the plains in wagons. 
They remained in Calirornia six years, Mr. Lord en- 
gaging in various occupations. He returned in 1869 
to De Kalb County and resumed the calling of a 
fanner on his farm in Genoa Township. At the end 
of five years he removed with his family to the vil- 
lage of Genoa, where he interested himself in butcher- 
ing and in dealing in butter, cheese and other farm 
produce. After a period of three years he closed his 
business in those avenues and returned to his fatm. 
In 1883 he determined to retire and erected a fine resi- 



dence in the village of Genoa, to which he removed 
in the winter of 1884. Mr. Lord retains the owner- 
ship of 80 acres of valuable land in Genoa Township 
and also of 160 acres in Iowa. He is a Republican 
in politics. While a resident of Genoa Township he 
was Postmaster at New Lebanon one year, resigning 
the position at the expiration of that time. He was 
Justice of the Peace for a long term of years. 

He was married March 17, 1840, in Yates Co., 
N. Y., to Olive Hogeboom, and they have been the 
parents of nine children, but three of whom survive 
— Julia, Joseph and David. Mrs. Lord was born 
April 24, 1820, in the State of New York, and is the 
daughter of Andrew and Julia Hogeboom. Her 
father was of Dutch descent and was born in the 
Empire State. The mother was a native of Connect- 
icut. The family located in Genoa Township in 
1845. The father died there about 1855; the mother 
is living and is 8S years of age. 



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Igenjamin F. Whipple, farmer on the north- 
l£ east quarter of section 9, Cortland Town- 
ship, was born in Muncie, Lycoming Co., 
Pa., Oct. 25, 1857. Both his parents were 
also born in that county, and are now living 
three miles north of Sycamore, this county. 
His father, James Whipple, was born March 4, 1831, 
of American ancestry, and his mother, Mary, nee 
Warner, was born 1833. They came to this county 
in 1870, arriving March 18, locating upon a farm 
which he had purchased the year before of Arnold 
Brown, and which is now occupied by a brother of 
Benjamin. 

The subject of this sketch lived with his father 
until he was 23 years of age, when he bought a 
threshing-machine, in company with his brother, 
which they ran for seven seasons, ending with that 
of 1883. At that business they were very successful. 
He purchased his present farm in 1879, of Mr. 
Meeker, who had the use of it for a year afterward. 
In March, 1880, Mr. Whipple moved upon the place. 
In 1883 he bought 80 acres of Joseph Gaudy, ad- 
joining on the south. 

Mr. Whipple was married Dec. 16, 1879, to Miss 
Mary A., daughter of Moses and Rachel (Evans) 
Dean. Mr. Dean was born in Hasbrouck, Sullivan 



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Co., N. Y., Jan. 26, 1815, engaged in a grist or saw 
mill or other enterprises, and since he came West in 
1857 lie has followed banking in Sycamore and 
farming. Mrs. Dean was born in Fallsburg, Sullivan 

Co., N. Y., Jan. 26, 1816, was married June 13, 1840, 
and had seven children, of whom Mrs. Whipple is 
the fourth in order of birth. Mrs. D. died April 26, 
1884, in Sycamore, greatly respected by the com- 
munity, as indeed are the whole family yet living. 
Mrs. Whipple was born Sept. 19, 1854,111 Hasbrouck, 
N. Y., and was carefully educated and disciplined in 
an affectionate family. Mr. and Mrs. Whipple have 
had two children, namely : Warner D., born Dec. 23, 
1880, in Sycamore, 111., and Le Roy J., Dec. 11, 
1882, in Cortland Township. 

In politics Mr. W. is a Republican. 



lthorn Rogers, of the firm of Hoyt & 
Rogers, general merchants at Sycamore, 
was born Sept. 13, 1848, at Ballston 
%&. Springs, Saratoga Co., N. Y. His father, Elam 
i Rogers, was born in 1800 and commenced life 
as a farmer, afterwards in the employment of 
the Scythe Manufacturing Company at Ballston, 
where he is now living in retirement. The mother, 
Caroline M. (Prentiss) Rogers, was born in Worcester, 
Mass., and is still living. The family circle is yet 
intact. Their nine children were born in the follow- 
ing order: Rachel P, married W. H. Dodge, a lum- 
ber dealer at Rochester, Minn. Caroline M. is the 
widow of John C. Waterman, formerly a prominent 
capitalist of Sycamore. Elvira is the wife of C. R. 
Bassett, a wholesale notion dealer in Brooklyn, N. Y. 
Amelia married T. W. Stebbins, a hardware merchant 
at Rochester, Minn. Emily is an invalid, and is a 
member of her sister's family at Rochester. Melissa 
married M. Pinner, real-estate broker in the city of 
New York. Ethan, twin brother of Mr. Rogers of 
this sketch, is an ax manufacturer at Cohoes, N. Y. 
Jennie is the widow of H. H. Hurst, a former drug- 
gist of Ballston, N. Y. 

Mr. Rogers obtained a good education at the ex- 
cellent schools of the several grades in his native 
county, completed by an academic course of study. 
About the age of 18 years he entered the factory with 
his father, where he remained a few months and 

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afterwards became a clerk in a dry-goods store at 
Ballston, where he was employed until 1871, the year 
of his removal to the West. He continued his former 
occupation at Rochester, Minn., until his health be- 
came affected through confinement, and in 1875 he 
went to the Atlantic coast. In the year following he 
came to Sycamore to take a position as salesman in 
the mercantile establishment in which he is now a 
proprietor, then owned and managed by Waterman 
& Hoyt. In 1878 the firm became Hoyt, Rogers & 
Co., by the admission of the latter as a member, and 
its affairs were conducted under that style until 1880, 
when the business and its relations became the 
property of the present proprietors by the purchase 
of the interest of Mr. Waterman. The invested 
capital of Messrs. Hoyt & Rogers is estimated at 
$18,000, and they are doing a satisfactory business 
in the sale of general merchandise. They are also 
interested in the Marsh Harvester Company as stock- 
holders. 

Mr. Rogers was married May 6, 1880, in Sycamore, 
to [ennie L. Byran, and they have two children: 
Martin I,., born Oct. 7, 1881, and Urania B., born 
Nov. 8, 1883. Mrs. Rogers was born Feb. 24, 1857, 
in Sycamore, and is the daughter of Dr. O. M. and 
Jane L. Byran, of Sycamore. She is a graduate of 
Wellesey College. 




farmer, section 16, 



r f#,lbert A. Olmstead, 

Jj.^ Genoa Township, was born Jan. 19, 1838, 
i^u hi Delavlrare Co t N> y. He is the son of 

( jIlIi and Samantha (Wager) Olmstead, whose 
biography is given on another page. He was 
still in childhood when his parents removed to 
De Kalb County, and he remained at home until 
about 22 years of age, having been engaged for nearly 
three years previous in farming on shares. He pros- 
pected some time for a satisfactory location, and event- 
ually located 011 120 acres in the township where he 
has since been a citizen. His estate now comprises 
440 acres of land, nearly all under improvement. 
I lis farm stock includes about 100 head of cattle and 
20 horses, and he sends to market annually an aver- 
age of 50 hogs. Mr. Olmstead has been identified 
with the interests and issues of the Republican party 
since he became eligible to the privileges of citizen- 



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ship, and he has officiated in several local positions. 
His marriage to Susan E. Siglin took place Jan. 
15, 1S68, in Elgin, Kane Co., 111. She was horn 
Fel). 7, 1843, in Pennsylvania, and is the fourth in 
order of birth of 10 children horn to her parents, 
Jacob and Hannah J. (Setzer) Siglin. Her brothers 
and sisters were named Rachel, Mary, Jacob, John, 
Jbsiah, Tayler, Michael, Jennie and Ella. Her par- 
ents were pioneers of De Kalb County and still re- 
side at Sycamore. 



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S!tllH» on - Chauneey Ellwood, Mayor of Sycamore 
, (1885). The portrait of this gentleman, 
ilir* which appears on the opposite page, is a 
most fitting accompaniment to the Portrait 
and Biographical Album of De Kalb Coun- 
ty, from the relations he sustains to its citizens 
and from the fact that he has been a resident within 
its borders for more than a quarter of a century. He 
has been a landholder at Sycamore since 1837, when 
he entered a claim to 80 acres of Government land, 
receiving his patent for the same dated the 10th 
day of July, 1844, and signed by the President, John 
Tyler. His residence is located on a portion 
of this land now included within the incorporated 
limits of Sycamore. The comparative condition of 
the now beautiful city with those primitive days may 
be estimated from the fact that, when Mr. Ellwood 
removed hither in 1858, a broad field of wheat 
fronted on what is now one of the main thoroughfares 
of Sycamore. 

Mr. Ellwood was born Dec. 24, 1816, in Minden, 
Montgomery Co., N. Y., and is the son of Abraham 
and Sarah (Delong) Ellwood. The former was born 
Nov. 7, 1792, in Montgomery County, and was a 
farmer in the early years of his life ; a, respected citi- 
zen, having filled various town offices in the town 
where he resided in New York State ; an active busi- 
ness man, having constructed several sections upon 
the New York Central Railroad and also upon the 
enlargement of the Erie Canal, and in the latter 
years of his life carried on the cooperage busi- 
ness. He died at Sycamore, whither he and wife re- 
moved in 1856, his demise occurring August 24, 
1872. The mother died at Sycamore Jan. 18, 
1879. She was born in Montgomery Co., N. Y.,Feb. 




2 3> 1795- Both parents belonged to hardy races, 
tenacious of life and of robust physical development, 
all of which characteristics are perpetuated in the 
present generation. The mediate ancestral stock 
had its origin in the sturdy, stalwart inhabitants that 
settled the valley of the Mohawk in the State of New 
York. Of eleven children born to Abraham Ellwood 
and his wife ten survive. Nancy, the oldest child, 
was married in Montgomery County, her native State, 
to Livingston D. VValrod, and removed to Sycamore 
after the birth of her first child, Joseph, in the fall 
of 1836. Her second son, James W. Walrod, now de- 
ceased, was the first white boy born at Sycamore 
in 1838. Malinda is the widow of Joseph Sixbury, 
and resides at the home of Mr. Ellwood, of this 
sketch, who is her immediate successor in the order 
of birth. A sketch of herself and husband will ap- 
pear upon another page in this volume. Eliza mar- 
ried Aaron Barringer, and, after his death, became 
the wife of O. Bowman. She is now a widow and a 
resident of Cherry Valley, Otsego County, N. Y. 
Chauneey, Reuben, Alonzo, Livingston, Hiram, 
James E. and Isaac L. were born in the order 
named. Chauneey, Reuben, Alonzo, James E., all re- 
side at Sycamore, and are represented in this work. 
Livingston is a physician in Schenectady, N. Y. 
Hiram and Isaac L.,both prominent business men at 
the city of De Kalb, are the subjects of biographical 
sketches in the Album of this county. Alida, young- 
est child, married E. P. Young (deceased), the record 
of whose life may be found on another page. 

Mr. Ellwood acquired an academic education at 
Amsterdam, N. Y., carving out his educational course 
by his own exertions. While pursuing his studies, 
he conducted classes in mathematics, philosophy and 
the rudiments of Latin in the same institution, there- 
by paying his board and tuition. He went to the village 
of Frankfort, where his active temperament brought 
him into prominence through his interest in general 
and local political affairs. He was an ardent Whig, and 
in 1849 he secured the appointment of Postmaster at 
Frankfort under President Taylor, and remained in 
the position through the administration of Millard 
Fillmore. He was elected Superintendent of Com- 
mon Schools at Frankfort for a number of years. He 
entered the law office of Judd & Cleland in the same 
village and read under their instructions until his ad- 
mission to the Bar of the Empire State, when he 
formed a business association with his junior pre- 






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ceptor, and they established a legal practice at 
Frankfort, under the style of Cleland & Ellwood, 
their connection existing three years. Mr. Ellwood's 
wide-awake, alert, mental organization kept him 
always, so to speak, "on deck," and his readiness for 
any amount or quality of hard work pushed him into 
places of responsibility and effort, and during the 
years 1854-6 officiated as Superintendent of section 
No. 5 on the Erie Canal, including a distance of 25 
miles, and extending from Little Falls to Whitesboro, 
one of importance on the line of the canal, extend- 
ing through the city of Utica; and its gradual de- 
scent along the banks of the Mohawk to Little Falls 
necessitated numerous locks and created an enor- 
mous amount of labor every year. 

Mr. Ellwood's connection with the political his- 
tory of his native State was during the period in 
which the Republican Party was organized. Mr. 
Ellwood frequently represented his district in the 
Congressional Conventions during the existence of 
the old Whig party as well as since the organi- 
zation of the Republican ptrrty. On the 15th of 
September, 1855, the last Whig District Conven- 
tion of Herkimer County convened in the village 
of Mohawk, which was attended by Mr. Ellwood in 
the capacity of Delegate from Frankfort, and he was 
unanimously chosen Delegate to the Whig State 
Convention to be held at Syracuse on the 26th day 
of the same month. 

Sept. 13, two days before the meeting above re- 
ferred to, the Republican element of Herkimer 
County issued a call for a county convention to be 
held at Herkimer, Sept. 22, to appoint delegates to a 
Republican Convention to be held at Syracuse on 
the same day, which had been fixed for the conven- 
ing of the Whigs in that city. The Whig Convention 
of Sept. 26, 1855, which met at Syracuse pursuant to 
the call, was the last assembly under the banners of 
the old regime in the Empire State. The party in 
New York practically expired in 1854, and the dele- 
gates who went up to Syracuse in September, 1855, 
went there to pay a last melancholy tribute to a de- 
funct organization. A feeble attempt to re-galvanize 
the Whig party took place, but the delegates, fair- 
minded, conscientious, reflective men, revolved in 
their thoughts the principles set forth in the pream- 
ble to the call, pursuant to which call another body 
was in session in another quarter of the same city. 
"The friends of Freedom without distinction of 




party, and such as are opposed to the repeal of the 
Missouri Compromise, and hostile to the further ex- 
tention of slavery in sentiment, and determined to 
exercise their rights of suffrage in such a man- 
ner as to carry out their views in future political 
action," were words which rang in their ears and re- 
echoed in their consciousness, while the old-liners 
affirmed that Whiggery and Republicanism were es- 
sentially identical, and that the latter, being a tem- 
porary offshoot, would die early, unless safely gath- 
ered into the sheltering bosom of the former. Before 
the day closed the Whigs marched from their cham- 
ber of assembly to that of the Republican convention. 

Oct. 18 following, 22 days later, Chauncey Ell- 
wood was a Delegate from Frankfort to a Republican 
Convention called for the purpose of nominating 
county officers. One of the distinctive actions of the 
Convention was an endorsement of the resolutions 
and nominations of the Republican State Convention 
at Syracuse. To the sentiments and principles, 
which he adopted without qualification or reservation, 
Mr. Ellwood has since consistently and inflexibly 
adhered. 

He came to Sycamore in the spring of 1858, and 
on the 7th of May following he was admitted to 
practice in the State Courts of Illinois. He formed a 
business relation with a law association already es- 
tablished at Sycamore, which conducted a successful 
enterprise covering a period of two years, under the 
style of James, Lowell & Ellwood. On its termina- 
tion the relation of Owen & Ellwood was formed, 
which existed two years and was ended by the with- 
drawal of the junior partner. 

In April, 1861, Mr. Ellwood was appointed Post- 
master at Sycamore by President Lincoln, and 
retained the position until November, 1866. Mean- 
while he figured in local and State politics, having 
represented his county several times in State Con- 
ventions, his career being a continuation of the 
line of action he had pursued in the State of 
New York, and the records attest the vigor and 
persistency of his public attitude. In the 25th 
General A ss e m h'y °f Illinois, from 1866 to 1868, 
he was elected First Assistant Secretary of the 
Senate under Gen. Chas. E. Lippincott, and on the 
resignation of his chief became his successor. In 
the next sessions (1868-1870) he was elected Secre- 
tary of the Senate. In the fall of 1869 he was 
nominated for State Senator from his District, but 



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failed of election on account of dissension in the Con- 
vention. In the fall of 1877, without solicitation, he 
was made the candidate of the National Greenback 
Labor element for State Senator and made a gratify- 
ing run in his District, which is strongly Republican. 
His own town, which was Republican by a majority 
of more than 300, gave him 235 majority and he 
came very near an election. In 1879 he was elected 
a member of the Board of Education. He served as 
its Secretary in 1880 and 1881, and was re-elected in 

1882, became its President, and is still the incum- 
bent of that position (1885). 

Mr. Ellwood has operated in the general business 
interests of Sycamore with the same alertness, energy, 
persistency and industry that have characterized his 
entire career. In 1866 the Sycamore Bank sus- 
pended, with heavy liabilities, and Mr. Ellwood 
closed its affairs with the creditors. In 1867, asso- 
ciated with Dr. O. M. Bryan and Alonzo Ellwood, 
he started a flax-mill, which is still in existence and 
operated under the ownership aud management of 
Messrs. Loomis & Luther. In 1874 he engaged in 
the boot and shoe business at Sycamore, which he 
conducted until his promotion to the place of chief 
executive of the city. He is a Director in the R. 
Ellwood Manufacturing Company, and one of the 
managers and President of Elm wood Cemetery. On 
the organization of the Marsh Binder Manufacturing 
Company, he became a stock-holder, and was elected a 
Director. In the year following he declined a re-elec- 
tion from press of other business. From 1875 to July, 

1883, when the road passed into the ownership of 
the Chicago & Northwestern corporation, he was 
Vice-President and General Manager of the Syca- 
more & Cortland Railroad. One of the achieve- 
ments of his administration was the erection of the 
fine brick depot at Sycamore. The kindly nature of 
Mr. Ellwood is as clearly shown by his consideration 
for the residents of Sycamore during the period of 
his management, as in any other phase of his career, 
many being granted the favors of magic slips signed 
" C. Ellwood," which secured to them the privileges 
of the road. Many a boy will bear in lasting re- 
membrance the man who sent him to the conductor 
with a chalk mark on his back, bearing a significance 
most gratifying to the wearer of the brand which 
passed him over the road. 

In 1883 he was elected Vice-President of the De 





Kalb County Agricultural Association and re-elected 
to the same position in 1884 and 1885. 

Though not a subscriber to the tenets of any ec- 
clesiastical denomination, Mr. Ellwood lends counte- 
nance and substantial aid to the maintenance and 
furtherance of religious influence. He attends the 
Methodist Episcopal Church, and is characteristically 
liberal and generous in its support. His interest in its 
welfare was most appropriately recognized by his selec- 
tion as an eminently proper person to pronounce the 
address of welcome in behalf of the local society on 
the occasion of the convening of the 42d Session of 
the Rock River Annual Conference held at Syca- 
more, in October, '881. His remarks were published 
in full in the City Weekly and were made in the 
genial vein and liberal spirit of their author. A reso- 
lution was presented and adopted by the Conference 
expressing the thanks of the organization for the ad- 
dress, and also for the courtesy extended by Mr. 
Ellwood to its members in passing them on the 
Sycamore & Cortland Railroad, of which he was 
Manager. The appreciation of his efforts was em- 
phasized by additional mention in the general reso- 
lutions adopted at the close of the Conference. 

Mr. Ellwood has been twice married. He formed 
a matrimonial alliance with Jane E. Budlong in 1846, 
in Frankfort, N. Y. She was the daughter of Dr. 
Caleb and Susan Budlong. Murray, only child of 
this union, was born in 1847, and died before he was 
six months old, after a brief illness of less than 24 
hours' duration. The young mother, in the weariness 
of broken health and hopes baffled by the sudden 
death of her blooming, beautiful babe, did not rally 
from her depression, and on the 14th of April, 1848, 
she sank away to eternal rest. She belonged to a 
prominent family, and her untimely death was the 
subject of much comment in the local press. The 
order of Odd Fellows, to which her husband and 
father belonged, passed resolutions of condolence 
and attended her funeral in a body, wearing the 
badge of mourning. She has been in the realm of 
the blessed nearly 37 years, but on earth her memory 
is still fresh and green, and is perpetuated by the 
copy of the action of Oneontha Lodge, bearing under 
its official seal the expressions of sympathy passed 
at a special meeting April 15, 1848. 

Mr. Ellwood was again married in November, 
1857, in Ionia, Mich., to Helen E., daughter of Sam 



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uel and Anna Dexter. Three children were born of 
this marriage: Florence was born Nov. 14, 1858, 
anil died Sept. 30, 1859; John 1). was born Feb. 9, 
i860, and is now a resident of De Kail). He mar- 
ried Emma, daughter of Thomas and Eleanor Combs, 
of the city of De Kalb. Anna was born Sept. n, 1864. 
Their mother died March 5, 1866, at Sycamore. She 
was a lady of finely disciplined mind and possessed 
unusual earnestness and decision of character. Her 
married life was passed in the conscientious discharge 
of every duty as wife and mother The qualities 
she exen ised as a friend and neighbor built for her 
a memorial more enduring than marble, and she is 
still mentioned with admiration and appreciation by 
those who were the objects of her consideration and 
esteem. 

I'h - residence of Mr. Ell wood at Sycamore is lo- 
cated on a plat of ground containing 12 acres, be- 
longing to his original claim, of which he became the 
possessor in 1837. The spot where the house stands 
is in the same state in which it was when its owner 
lir>i selected it, its soil having never been broken by 
the plow. In the rear of the residence is a small 
artificial lake, of a half-acre in extent, and stocked 
with fish. 

Mr. Ellwood was a charter member of Oneontha 
Lodge, I. O. O. F., No. 215, at Frankfort, in which he 
was prominent and passed all the chairs. He was 
also made a Mason in Olive Branch Lodge there, 
and passed the various offices, including that of 
Master of the Lodge; and on removal to Sycamore 
he transferred his membership by demit to Blue 
Lodge No. 134. He is now a Royal Arch Mason at 
Sycamore. 

One of the most notable occasions in the history 
of Mr. Ell wood's connection with the home of his 
adoption was the ever.t of the presentation of an 
elegant gold-headed cane by his friends at Sycamore. 
The cane cost $100. The engraving embraces an 
appropriate inscription, and the design of a locomo- 
tive with tender and passenger coach attached. But 
over and above the value and beauty of the gift was 
the abounding enthusiasm which characterized the 
arrangement and consummation of the presentation 
ceremonies. It was a perfect ovation and the assem- 
blage was gratifying in point of numbers and en- 
thusiasm. The militia and the fire companies, 
embracing the members of four organizations and 



led by the Hand, made a most imposing parade, after 
which the concourse gathered in Wilkins Hall and 
were called to order by the President of the occasion, 
Judge Charles Kellum. The leading addresses are 
presented intact. Mayor Nathan Lattin spoke as fol- 
lows : 

"Mr. President: — We have met on this occasion 
and in this hall in a different capacity and for a 
different purpose than we have been wont to meet 
here. Sometimes we have met here for pleasure, 
sometimes as political factions, and sometimes we 
have met when excitement and passion have largely 
predominated in our deliberations ; but on this occa- 
sion we meet much differently. The war-club and 
the tomahawk are, for the time being, buried deep 
out of sight, and all meet to show respect to and 
good will toward one of our active, enterprising and 
public-spirited fellow townsmen, one whose interests 
have been largely identified with the interests and 
prosperity of Sycamore for the past 20 years — not 
only have been but still are. We have also met to 
present him a slight token of our appreciation. I 
need hardly say that the citizen referred to is Hon. 
Chauncey Ellwood. 

" He came to Sycamore about 20 years ago, when 
the place was but a village of a few hundred inhabi- 
tants, — no buildings of very large pretensions, either 
for business, residences, hotels or places for religious 
worship; no large manufacturing establishments, or 
machine shops ; no flax or grist mill ; no railroad ; 
Mill's stage coach was the only public conveyance 
by which to communicate with the outer world ; the 
steam whistle had scarcely broken upon the primeval 
stillness. He identified himself with the interests of 
the place of his adoption and has been identified 
with them up to the present time, and, I may say, 
is more closely identified with them now than at any 
time in the past. He has seen the village of 20 
years ago grow to be one of the most beautiful cities 
of the present and still in the height of her ambition ; 
the unpretentious buildings disappear and in their 
places appear substantial business blocks, handsome 
residences, beautiful churches, mills, machine shops 
and manufacturing establishments; in place of the 
stage coach, the railroad ; the shrill whistle of engines 
is heard morning, noon and evening. The surround- 
ing country has had to contribute new territory for 
its growth. He has not only witnessed these changes 



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but has been largely identified with the efforts that 
have brought them about. 

" But more particularly has his efficiency been 
demonstrated in the capacity of General Manager of 
(§• the Sycamore & Cortland Railroad. To-day our lit- 
tle railroad commands the respect of not only in- 
dividuals, but also of other railroad corporations, and 
by it Sycamore is made one of the principal railroad 
points of Illinois, and its importance is appreciated 
by all the commercial centers east and west. It is 
but justice to say that to Chauncey Ell wood belongs 
the credit largely of our enviable position, and also a 
fair share of the credit of other improvements of the 
past years. And when years have passed away, and 
with them he and ourselves, then his narhe will shine 
bright on the roll of honor among those who stood 
faithful and true to the interests, welfare, growth and 
prosperity of this, the most beautiful little city in the 
world, with this sentiment ever before him : ' Syca- 
more : may she ever be right ; but, right or wrong, 
J£ nevertheless, Sycamore ! ' 

■'+• " For his fidelity to the interests of the city, his 
=* friends have met on this occasion to present to him, 
•$* in the name of the citizens of Sycamore, a token of 
<= their appreciation, and I may say, all join in approv- 

" Mr. Ellwood, in the name of your friends, in the 
name of the citizens of Sycamore, I have the honor 
of presenting to you this cane as a token of their ap- 
preciation of your fidelity to the interests of this city. 
Take it and use it, and by its use may you be able to 
lengthen out the span of life a little at least ; and 
when you are through with it, and your work done, 
may your posterity preserve it as an heirloom to your 
remembrance ; and may it be an incentive to them 
to serve their town, county, State and country well 
and faithfully." 

In response, Mr. Ellwood said: 

"Mr. Mayor, Ladies ami Gentlemen : I have often 
been called upon to express my views upon the vari- 
ous matters pertaining to the general welfare of our 
city's prosperity; but never with the same emotions 
as at the present time, as I see before me so many of 
the professional and business men, the militia com- 
panies, the elements of our city's prosperity, the 
laboring men, also the elements of its preservation, 
the fire companies, to respond to the kind sentiment 
you have expressed — to be the recipient of a testi- 



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monial so beautiful and valuable as this cane. I 
frankly admit that I do not know how to express my 
feelings and thanks. 

" You have so kindly referred to my long residence 
in this place that I may be pardoned in saying that I 
have witnessed its prosperity and growth, that I have 
seen it gathering strength year by year, by the united 
and energetic efforts of her business men, until it has 
grown from a mere hamlet to a beautiful and pros- 
perous city of some four or five thousand inhabitants, 
unsurpassed by any city in the State for the high 
moral standing of her business men, whose energetic 
aid has never been wanting to further any enterprise 
that would tend to the advancement of the city's 
prosperity. 

" As to the management of the railroad, it is due 
from me to say that I have ever received the hearty 
co-operation of the president, officers and directors 
for all the changes and improvements that have been 
made upon it. It is also due from me to say that 
our business relations with the general officers of the 
Chicago & Northwestern Railroad Company have 
been and are of the most friendly character, and to 
them is due much of the success which our road has 
obtained, never having asked them for a reasonable 
favor in behalf of our road, or for the business men, 
which has not been readily and cheerfully granted. 

" I accept this beautiful cane, not so much on ac- 
count of its intrinsic value, nor for its beauty, but as 
coming from my old friends and neighbors, as a 
memento of their friendship and esteem. I shall 
keep and prize it as long as I live ; and, as the ever 
changing years roll round, the sweet memories and 
recollections of this hour will ever grow brighter and 
brighter, dearer and dearer to me. Again I thank 
you, my friends, with the assurance that this occasion 
will ever be treasured and remembered by me as one 
of the happiest events of my life." 

Judge Kellum responded to repealed calls as 
follows : 

" Ladies and Gentlemen : It is gratifying to me, as 
doubtless it is to all of the citizens of Sycamore, to 
participate in an assemblage of this character. We 
have met to show our appreciation of the business 
ability, zeal and fidelity of one of Sycamore's oldest 
citizens, Hon. Chauncey Ellwood. He has witnessed 
and been a part of the city's growth, and has been 
largely identified with its prosperity and success as a 



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business center, but lias more particularly dis- 
tinguished himself in his management of the Syca- 
more & Cortland Railroad. Amid the manifold 
perplexities incident to the railroad business, his 

uniform courtesy and obliging manners, his civility 
and complaisance, have reflected honor upon his 
management. This occasion is worthy of Sycamore, 
whose citizens are always willing to do honor to the 
men who do most to promote her material interests. 
All asperities, bickerings and heart-burnings, growing 
out of political or other interests, are forgotten and 
made subordinate to the spirit of the occasion. 

"Mr. Ellwood, when- with enfeebled frame and 
tottering step you walk the down hill of life, you will 
find more support and comfort in the cheering 
memories of this scene than in leaning on this staff, 
carrying with you, as you will, to your life's end the 
assurance of the esteem and approbation of your fel- 
low-citizens." 

R. L. Divine, Esq., made the following speech: 
" 1 am much pleased and gratified over this de- 
monstration of respect towards one of the oldest 
residents of Sycamore. Mr. Ellwood has claims to 
be considered one of the pioneers of the place. 
More than a third of a century ago he purchased of 
the United States the land where his homestead is 
now located, in the limits of Sycamore. He has been 
identified with many and perhaps most of the lead- 
ing business enterprises of the town for years. He 
has given a good word and a helping hand to many a 
man who stood in need of them. It is epiite impos- 
sible for a man to lead an active public or business 
life without often meeting with harsh criticism and 
unjust opposition. Our friend here has had his full 
share of that kind of experience ; but it is better to 
appreciate and to commend and reward the good 
deeds of those with whom we associate than to 
magnify the errors such as all men are liable to com- 
mit. I am all the more pleased with this demonstra- 
tion, as it shows a disposition on the part of the 
people to stand by one another and by the town. 
Our city is prosperous and we are all proud of it; but 
its prosperity can only be maintained in the future, 
as it has been in the past, by harmony and unison 
among its business men and citizens generally. Let 
us always bear in mind that old motto, 'United we 
stand, divided we fall.' 

Messrs. J. S. Waterman, Hon. W. M. Byers, David 

— eA«M 



Syme, W. M. Loomis, R. Ellwood and G. M. Siv- 
wright made brief and appropriate speeches, and after 
the closing ceremonies the assemblage dispersed, 
bearing away with them the remembrance and in- 
spiration of one of the most enjoyable occasions in 
the history of Sycamore. It reflects quite as much, 
however, on the hearts that instigated such an 
affair as on the man who was its distinguished 
object. In January, 1883, Mr. Ellwood set out for a 
Southern tour and traveled leisurely via Louisville, 
Nashville and Montgomery, visiting prominent places 
in Florida and shipping from Cedar Keys for Havana, 
Cuba. All along the route he wrote his impressions 
and observations in the form of keen, breezy, de- 
scriptive letters, which he sent for publication to the 
City Weekly at Sycamore. They were characterized 
by the vein that runs through all his acts, — earnest 
devotion to and solicitude for the people and interests 
of Sycamore. 

It has been the lot of Chauncey Ellwood to live in 
the most important period of the history of the Re- 
public, and to share in its chances. His early life 
was filled with the struggles that were his only in- 
heritance. By diligence and the display of his good 
judgment and business ability he has accumulated a 
competency, although beginning active life with no 
advantages. 

H— 

Kenry H. Slater, merchant at Genoa, was 
Sfljj born Oct. 31, 1838, in New Jersey. He 
... ** was reared to the age of 17 years on his 
fi\ father's farm, attending the common school in 
f boyhood, and at the age named accompanied 
his parents to Genoa Township, where they 
joined the community of farmers. On reaching the 
period of his majority, he returned to the East for a 
visit and remained one year. He came back to De 
Kalb County, and in August following his return he 
enlisted in the 105th 111. Vol. Inf., enrolling in Co. 
A, and shared the fortunes of the regiment until the 
close of the war. He advanced to the grade of Ser- 
geant, and was afterwards promoted as First Lieu- 
tenant. He received his discharge at Washington, 
D. C. 

On his return to De Kalb County he entered into 
the prosecution of a mercantile enterprise at Genoa, 



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forming a partnership with Henry Perkins, and they 
prosecuted their joint interests in that direction three 
years. Mr. Slater sold his claim and bought a farm 
in the township of Genoa, and conducted an agricul- 
tural enterprise two years. Again selling out, he 
went to Grundy County, where he engaged in busi- 
ness with A. K. Stiles. Eighteen months later he 
disposed of his interest to Mr. Stiles and returned to 
Genoa, embarking in a mercantile enterprise. In 
1876 he erected the fine brick building where he has 
managed his business since. His yearly traffic 
amounts to about $30,000. 

Mr. Slater is a Republican in political connection 
and has discharged the duties of several local offices. 
He is a member of Lodge No. 288, F. & A. M., at 
Genoa. 

He was married to Anna B. Stiles, and they have 
two children — Samuel A., born April 16, 1868, and 
Margaret A., born Sept. 2, 1870. Mrs. Slater is the 
daughter of A. K. and Fanny (Smith) Stiles, the 
former a native of Vermont, the latter of Canada. 
They came to Genoa Township, where they lived 
during the remainder of their lives. Their family in- 
cluded four daughters and two sons. 



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oseph. Gandy, farmer, section ro, Cortland 
Township, was born in Leesburg, Union Co., 
'^ Ohio, Nov. r, 1834, and when he was 
three years of age his parents moved with their 
family to this county, where they have since 
lived. Mr. G. never learned a trade, but, being 
naturally a good mechanic, he can build any com- 
mon farmer's house or barn as well as anybody. He 
has been a school officer in his township, and in his 
political views is a Democrat. 

He was married Oct. 9, 1859, to Mary Jane Parker, 
who was born Dec. 10, 1839, in Camden Township, 
Hillsdale Co., Mich. They have five children, 
namely: S. Douglas, born July 18, 1S60; Sarah E., 
July 24,1862, was married Nov. 16, 1882, to Fred 
W. Snow, and is a resident of Cortland village; Ada, 
born Jan. 29, 1864; Vida, Sept. 10, 1865; and Henry 
Harris, April 9, 1874, — all on section 9, this town- 
ship. Mr. G.'s father was Henry H. Gandy. (See 
sketch of H. H. Gandy.) Mrs. G.'s father, Abel 
Parker, was born in the State of New York, Dec. 14, 




1800, and died in 185 r, in Camden, Hillsdale Co., 
Mich. Her mother, Climena, nee Pease, was also 
born in New York State, July 4, 1813, and died Dec. 
13, 1879, in California Township, Branch Co., Mich. 
Her maternal grandfather was a Revolutionary sol- 
dier. 

ip%l§L ramont N. Hollernbeak, retired farmer, re- 
ISAat siding at Genoa, was born Feb. 5, 1 81 6, in 
Jflf Genesee Co., N. Y. Ruluff Hollernbeak, 
"!Mka his father, was a native of New York, and 
li^ married Electa Ames, who was born in Ver- 
I mont. After their marriage they became resi- 
dents of Genesee County, afterwards removing to 
Pennsylvania, where the father died. The mother 
came to De Kalb County, and after a residence of 
nearly 30 years returned to Pennsylvania, where she 
died. Their children were named Electa, Betsey, 
Aramont N., Alfred A., Abram, William and Amy. 

Mr. Hollernbeak is the oldest son of the children 
born to his parents, and accompanied them while 
yet in extreme youth to Crawford Co., Pa. He was 
13 when his father died, and he continued to reside 
with his mother three years after that event, aiding 
her in the support of the family. In 1832 he began 
an apprenticeship to learn the business of a wagon - 
maker, remaining until the year preceding his ma- 
jority, after which he pursued his trade as a vocation 
at different points until the date of his removal to 
De Kalb County, and afterwards for a season. Among 
other places where he carried on his business may 
be named Conneaut, Ohio, where he operated three 
years. 

In 1839 he became a citizen of De Kalb County 
and entered a claim of 160 acres of land in the 
township of Genoa, of which he afterwards obtained 
the patent from the Government. On this he lo- 
cated and was an occupant until Nov., 1877, when he 
built his present residence, and of which he took pos- 
session on its completion. His fine and valuable farm 
is managed by a tenant. 

Politically, Mr. Hollernbeak is an out-and-out Re- 
publican, and he has been an important factor in the 
general interests of his township. He has been Su- 
pervisor two terms, has served several terms as 
Assessor, School Trustee and Road Commissioner, 



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and has discharged the duties of a Police Magistrate 
six years. He is a member of the Masonic fraternity. 

Jan. 12, 1S3S, he was married, in Crawford Co., 
Pa., to Pamelia, daughter of Frederick and Amy 
Decker. Her parents were residents of Genesee Co., 
N. Y., where her father died. The mother went to 
Pennsylvania and later to Michigan, to live with her 
children, and died at Cassopolis in that State. Their 
daughters were Betsey, Catherine, Hannah, Amy, 
Jane and Pamelia, and sons, Barney, (".rant and 
Stacey. Mrs. Hollembeak was horn May 7, 1 <S 1 7 , in 
Genesee Co., N. Y. The children born to her and 
her husband are Adelia A., Alfred, Henry, Emily, 
Ruluff and Ralph. 

A fine lithographic portrait of Mr. H. accompanies 
this sketch. 



— S- 



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ohn E. Atwood, merchant at De Kalb, and 

- senior member of the firm of Atwood & 

Burnside, was born Aug. 26, 1828, in the 

town of Washington, Berkshire Co., Mass. He 

%F remained in the Bay State until 11 years old 

I and spent the succeeding four years in Jeffer- 
son and Lewis Counties, N. Y. In 1844 he came to 
Illinois and settled in Rockford, finding employment 
as a farm laborer. When he reached the age of 22 
years he entered a dry-goods store in that city, where 
he acted in the capacity of salesman. He ceased his 
connection with his employers at the end of four 
years, during which he had spent about one year in 
his native State. 

He came thence to De Kalb County and engaged 
in business in the township of Malta, operating there 
three years and coming to De Kalb in 1862. He 
formed his present business relation with A. W. 
Burnside in 1877, previous to which date he was 
connected with his brother. The annual aggregate 
of the business transactions of the firm are estimated 
at $40,000, and they rank among the leading com- 
mercial houses of this section of Illinois. Mr. At- 
wood adopts the principles of the prohibition element 
in politics. He is also a member of the Masonic 
fraternity. 

He was first married in Belvidere, 111., to Angelita 
Harrington, a native of Buffalo, N. Y. They had 






two children: Clara A. resides at Colorado Springs, 
and J. Harie is in the employment of John V. Far- 
well & Co., of Chicago. Their mother died in Malta 
and Mr. Atwood was again married in that place 
March 11, 1861, to Annie E. Fuller. One child — 
Walter B. — -has been born to them. Mrs. Atwood is 
a native of Pennsylvania. 

S>*h{h*S==^ — »- 

efferson O. Stark, of the firm of Stark Bros., 
?" dealers in stock and pressed hay, at Syca- 
more, was bom April 4, 1847, in the town- 
ship of the same name, in this county. His 
1L father, Marshal Stark, was born Aug. 12, 1813, 
in Luzerne Co., Pa., and became a resident of 
De Kalb County Sept. 14, 1835. Louisa (Tyler) 
Stark was born in Susquehanna Co., Pa. The senior 
Stark located a large tract of land on section 31, 
Sycamore Township, which was deeded to him on 
its coming into market, and is still in the family. At 
one time he was the proprietor of a place of public 
entertainment at Sycamore, known as the Stark 
House, a part of which is still standing contiguous 
to the Ward House. He was Sheriff of De Kalb 
County one term and officiated in other positions of 
trust and importance. His death occurred Dec. 26, 
1882, and his widow is still a resident of the home- 
stead. Their ten children are all living. Harmon 
M. resides on 360 acres in Kingston Township in 
this county, which is a portion of the unsettled es- 
tate. Martha is the wife of Hosea Atwood, a farmer 
in Jasper Co., Iowa. Mary married Curtis Harris, 
of the township of Genoa. Jefferson O. is the fourth 
in order of birth, and is in company with Henry, his 
junior brother. Theron resides in Sycamore and is 
administrator of his father's estate. Ada married 
James Maitland, and resides on the homestead. Ella 
is the wife of A. W. Brower, a hardware merchant of 
Sycamore. Emma married Charles Wiggins, a fanner 
in Storey Co., Iowa. Hattie is the wife of Burt Lee, 
a resident of Sycamore. 

Mr. Stark was reared to the legal age of manhood 
on the paternal estate, and on reaching a period of 
independence he engaged in buying and shipping 
stock. Three years after he established his business 
he admitted his brother to an interest, and they have 
since been heavily engaged in transactions in the 



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avenues named. They buy and ship stock to Chicago 
and press hay for mark-it, having the requisite facili- 
ties at Sycamore and also at Kirkland. 

Mr. Stark is the owner of his residence and a 
second dwelling, which is rented. He was married 
Nov. 13, 1875, to Lydia Carver, a native of Luzerne 
Co., Pa., and is the daughter of Jabez and Ellen 
(Jackson) Carver. She was born in Lemon Town- 
ship, Luzerne Co., Pa., Aug. 1, 1850. 



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ayne Holdridge, farmer on the northwest 
quarter of section 28, Cortland Township, 
was born in Smithville, Chenango Co., 
>(> N. Y., Nov. 22, 1825, and is a son of Ira 
and Anna (Howell) Holdridge. His father 
was born in 1786, in Pownell, Vt., and died Jan. 
13, 1869; and his mother was born on Long Island, 
N. Y., Sept. 26, 1792, and died Dec. 28, 1869, in 
Chenango Co., N. Y. They had a family of ten 
children. 

Mr. Holdridge, the eighth in the above family, 
was brought up on a farm and received a practical 
school education. At the age of 28 he came to this 
county, arriving in June, 1853, and locating on his 
present farm of 67 acres, lying just north of the rail- 
road. For 1 1 years he lived in the village of Cort- 
land, where he owned a house and lot and followed 
painting, and bought his farm in 1864, since which 
time he has occupied it. In 1864 it had only an old 
house, but he has placed upon it a good residence, 
barn, outbuildings, etc. In politics Mr. Holdridge is 
a Republican. 

He was married Sept. 27, 1S57, to Miss Clara L., 
daughter and youngest child of Job and Anna 
(Sprague) Densmore, of Puritan English stock. She 
was born Oct. 24, 1834, in McDonough, Chenango 
Co., N. Y. Her father, a Methodist minister, was 
born March 25, 1790, in Reading, Vt., and died Sept. 
9, 1845 ; and her mother was born May 24, 1791, in 
Vermont, and died March 23, 1880. Her grand- 
father Densmore was a soldier in the Revolutionary 
War. Mrs. Holdridge has a Continental eight- 
dollar bill which he received in pay. Her grand- 
father Sprague was a Captain of a stationary com- 
pany at Castleton, in the Revolutionary War. Her 
oldest brother, H. B. Densmore, came to Kane Co., 

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?d|', illiam Wallace Bryant, M. D., practicing 
physician and surgeon at Sycamore, was 
born Oct. 31, 1832, at Chesterfield, Hamp- 
shire Co., Mass. His father, Martin M. 
(vV N Bryant, was born in the same place, and 
I ' married Nancy A. Skiff, a native of Williams- 
burg, Mass. He was a physician of the " new 
school," and in 1838 settled at North Adams, where 
he pursued his profession until his death in 1844. 

Dr. Bryant was a child of six years when his par- 
ents went to the town of Adams, and was 1 2 years old 
when his father died. He remained with his mother 
and attended Drury Academy in Adams, and subse- 
quently became a student at Marlow, Cheshire Co., 
N. H. He began to read medicine under the in- 
structions of Dr. W. W. Gardner, at Pittsfield, Mass., 
and supplemented the knowledge there obtained by 
attending lectures at the Medical College at Worces- 
ter in his native State, where he was graduated in 
June, 1856. 

In October of the same year, Dr. Bryant came to 
Sycamore, then in its days of incipiency, and has 
since been engaged as a practitioner at this point. 
He has built a substantial and popular business, and 
has discharged the duties of his profession with little 
intermission. 

Dr. Bryant was married in September, 1856, to 
Cordelia Sheldon. She was born in Monroe, Frank- 
lin Co., Mass., and is the daughter of Hiram G. and 
Lydia (Ballon) Sheldon. Their children are Charles 



^ 



111., in 1837, and located at Sugar Grove, where he \f 



still resides. 

Mrs. H. came to this county with her mother in 
1845, they leaving New York State the day after Mr. 
Densmore was buried. There were 21 in the parly, 
and they came West by team. Among them were 
Mrs. D., two children, and a sister named Cornelia 
Breed, who has married and is now living in New 
Bedford, Bureau Co., 111. A brother, Joseph, is now 
living in Shell Rock, Butler Co., Iowa. 

Mr. and Mrs. Holdridge have had one child, 
Ethelbert by name, who was born July 25, 1861, in 
Cortland Township, and is now living in Cortland 
village. 

Mr. H. is a Republican in his political views. 








e^HHSllll^ 



DR KALB COUNTY. 



H., Austin B., William M. and Nellie. The oldest 
son was horn in Sycamore, April 24, 1857, and was 
primarily educated in the schools of his native city. 
He studied medicine under his father's instructions, 
/£>. and at the age of 18 years commenced to attend 
lectures at the Chicago Medical College, where he 
was graduated in March, 1879, after a thorough 
preparatory course covering a period of four terms. 
He was married in March, 1877, to Lottie V. Har- 
rington, who was horn in Iowa. They have one 
child. 

Dr. \V. \V. Bryant has been a Universalist in 
religious principles for a quarter of a century. He 
is a Democrat of the Douglas school. 



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",enry Patterson, carpenter and joiner at 
j Genoa, was born Dec. 20, 1829, in Mead- 
ville, Pa., and is the son of Joseph and 
Eleanor (Compton) Patterson. He came from 
his native State to McHenry Co., III., in 1845, 
when he was 16 years of age, and was a mem- 
ber of his father's family four years after their loca- 
tion in Illinois. 

In 1S50 he went to Chicago for the purpose of ac- 
quiring a knowledge of the business of a carpenter 
and joiner, in which he was occupied three years. 
He came to Genoa in 1854 and established himself 
in the business in which he has since operated. 

He was the owner of 45 acres of land in the cor- 
poration of Genoa, ten acres of which was laid out 
in lots, now known as Patterson's Addition to Genoa. 

Mr. Patterson is a Republican in political faith, 
and has officiated as School Director and Village 
Trustee. 

He was married Feb. 16, 1854, in Genoa Town- 
ship, to Adelia Crocker, and they are the parents of 
six children, — ("hades F., Edward J. A., Hermon H., 
Mary E. and Clayton A. One child died in infancy, 
and Edward died Feb. 2, 1862, in Genoa, when four 
and a half years of age. 

Mrs. Patterson is the daughter of Elder Allen and 
Sophronia (Tackles) Crocker. Her father was a na- 
tive of Massachusetts and a soldier in the war of 
i8(2. Commenced preaching when 22 years of age, 
and continued in the ministry 56 years, preaching in 
the States of New York, Ohio and Illinois. He died 




in Genoa, Feb. 7, 187 1. Her mother was a native of 
New York. She received her education at Wyoming 
Academy in the same State, and died in Genoa, 
Nov. 30, 1874. They came from New York in 1846, 
and located in Genoa Township. Their children 
were born in the following order: Alvaro, Mary A., 
Philenia, Elvira, Adelia and Angeline. Mrs. Patter- 
son was born Jan. 16, 1836, in South I.eroy, Genesee 
Co., N. Y. 



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] obert H. Roberts, merchant at De Kalb, 

senior member of the firm of Roberts & 
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Tyler, was born July 28, 1836, in Oneida 
Co., N. Y. His father died when he was 12 
years of age, and during the year following he 
was wholly orphaned by the death of his 
mother. Thrown entirely upon his own efforts for 
maintenance, he availed himself of the first oppor- 
tunity that presented for honorable, remunerative la- 
bor, and engaged in farm work by the month, also 
operating as a salesman in a store, being occupied in 
these two callings for a period of seven years. 

In 1855 he came to De Kalb County, where he 
rented a farm for a time, which he worked on shares. 
He proceeded next to Kansas, bat the State being in 
a disturbed condition from the strife engendered by 
the slave element, he remained there but a year. 
However, he entered a claim of 160 acres of land, 
espoused the Free-Soil cause and enlisted under the 
banner and principles of " Jim Lane," serving as 
need required. He afterwards sold his claim. Re- 
turning to De Kalb County, he obtained a situation 
as a clerk at Sycamore, where he was occupied three 
years. In 1861 he started a grocery business at De 
Kalb, associated with his brother Richard. After a 
connection of four years the latter sold his interest to 
S. A. Tyler, the firm assuming its present style. 
They are engaged in the provision trade, and also do 
an extensive business in live stock. 

Mr. Roberts is a stanch Republican and enjoys 
the confidence of his townsmen. He held the posi- 
tion of County Treasurer from 1875 to 1882, and has 
discharged the duties of Village Trustee. 

He was married Oct. 20, 1863, in Herkimer Co., 
N. Y.,to S. Emma, daughter of R. H. and M. L. 
Smith, and they have had two children. Wallace A. 

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was born Oct. 24, 186S. The other child died in in- 
fancy. 

William T. and Mary (Williams) Roberts, the 
parents of Mr. Roberts of this sketch, were natives 
of North Wales. They emigrated to the State of 
New York and were married in Oneida County, 
where they remained until their death. 



eorge M. Kinyon, farmer on the northeast 
quarter of section 8, Cortland Township, 
was born in Onondaga Co., N. Y., Aug. 5, 
1827. His father, John Kinyon, was born 
Nov. 13, 1796, and is still living, with a son in 
the town of Ridgeway, Orleans Co., N. Y. 
George's mother, Lydia, nee Post, was born Nov. 28, 
1S00, and died in March, 1883, in Hartland Town- 
ship, Niagara Co., N. Y. 

The subject of this sketch moved with his parents 
from His native place to Ridgeway when a lad, where 
his father bought a farm, which he still owns. At the 
age of 19 young George arrived in this county, May 
15, 1847, and purchased the farm which he still owns 
and occupies. It consisted of 130 acres of prairie 
and 17 acres of timber. He and Mr. H. H. Gandy 
are the only men in this settlement who still own the 
land they bought in pioneer times when they first 
arrived here. On his place, when he purchased it, 
was a double log house, the farm was fenced and a 
large portion of it " broken " by the plow. Since then 
he has erected a fine frame residence, barn, outbuild- 
ings, etc., and kept the farm in a good agricultural 
condition. 

By his first marriage, Nov. 12, 1848, Mr. Kinyon 
wedded Miss Marilla Churchill, in Sycamore Town- 
ship, this county. She was a daughter of David and 
Maria (Parker) Churchill, and died March 26 follow- 
ing, and now lies buried near the Baptist church in 
Ohio Grove Cemetery. She was not taken up and 
buried " under her mother's window," as Boies' his- 
tory says, but was taken to St. Charles and brought 
back. There was a second funeral, when she was 
buried in the same coffin, with the exception of a new 
lid, in the same grave. Her father was drowned in 
1854, in Virgin Bay, on his way home from California, 
and her mother is still living in Towa, the wife of Mr. 
Armstrong. For his second wife Mr. K. was wedded, 



Oct. 22, 1849, to Mrs. Nancy P., widow of John Ad- 
kinson, who died Feb. 19, 1847, in Dearborn Co., 
Ind. He was born in Switzerland County, that State, 
in 1823. His daughter, Vesta A., who was born three 
weeks after his death, was his only child, and now 
lives in Washington Co., Kan. Mrs. Kinyon was 
born April 14, 1827, in the town of Philips, Franklin 
Co., Maine, the daughter of William Peace Whitney, 
— her father having been so named because he was 
born on the day peace was declared at the close of 
the Revolutionary War. He was born in Cumber- 
land Co., Mass , and died Dec. 29, 1863, at Cort- 
land. Her mother, Nancy J., nee Carlton, is living in 
Washington Co., Kan., with her son George, a farmer. 
She was born Nov. 30, 1806, in Cumberland Co., 
Mass. 

By the second marriage of Mr. Kinyon there have 
been three children, as follows : John William, born 
Aug. 31, 1850; Dexter D., Oct. 8, 1854; and Lydia 
G., May 18, 1857. 

Mr. K. is a Republican, and both himself and wife 
are members of the Methodist Episcopal Church. 




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W. Morris, editor and proprietor of the 
Malta Mail, was born at Danbury, Conn., 
Jigp^K J n t) le y ear t 82 2, and there resided for 40 
'yf > years. He learned the woolen business, serv- 
ing his time with Dick & Sanford, at Sandy 
Hook, about ten miles from his native place. 
He was married in 1844, and at that time was carry- 
ing on the manufacture of cloths in his native town, 
and continued to do so until 1848, when he sold out 
and was appointed Deputy Sheriff under Phil. F. 
Barnum, a brother of P. T. Barnum, which office he 
held for three years. In 185 r he was again made 
Sheriff and held that office until 1862, when he re- 
signed and came West and settled at La Crosse, Wis., 
and went into the insurance business. 

In 1864 he came with his family to Rockford, this 
State, and there remained until 1874, when he moved 
to Chicago, where he continued in the insurance bus- 
iness, traveling in the Western and Southern States. 
In 1S77 he bought the Malta M<iil, a paper that had 
just been started, also the Creston Times, in Ogle 
County, and with his sons, Howard A. and Charles 
H., they continued until the death of Charles H., in 



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18S2. In August, 1882, in company with his son 
Howard, they started the Rochelle HeraU, at 
Rochelle, Ogle County, and now father and son are 
conducting the Malta Mail, Creston Times and 
Rochelle Herald, and all are in a healthy and grow- 
ing condition. 

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ames S. Waterman, one of the founders of 
- Sycamore, now deceased, was born May 
29, 1820, in the township of Salisbury, 
Herkimer Co., N. Y., and was the son of John 
D. and Mary Waterman. In 1822 his parents 
removed to the village of Fairfield in the same 
county, where his father engaged in commercial pur- 
suits, and where the son became a student at the 
academy. The father dying before the latter had 
reached the threshold of manhood, he was early 
brought to a realization of the effort necessary to a 
successful struggle with the world, to which he was 
made heir by the loss of his natural protector. 

His mother was a woman of sterling character and 
more than ordinary intellectual capacity, and her 
sons entered upon their careers with the double in- 
heritance of brains and business tact. James 
studied civil engineering, and in 1838 joined his 
brother Charles in the State of Illinois, making his 
first location at Newburg, Boone County, and after- 
wards at Sayersville in Winnebago County. North- 
ern Illinois presented an excellent field for the 
exercise of the calling for which his educational course 
had fitted him, and he passed five years as an as- 
sistant in the survey and adjustment of the townships 
and minor divisions. This work developed his 
natural traits of activity, energy and perseverance, 
and proved the foundation of a substantial fortune. 
The intervals of service in the employ of the Gov- 
ernment were passed in the mercantile business with 
his brother at Sycamore, the site of the place being 
then located on the Kishwaukee River, on the plat 
made by the New York Company in 1836. He ob- 
tained the position of Deputy Surveyor of De Kalb 
County, and in 1839 made the survey and plat of 
the site of the present city of Sycamore. His abili- 
ties in his profession, and his capacity for unremit- 
ting effort, gained for him a substantial reputation as 



a business man, and an influence which he excited 
for the general welfare, and in 1842 he brought his 
prestige to bear materially on the extinction of the 
State debt of Illinois by aiding in securing the meas- 
ure designated the "two-mill tax," whose results 
demonstrated the value of its provisions. 

In 1844 Mr. Waterman established a mercantile 
enterprise at the village of Genoa, situated on the 
northern border of De Kalb County. In the spring 
of 1845 he became a permanent citizen of Sycamore, 
founding the first enduring mercantile business at 
that place, opening his transactions in that avenue 
in a room of the old Mansion House, now the City 
Hotel and situated on the corner of State and Main 
Streets. He admitted his brother, John C. Water- 
man, to an interest in his business, and this relation 
existed until 1852, when he became again sole pro- 
prietor by purchase of a circuit of branch stores lo- 
cated in adjoining settlements, and of the main 
enterprise at Sycamore. He continued their man- 
agement until 1857, when he sold them to be able 
to give his undivided attention to banking, in which 
he had embarked in 1855. 

As an evidence of the care, wisdom, judgment and 
forethought he exercised in his business relatior.s, it 
may be remarked in this connection, that he passed 
securely through the financial crisis of 1857, with no 
other embarrassment than the perplexity unavoidably 
incident to business of any character in a period of 
general panic and shrinkage of values. In 1864 
Mr. Waterman closed active operations as a banker 
and devoted the remainder of his life practically to 
the promotion of agriculture in De Kalb County. 
His. familiarity with the localities of the county and 
his comprehension of their comparative values had 
enabled him to make judicious purchases of real es- 
tate. He became the owner of farms variously situ- 
ated in De Kalb County, prominent among which 
was a tract of 1 ,000 acres on the southern border of 
Sycamore township, which constituted a claim and 
which he secured by purchase when it came into 
market, and of which he retained possession as long 
as he lived. His landed estate extended into other 
States, including extensive tracts of pine land in 
Wisconsin; and he also owned a considerable amount 
of real estate in Chicago, which he improved exten- 
sively after the great fire. About the year 1881 lie 
made an investment in a mine in Southern California, 



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which yields a large income and promises enormous 
increase in value. 

Mr. Waterman identified himself with every enter- 
prise in which he could discern a promise of perma- 
nent advantage to Sycamore. In 187 1 he founded 
the Sycamore National Bank, and continued its chief 
official up to his death. He was the primal factor in 
the construction of the Sycamore & Cortland Rail- 
road, and was President of the corporation until the 
road became the property of the stock-holders of the 
Chicago & Northwestern Railroad. He was the 
leader in the establishment of the Marsh Harvester 
Manufactory at Sycamore, and was its heaviest stock- 
holder in the beginning of the enterprise. When the 
company was re-organized he retained his interest, 
and was its Vice-President while he lived. On the 
organization of the Ellwood Manufacturing Company, 
he became a heavy stock-holder and was its presiding 
officer until 1881. 

The chief memorial of James S. Waterman is the 
church edifice of the Episcopal parish of St. Peter's 
at Sycamore, whose superstructure was erected wholly 
at his expense. It is built of the beautiful Batavia 
?tone, and is tastefully modeled, resembling the 
private chapels of the English nobility in form. Mr. 
Waterman was one of the parish founders, which was 
established in 1855, and one of the closing acts of his 
life was to provide in part for the perpetuation of its 
support. The adorning of the inner walls was 
planned by him after he was stricken by fatal dis- 
ease, and completed as he had designed, after he had 
passed from earth, and for which purpose he had 
appropriated the necessary means. In the nave of 
the church on the right of the chancel, a beautiful 
brass mural tablet, suitably inscribed, has been 
placed to his memory. 

He had been in the habit, during the winter sea- 
sons of the latter years of his life, of traveling in the 
Southern States and in New Mexico and California. 
In the winter of 1882-3, while in the Golden State, 
he decided on a trip to view some mining property 
in New Mexico, whither he went, accompanied by 
his brother Robert, remaining at Riverside, Cal, until 
May following, when he returned to his home. His 
disease baffled the best medical skill to be obtained, 
and he finally went to Chicago for treatment. All 
efforts proved futile, and Thursday, July 19, 1883, 
the electric- messenger conveyed to Sycamore the 



tidings that the weary struggle with the " guest that 
goes not forth alone " was ended. On the day fol- 
lowing he came back to his beloved people and 
home, voiceless and coffined for everlasting rest and 
peace. It was the first sorrow he had brought to the 
portals of the home which had been his pride and 
joy, and where his living presence had been a com- 
fort and blessing which words are powerless to char- 
acterize. In his journeyings he had made many 
friends, and on the Pacific slope, as in the State of 
his adoption, a cry of mourning went forth when the 
intelligence was borne back that James S. Waterman 
had gone forever from the scenes of earth, which had 
known him so well. 

Mr. Waterman was first married in 1847, on the 
5th of January, to Mary A. Ferson. She died in De- 
cember, 1850, having borne a son — Douglass Water- 
man — who died in 1855, aged seven years. Mr. 
Waterman was again married Jan. 30, 1854,10 Abbie 
L., daughter of Isaac Cushman, M. D., of Sherburne, 
N. Y. Mrs. Waterman is a representative of one of 
the leading families, in point of culture and refine- 
ment, in the East. In the years of her wedded life 
she exemplified, in the truest sense, the highest and 
best domestic graces. Her home was ever the arena 
for the exercise of the noblest womanly traits, and in 
it she wields the sway of an exalted nature under 
the guidance of a well trained and disciplined spirit. 



■J 

|fe.on. Westel W. Sedgwick, attorney, senior 

member of the law firm of Sedgwick & Son 
at Sandwich, was born June 7, 1827, in 
Westmoreland, Oneida Co., N. Y., at a point 
four miles from the city of Rome. His father, 
Samuel Sedgwick, was a physician, and was 
born in 1803, in Herkimer Co. N. Y., and married 
Ruhamah P. Knights. In May, 1844, he removed his 
family to Little Rock, Kendall Co., 111., and entered 
a claim of 80 acres of land, si 
his estate to 163 acres. His death 
Rock, March 1, 1847. His wife was born in Oswego 
Co., N. Y., in 1807, and she is living with her daugh- 
ter Elizabeth, Mrs. Oliver S. Hendee, at Sandwich, 
who is the eldest daughter. Sarah A. is the wife of 
William Brewer, a farmer of Chariton Co., Mo. James 




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DE KALB COUNTY. 



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H. is an attorney and is practicing his profession at 
Peoria, 111. Three children are deceased. 

Mr. Sedgwick obtained an available education in 
youth and utilized his time and abilities in teaching. 
He began to prepare for the profession of medicine 
under the direction of his uncle, Parker Sedgwick, of 
Du Page Co., III., and subsequently studied in his 
father's office, acquiring a substantial preparation for 
matriculation at Rush Medical College in Chicago, 
where he was graduated in 1848, after studying one 
term. The death of his father in the previous year 
opened an opportunity for him to enter upon and es- 
tablish his profession, and he succeeded to his father's 
practice at Little Rock, continuing to operate as a 
physician until the autumn of 1857. He also con- 
ducted a mercantile enterprise three years. 

At the date named he came to Sandwich and be- 
came by purchase the possessor of 10 acres of land, 
which he platted, and it is now comprised within the 
city limits. He bought 80 acres additional soon after, 
associated with Hon. S. B. Stinson, and later a por- 
tion of the tract was platted and is designated "Sedg- 
wick's Addition to Sandwich." On the latter purchase 
he erected his residence, the grounds accompanying 
now containing one acre, of which he is yet the 
owner. On locating at Sandwich, in partnership 
with O. S. Hendee, he established a drug trade 
which was in operation nearly three years. His 
change of locality and business was necessitated by 
an a' tack of inflammatory rheumatism, which com- 
pelled him to relinquish the practice of his profes- 
sion, the disease incapacitating him for the severe 
labors of a widely distributed business in medical 
avenues, and he engaged in the sale of drugs, for ob- 
vious reasons. In r86o he was elected Justice of 
the Peace and opened an office for the accommoda- 
tion of the business pertaining to his official position, 
in which he has continued mostly without intermis- 
sion. The relations of his office secured for him a 
practical knowledge of common and statutory law, 
and incidentally he entered upon the study of the 
code, which course eventuated in his systematic ap- 
plication to the acquirement of a comprehensive 
knowledge; and in the spring of 1862 he passed the 
prescribed course of examination at Ottawa, and was 
admitted to practice in the State Courts. 

In the fall of the same year he was elected Repre- 
sentative in the Legislature, serving in that capacity 



through the sessions of 1862-3 and 1863-4. On be- 
ing relieved of the duties incumbent upon his official 
position, he opened an office for the practice of law, 
and conducted its affairs singly until 1882, when he 
admitted his son, S. Park Sedgwick, to a partnership. 
The house is managing with success a large and im- 
portant practice, and they represent, in addition, 12 
prominent fire insurance companies, comprising some 
of the most reliable in the United States. They are 
also transacting a considerable business as real-estate 
and loan agents. 

Since the date of his location at Sandwich, now 
(18S5) covering a period of nearly 30 years, Mr. 
Sedgwick has been unremitting in his interest and 
zeal for the material well-being of the place and peo- 
ple. On the organization of the Sandwich Manufac- 
turing Company in 1867 he was one of the earliest 
to enter heartily into the enterprise ; he was one of 
the Directors from the outset, and was elected Vice- 
President, in which capacity he officiated several 
years and which was terminated by a sale of his in- 
terest. He took an active part in the organization 
and establishment of the Sandwich Enterprise Com- 
pany, in which he became a Director and of which 
he was subsequently made President. He held the 
position three years, and still remains one of the 
heaviest stockholders. He identified himself with 
the Sandwich Cheese Factory Company, was a stock- 
holder therein and became President, holding the 
chief position in the organization three years. 

He has been interested and prominent in local 
political circles, and is at present serving a second 
term as City Attorney. He has been Supervisor of 
Somonauk Township several years, and was Presi- 
dent of the Board of Trustees of Sandwich before it 
became a city. When it assumed corporate dignity 
Mr. Sedgwick was made its first Mayor, and was re- 
elected to that incumbency. He was a member of 
the Constitutional Convention of Illinois in the fall 
of 1869, and was an important and influential actor 
in framing the present Constitution of the State. In 
1874 Mr. Sedgwick was appointed by Governor 
Beveridge to fill a vacancy on the Board of Trustees 
of the Insane Asylum at Jacksonville, and discharged 
the duties of the position nearly two years. He went 
abroad in 1881 and traveled through the most inter- 
esting portions of Europe, Asia and Africa, visiting 
Palestine, and making a trip on the river Nile. 1 hir- 
ing his absence he contributed a series of entertain- 



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ing and instructive letters to the Sandwich Free 
Press. 

His marriage to Sarah A. Toombs occurred June 
7, 1848, at Little Rock, Kendall Co., 111. She was 
born Nov. 22, 1827, near Buffalo, N. Y., and is the 
daughter of William and Alta Toombs. To Mr. and 
Mrs. Sedgwick to children have been born, five only 
now surviving, who were born in the following order: 
Agnes E.; Caroline Gertrude, wife of Webster Dyas, 
a druggist at Arlington Heights, Cook Co., 111.; S. 
Park, of Sedgwick & Son; Charles F., Deputy Post- 
master at Sandwich ; and Jennie May. 

Mr. Sedgwick is prominent in influence and posi- 
tion at Sandwich, from causes which have been 
foreshadowed in the record of his career. He pos- 
sesses great versatility in point of ability, and has 
been equally successful in medicine and law. In 
the latter he has won a position second to no other 
attorney in De Kalb County and has distinguished 
himself in his connection with some of the most 
noted cases that have come before the Courts of 
Northern Illinois. In probity and integrity and 
soundness of opinion and judgment he is second to 
none, and is estimated accordingly in the community 
where he resides. He is a member of the Presby- 
terian Church, and has been largely instrumental in 
establishing the permanent interests of the Society. 
Sandwich is greatly indebted to him for its rapid and 
substantial advancement in all its leading relations. 

The portrait of Mr. Sedgwick, which appears on 
another page, is a signal addition to the collated 
biographical and historical records of De Kalb 
County, from his character as a man and citizen and 
his position in the community of which he is a 
member. 




-,:-< 





ohn White, farmer, section 9, Genoa Town- 
ship, is the son of John and Barbara 
(Bamar) White. His parents were natives 
of Germany, and had a family of eight chil- 
dren. Mr. White was the fifth in order of birth 
and was bora in Germany, March 5, 1815. In 
1846 he emigrated to America from the Kingdom of 
B.ivaria, and on arrival in the United States first set- 
tled in Pennsylvania. He remained there between 
two and three years, and in 1849 came to De Kalb 



County and bought 80 acres of land in Genoa Town- 
ship. He has brought his old-country thrift, energy 
and persistency of purpose to bear in his efforts to 
secure for himself the privileges of the land of his 
adoption, and is now the proprietor of 350 acres of 
land in De Kalb County, with 250 acres under cul- 
tivation. He is a member of the Republican party 
in political connection. 

Mr. White was married in the fall of 1846, in 
Pennsylvania, to Anna M. Hoffman, a native of 
Bavaria, and they have had seven children, — Charles, 
George, Margaret, Caroline, John, Henry and Mary. 
Mrs. White was born Feb. 10, 1820, in Germany. 



eorge W. Dunton, City Attorney of Syca- 
more, was born Aug. 6, r854, in Belvidere, 
Boone Co., 111. His parents, William S. 



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and Almira (Baldwin) Dunton, are natives of 
Bennington Co., Vt. The birth of the former 
occurred Aug. 31, 1813. He settled in the 
village of Belvidere in 1846, where he is now resid- 
ing. The mother of George W. also survives. They 
had four children. The first-born died in infancy. 
Mary is the wife of Samuel Kerr, an attorney of Chi- 
cago. Nellie was born next in order. 

Mr. Dunton is the youngest child of his parents, 
and passed the years of his boyhood and youth al- 
ternately on the farm and at the schools of Belvidere, 
until he was 17 years of age, when he matriculated 
at the University of the State of Iowa, at Iowa City. 
He was a student four years in the Literary Depart- 
ment of that institution, and was graduated in June, 
1875, with the degree of A. B. In the same year he 
entered the Union College of Law in Chicago, where 
he was graduated in 1877, after two years of close 
application to the study of law. 

Coming to Sycamore he formed a business relation 
with the late R. L. Divine, which continued to exist 
till the fall of 1880. Since that date Mr. Dunton 
has conducted the connections of his office singly, 
and has built up a fine and popular practice. 

Mr. Dunton is a representative of a New England 
family of the best type; one that has occupied a 
front rank in the circles of culture and refinement for 
generations, and whose genuine claims have given it 
a prominence second to none. He brings to his life 






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de kalb county. 



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' work liis inheritance of self-respect and the capacity 



] for earnest effort, which is conspicuously the dowry 

• descending to him from his ancestral stock. To young 

and rising men of his calibre the profession looks 

' . hopefully for its redemption from the evils which are 

upon it in these latter days. 

Mr. Dunton was elected City Attorney of Syca- 
more in the spring of 1883. 



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"ohn P. Smith, farmer on the southwest 
sMc (pjarter of section 36, Cortland Township, 
Z*^* was born in West Somers, Westchester Co., 
N. Y., Feb. 28, 1809. His father, Samuel 
Smith, was born in Westchester Co., N. Y., of 
English descent, was a cooper by vocation all 
his life, and died in his native county, about 32 years 
of age. The mother of John P., Elizabeth, nee 
Nichols, also a native of that county and of English 
ancestry, died in the same county, aged about 79 
years. His grandfather first settled on Long Island, 
N. Y. 

The subject of this biographical sketch lived, after 
his father's decease, with a man in Putnam Co., N.Y., 
working for his board and clothing, from the age of 
nine until he was 16 years of age. He then served 
an apprenticeship of five years at the wagon-maker's 
trade, and then never followed it a single day after- 
ward. His next career was as a violinist for a travel- 
ing circus most of the time for 12 years, and part of 
the time as manager, when he made about $r4,ooo. 
He then bought a farm of 120 acres in Putnam Co., 
N. Y., and managed it for four years, going then into 
the milk business in New York city, four years. Next, 
he returned and purchased another farm in Putnam 
County, of 130 acres, and followed the daily business 
for six years, making a specialty also of fat cattle 
and sheep; sold this place, bought his father-in-law's 
farm, and resided upon it two years; sold that to 
Daniel Drew, came West, to Pike Co., 111., looked 
around a month, and then throughout the State for 
a year, when he finally, in 1852, bought the quarter 
section where he now resides. To his original pur- 
chase he subsequently added until atone time he had 
as much as 700 acres. His present place was clean 
prairie when he came here, with only a small house 
upon it. Although Mr. Smith had no school educa- 

v- ><x *:- ^^^- — ^-^m 




tion with which to begin life, nor even a cent of 
money, he has taught himself reading, writing and 
arithmetic, as well as those business principles which 
have enabled him to accumulate property by the 
habits of honest industry; and he has accordingly 
made his home a substantial one, and earned a high 
reputation among his fellow citizens. He has been 
Supervisor, Highway Commissioner, and School 
Director, and in his. political principles he acts with 
the Republican party. 

He was first married Jan. 20, 1836, to Zillab 
Haines, who was born Oct. 14, 1814, in Westchester 
Co., N. Y., died July 31, 1871, and is buried in the 
Maple Park burying ground. Her father, Horace 
Haines, died in Putnam Co., N. Y., about 63 years 
of age, and her mother, Jane, nee Youmans, also 
died in that county, at the age of about 88 years. 
Mr. Smith was married a second time Oct. 12, 1873, 
to Mrs. Eliza Denton, widow of Solomon Denton 
and daughter of Harry and Rebecca (Smith) Crosby. 
Mr. Smith's children are all by his first wife, namely : 
Lemore M., Leonard Y., Eliza J. and Horace; and his 
wife's children by her first husband are, Mary, Re- 
becca, Julia, Lavinia, Elizabeth, Gilbert, and one 
deceased. 



'in^avid W. Hartman, editor and proprietor of 



. the Genoa Issue, was born Feb. 9, 1854, 
r in Cortland, De Kalb County. His par- 
ents, Elias and Almira (Churchill) Hartman. 
are natives respectively of Pennsylvania and 
the State of New York. In 1837 they came 



to De Kalb County and "took up" a homestead 
claim in what is now the township of Cortland, set- 
tling thereon previous to the Government survey. 
They sold the place later and removed to Sycamore, 
the father engaging in a mercantile enterprise, in 
which he was interested nine years. At the expira- 
tion of that period he disposed of his commercial 
business by sale and became again a farmer in the 
the township of Cortland, prosecuting that business 
about four years. His next enterprise was in the 
capacity of hotel-keeper in the village of Cortland, 
and he conducted affairs in that line seven years. 
He again sold out and removed to Rochelle, 111., re- 
I maining three years, and returning thence to Syca- 






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DE KALB COUNTY. 



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more, where he has since resided. The other 
children belonging to the family are Delos, Philo, 
Mary, Rosetta, Wallace and Carrie D. 

Mr. Hartman passed the early part of his life in 
attendance at school, and at 18 years of age was 
apprenticed to learn the trade of a printer in the 
office of the True Republican at Sycamore, under the 
direction of the editor, H. L. Boies. In 1880 he be- 
came associated with the latter in the proprietorship 
of the paper, the connection existing until September, 
1884, when Mr. Hartman severed his connection 
with the journal and established the Issue at Genoa. 
His enterprise had a gratifying inception, met with 
favor and support, and is rapidly gaining ground and 
securing a permanent foothold. Mr. Hartman is a 
Republican in political preference, but is conducting 
his newspaper on the neutral principle. 

His marriage to Mary Robinson took place at 
Sycamore, Aug. 7, 1879, and they have had two chil- 
dren, — Ethel C, born Jan. 2, 1881, and died Aug. 8 
following; and Floyd B., born March 16, 1884. Mrs. 
Hartman is the daughter of Horace and Ann E. 
Robinson, both natives of Massachusetts, whence 
they removed to Illinois. The former died at Saxon, 
Henry Co., 111., and the latter resides at Genoa. 



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j, pji^bram Ellwood, manufacturer of barbed 
|MSC wire fence stretchers at Sycamore, is the 
^° " son of Hon. Reuben Ellwood, M. C, whose 
§1 sketch may be found elsewhere. He is con- 
* nected with the business interests of the firm 
lately known as the R. Ellwood Manufactur- 
ing Company, whose affairs have recently been as- 
sumed by the senior stock-holder. 

Mr. Ellwood was born March 26, 1850, in Scotia, 
Schenectady Co., N. Y. He was a pupil at school 
until he was 16 years of age, when he engaged as a 
railroad contractor, operating at various points in the 
management of construction corps of different lines, 
among which were the New Orleans, Mobile & Texas 
Railroad and a line formerly known as the Milwau- 
kee & Northern. On the termination of his transac- 
tions in that capacity, he engaged in the duties of a 
freight and passenger conductor, following that line 
of business on various railroads. He was an attache 
of the United States Mail service on the Missouri, 




VS 



Kansas & Texas, on the Chicago & Northwestern 
and on the Chicago, Lafayette & Cincinnati Rail- 
roads. 

In the fall of 1877 he entered upon the responsi- 
bilities of the position of Superintendent of the R. 
Ellwood Manufacturing Company, in which he was 
engaged until the fall of 1880. At that date he en- 
gaged in the manufacture of wire-fence stretchers 
and novelties, in December, 1884, consolidating his 
interests with his former business and becoming 
manager. 

Mr. Ellwood was married Jan. 3, 1876, to Emma 
L. Garvin, and they have four children: Mildred 
G. was born Feb. 3, 1878; Sallie E., July 18, 1879; 
Reuben, Jr., Sept. 25, 1881; Emma E., Aug. 7, 
1883. Mis. Ellwood was born Dec. 6, 1848, in 
Chichester, N. H. 

Mr. Ellwood has officiated one term as Alderman 
of Sycamore. f > 

tlib'W^k w - c - Joslyn, farmer on the south- 
} sSi'!. wc ^' quarter of the southeast quarter of 
: ,^y' ^ section 29, Cortland Township, was bom in 
'jRiy Darien, Genesee Co., N. Y., Nov. 22, 1824, 
^ and when ten years of age moved with his par- 
* ents to Erie Co., N. Y. In July, 1844, he came 
by steamboat to Chicago, that place having then only 
5,000 inhabitants. He came on to Sycamore with 
Andrew Lovell and Homer Roberts, and in October 
following he went to Wisconsin and spent the 1 1 
ensuing winters in the pineries; the summers he 
spent on the Mississippi River, sawing and rafting 
lumber to St. Louis, Mo., or was at Sycamore. While 
in the pineries he learned the Chippewa language of 
the Indians. He walked n times to the pineries, 
a distance of 300 miles, and walked from La Salle 
and Peru to Sycamore when he saw no other human 
being on the whole route except at Paw Paw and Shab- 
bona Grove. Once he drove an ox team to the 
pineries, and his only stopping places were the hotels 
along the way, which were generally 40 miles apart! 
In 1856 he quit lumbering and bought 400 acres 
of land, of Mr. West, the banker at Geneva; the 
next year he sold to his partner, L. F. Dow, but in 
1858 he bought back 60 acres, on which he has since 
resided and prospered. He has borne a share of the 






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DE KALB COUNTY. 



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public burden by serving as Overseer of the Poor and 
Path Master. 

Mr. Joslyn was married June 18, 1856, to Mrs. 
Philura L. White, widow of George H. White, who 
died in Calfornia in 1852. They had one child, George 
M., bom May 8, 1849, who is now a resident of Kan- 
sas. Her father, Martin L. l.owel, was born in Lani- 
ster, N. H., Dec. 14, 1792, and was in the War of 
18 1 2, and was a pensioner. Her mother, Melinda 
C. La Porte, was born in New Jersey, June 6, 1798. 
Both of them died in Sycamore. Her parents came 
to this country in 1870, but she herself had come in 
1855. Mrs. J. was born in 1825, in Brookfield, 
Washington Co., Vt. Mr. Joslyn's father, Orsamus 
R., was born in 1S00 and died in 1864, in Alden, 
Erie Co., N. Y.; and his mother, Osia, nee Sprague, 
was born in r8o6, and died in the above county, in 
1844. The children of Mr. and Mrs. Joslyn are: 
Colin C, born Dec. 9, 1857, now an attorney at 
law in Minneapolis, Minn.; Carlin I)., born May 1, 
1859, now at Deer Lodge, Montana, 600 miles north- 
west of Salt Lake City; Dan R., born Oct. 7, 1863, 
and died in 1870; Minnie O. and Linnie R., twins, 
were born April 8, 1870. 



ames M. Dayton, of the firm of Dayton & 
f Stafford, dealers in live stock at Sycamore, 
was born Jan. r6, 1839, in the township of 
Cortland, and has been a resident of De Kalb 
County all his life. His father, Alvin Dayton, 
was born in 1S09 in Vermont, and removed 
with his family to De Kalb County in its earliest days. 
He is the oldest living pioneer settler of Cortland 
Township. The mother of James M., Abigail, nee 
Wyman, is a native of Massachusetts. 

Mr. Dayton is the second in order of birth of six 
children born to his parents, four of whom are still 
living. He began his struggle with fate on attaining 
his majority, and soon found himself the possessor of 
90 acres of land, the result of persistent energy and 
perseverance in laudable effort. The property was 
located in his native township and he continued its 
proprietor six years. At the end of that time he 
bought a farm in the town of Virgil, in Kane County. 
His possessions there now embrace 320 acres, the 
property being in charge of a tenant. 

I n 1 87 t he came to Sycamore and embarked in 

X : ; > ^^ ^-^D 





the enterprise in which he is now occupied, and also 
engaged in the management of a restaurant in part- 
nership with his brother. Four years later he re- 
turned to his farm, and after a stay of nearly three 
years became again a factor in the business element 
of Sycamore. The shipments during the busy season 
of Messrs. Dayton & Stafford average about 100 car- 
loads. In summer Mr. D. operates a large road- 
grader, and among other merchandise they deal in 
drain tile and sewer pipe. 

The wife of Mr. Dayton was formerly Ann A. 
Ewings, and their marriage took place Oct. 7, 1861. 
Mrs. Dayton was born in Ohio, and is the daughter 
of George and Deborah Ewings. The children born 
of their union are five in number. Mary, born Jan. 
5, 1863, is the wife of Herbert E. Harmon, agent for 
a nursery house, and resident at Morenci, Mich.; 
Grant A. was born Dec. 5, 1865, in Cortland Town- 
ship; Nora A. was born Sept. 25, 1867 ; Lottie, Oct. 
2i, 1869, in Virgil Township; Josie, Sept. 17, 1873, 
in Sycamore Township. 




-S3= 



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lexander Crawford, merchant at Genoa, 
was born Dec. 22, 1822, in the State of 
Pennsylvania, where his parents, Alexan- 
der and Rachel (Kidd) Crawford, were also 
born. They removed thence with their chil- 
dren in the fall of r839, and settled in the 
township of Sycamore, where their mother died, in 
1851. Later, the father went to Iowa and died 
there. 

Mr. Crawford is the second son of his parents, 
who became the parents of eight children. He 
passed the earlier years of his life obtaining his edu- 
cation and assisting on his father's farm. His first 
independent venture in business was on a rented 
farm, on which he operated two years, and at the end 
of that time pre-empted 160 acres of land in Genoa 
Township. On this he prosecuted the interests of a 
farmer until 1873, when he bought another farm, of 
which he took possession and was engaged in culti- 
vating two years. In 1S75 he removed to Genoa 
village and began to operate in butter and eggs, 
gradually extending his relations until he converted 
them into those of a general merchant. He is con- 
ducting a very extensive business, one of the leading 



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DE KALB COUNTY. 



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enterprises at Genoa, and manages his affairs in a 
brick building, which he erected in the summer of 
1881. His aggregate of annual sales amounts to 
about $18,000. His farm in the township of Genoa 
comprises 376 acres of valuable, well-improved land. 
Mr. Crawford is in sympathy with the Republican 
element in politics, and has held the offices of Justice 
of the Peace and Highway Commissioner. He is 
also a member of the Masonic fraternity. 

His marriage to Laura Shurtliff took place Dec. 
25, 1845, in Genoa Township, and they have five 
children, — Theresa, William H., Milton H., Clark E. 
and Carl B. The oldest daughter is the wife of 
Charles Smith and resides in Genoa Township. 



iflfeoratio 




— -o* 



H. Mason, capitalist, resident at 
Sycamore, was born Feb. 19, 1829, in the 
township of Warren, Herkimer Co., N. Y. 
The family genealogy has been preserved, the 
record showing that Sampson Mason, the earliest 
ancestor who became a citizen of the New 
World, was a soldier and officer of the army of Crom- 
well and probably belonged to the celebrated Iron- 
sides Regiment. In 1650, after the Restoration, he 
came to America and located at Rehoboth, Mass. 
He was a member of the Free-Will Baptist Church 
in England and was active in establishing the Second 
Baptist Church Society at Swansea, in the Bay State. 
He married a lady named Russell, and they became 
the parents of 12 children. Their son, Pelatiah 
Mason, was born in 1669 and was married May 22, 
1694, to Hepzibah Brooks. Eleven children were 
born to them, of whom Russell was the tenth in order 
of birth. He was born April 21, 17 14, and married 
Rhoda Kingsley June 5, 1736. The children of 
whom they became the parents were 12 in number. 
Philip was born Jan. 29, 1745, and married Mercy 
Scott. They became the parents of 12 children. 
Their son, Russell Mason (2d), was born Feb. 25, 
7769, and was married on Sunday, Dec. 30, 1792, to 
Ruth Lapham. Hiram Mason was the fifth of their 
nine children. His birth occurred Sept. 17, 1805, in 
Warren, Herkimer Co., N. Y., and he married Fanny 
Brown, a native of German Flats, born Aug. 9, 1808. 
They were the parents of Mr. Mason of this sketch. 
The Mason family continued residents of Massachu- 





setts until 1794, when Russell Mason (2d) removed 
from South Adams to the State of New York. He 
was a pioneer settler of Fairfield, Herkimer County, 
where he became owner of a large tract of timber 
land, which he cleared and converted into a fine and 
valuable farm. Later, he removed with his family to 
Warren Township in the same county. 

Hiram Mason and his wife died when their son 
was in his childhood. The latter, thrown on his own 
resources at an unusually early period in life, devoted 
every energy to the amelioration of the circumstances 
in which he found himself and in establishing his 
prosperity on a firm basis. The first important event 
of his life was his marriage, and two years later he 
came to Illinois and engaged in agricultural pursuits 
at Sycamore, combining therewith extensive traffic in 
real estate. He purchased tracts of unimproved 
land, which he redeemed from its original state and 
afterwards sold. He became the owner of 200 acres 
of land in the western part of Sycamore (including 
the Joseph Sixbury farm), which he laid out in lots, 
and portions of which he sold. He also platted one 
division, now known as Mason's Addition. The 
grounds connected with his residence on State Street, 
including four acres, five dwellings variously located 
and several lots lying in different sections of the cor- 
poration, are still in his possession. He owns about 
2,500 acres of land in Iowa, still lying uncultivated, 
and he is also the proprietor of 1,000 acres of fine 
farming land in De Kalb and Ogle Counties, which 
is rented. In addition to his transactions in real 
estate, Mr. Mason operates in loans. He is a Douglas 
Democrat. 

In 187 1, associated with James S. Waterman, he 
formed a stock company and organized the First 
National Bank of Sycamore, of which he was elected 
Vice-President. His connection with the institution 
ceased in 1875, since which he has conducted finan- 
ciering in a private capacity. When the Sycamore 
& Cortland Railroad was built he became one of its 
stock- holders, and has also conducted an abstract 
business, the firm style in that avenue being Baily & 
Mason. 

The marriage of Mr. Mason to Mary E. Tredway 
occurred Feb. 28, 1850, in the village of Little Lakes 
in Warren Township. Mrs. Mason was born in that 
township April 18, [832, and was the daughter of 
Belia and Philotheta (Marshall) Tredway. Her 



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father was an attorney-at-law. Of tliis union four, 
daughters were born, two of whom are deceased. 
Eliza V. was born in Mohawk, Herkimer Co., N. Y.i 
May 29, 1851, and died May 12, 1853, at Sycamore; 
Fanny F. was born at Sycamore Jan. 7, 1856, and 
was married Oct. 30, 1878, to Walter H. Loomis ; 
Libbie F., born March 12, 1865, at Sycamore, died 
March 7, 1869; Mary Maud was born at Sycamore 
Aug. 17, 1871. 'Their mother died Aug. 25, 1882. 

The portraits of Mr. Mason and his deceased wife 
may be found on preceding pages. 





£~ohn Patterson, farmer, resident at Genoa, 
f was born April s, 182 1, in Meadville, Pa. 
He is the oldest son of Joseph and Eleanor 
(Compton) Patterson. His parents were born 
in Pennsylvania and came to McHenry Co., 
111., in 1846. They retained their residence 
there until 1864, when they removed to De Kalb 
County, settling in the township of Genoa, where the 
death of the father occurred, March 18, 1865. The 
mother died July 3, 1875. Their children were born 
in the following order: Rebecca, John, Joseph, 
David, William, Henry, Margaret E., James, George 
and Robert. 

Mr. Patterson is the oldest son and came to Mc- 
Henry County when he was 24 years of age, in 1845. 
He resided there until the fall of 1862, the date of 
his removal to De Kalb County, and purchased 40 
acres of land in the township of Genoa. He has in- 
creased his landed estate until he is now the pro- 
prietor of 200 acres of land in the county of De Kalb. 
He located in the village of Genoa on his removal 
hither. Mr. Patterson is a Republican in political 
sentiment and has held various positions of official 
trust in the community to which he belongs. 

He was married in Genoa, Nov. 20, 185 1, to Mary 
J. Gregory. She was born Dec. 24, 1832, and they 
have had a family of eight children : Eleanor J., born 
Junes, 1853; John R., Sept. 18, 1854; James C, 
April 8, 1856; Lyman L., Sept. 24, 1857; Caroline, 
Dec. 25, 1859; Joseph, Aug. 8, 1862 ; Fred G., Dec. 
17,1872; and Lew E., June 24, 1878. Lyman L. 
died April 2, 1874, when he was 16 years of age. 

The parents of Mrs. Patterson, Ezra S. and Jane 
(Brown) Gregory, were natives respectively of Con- 

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necticut and Maine. After their marriage they set- 
tled in the State of New York, and were there 
resident until 1837, when they settled in Genoa 
Township. They have had seven children, three of 
whom grew to maturity, — Mary J., Starr C. and Wil- 
liam G. 






rthur J. Thompson, dentist at Sycamore, 
ffspfjjwas born April 24, 1848, in Utica, Oneida 
WM Co, N. Y. His father, John J. Thompson, 
il&T was born April 6, 181 3, in Albany, N. Y, and 
r was by vocation a shoemaker. The latter be- 
came a soldier of the Civil War and was' 
wounded at Chickamauga, the injury being the primal 
cause of his death, which occurred April 21, 1883, at 
Polo, 111. Barbara B. (Brand) Thompson, the mother, 
was born Jan. 6, 1813, at Eichelfechen, Scotland, 
and resides with her daughter at Polo, 111. Two of 
their six children are living. Mary E. is the widow 
of Cornelius Wadsworth, a former harness dealer at 
'Polo. Charles W. was killed April 7, 1862, at the 
battle of Shiloh, when he was 20 years of age. Jen i 1 1 
C. is deceased. She died at the age of 20 and was a 
young lady of superior musical education, being a 
fine pianist and vocalist. Arthur and Florence were 
twins. The latter died at the age of six years. 
James is deceased. 

The enlistment of his father in the war for the 
Union necessitated the removal of Mr. Thompson 
from school when he was 14 years old, and he 
learned the trade of a harness-maker. He was after- 
wards employed in various mercantile houses until 
1 87 1. He had been frugal and managed his affairs 
with the purpose of preparing for his profession, and 
in that year he became a student in dentistry in the 
office of Charles H. Carnaga at Polo, 111. At the 
end of four years he established his office indepen- 
dently and operated about 18 months. In the fall 
of 1874 he founded his business at Sycamore, in 
which he has won the reward due to the substantial 
merits of his work and has a popular and increasing 
business. Dr. Thompson is an active and influential 
member of the Odd Fellows Order and belongs to 
the Patriarchal Circle. 

He was married March 25, 1875, in Polo, to Elsie 



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M., daughter df Alfred and Mariah Hunter. Their 
children were bom as follows: Florence J., Dec. 19, 
1875; Clara 1!., Feb. 8, 1S79; John A., May 20, 
1881. Mrs. Thompson was bum April 19, 1847, in 
Colchester, N. Y. 



:, ames P. Brown, farmer, section 29, Genoa 
Township, was born Jan. 31, 1833, in Ben- 
s' son, Hamilton Co., N. Y. He is the son 



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of Jeremiah L. and Judith (Richardson) Brown, 
%F of whom a more extended account is given in 

the sketches of D. S., J. W. and C. A. Brown, 
to be found elsewhere in this volume. At the age of 
four years he accompanied his parents to De Kalb 
County, and has been since that age a resident of 
the township of Genoa, and is a farmer of promi- 
nence and a citizen of influence. He owns 429 
acres of land, lying principally in Genoa Township, 
and is also the proprietor of 504 acres in Storey Co., 
Iowa. In political sentiment and connection he is a 
Republican. 

His marriage to Susan M., daughter of Peter S. 
and Barbara A. Pratt, occurred April S, 1854, in 
Elgin, 111. They have been the parents of 15 chil- 
dren, three of whom are not living. The survivors 
are — James L., Esther E., Annie R., Elva L., Ar- 
thur B., William J., Lora and Lena (twins), Franklin 
B., Susie A., Alta B. and Ethel A. Ida and two 
children unnamed are deceased. 

s&iHJHfr e : '>- 

*{f|||> dward Hoxsey, a business man of Som- 
onauk, was born Jan. 11, 1834,111 Berk- 
shire Co., Mass., and is a son of Alanson 
^^ and Nancy (Jones) Hoxsey. The family re- 
moved in 1836 to Serena, La Salle Co., 111., 



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where the father became an extensive land- 
holder, owning at one time 800 acres of land. The 
latter was a native of Berkshire County and was a 
farmer in the Bay State previous to his removal to 
La Salle County. 

Mr. Hoxsey is the only child of his parents and 
was but two years of age when his parents became 
residents of the State of Illinois. He remained cm 




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his father's farm until he was 23 years of age, coming 
in 1S56 to Somonauk, where he engaged in buying 
grain and stock. Later he became interested in a 
steam flouring mill (since burned), which he con- 
ducted about eight years. He has also been engaged 
in dry-goods business about five years, and afterward 
in the sale cf hardware sundries, operating in those 
avenues of business in connection with his grain and 
stock interests. His transactions represent about 
$200,000 annually. In the fall of 1884 he built the 
Somonauk skating-rink, a structure 28x96 feet in 
dimensions. 

Mr. Hoxsey was married March 3, 1854, in Serena, 
La Salle Co., 111., to Sarah Mclnturf, and they have 
had four children : Isabella, first-born child, is de- 
ceased ; Ella, Frank and Florence are the names of 
the survivors. Mrs. Hoxsey is the daughter of 
Samuel and Sarah (Debolt) Mclnturf, and is a native 
of the township of Rutland, La Salle County. 

\ f Jf%; V. Joslyn, farmer, section 33, Cortland 
': Iff! !; Township, was born in Darien, Genesee 
•|[13^S Co., N. Y., June 3, 1S25, and was the son 
i|yj of Phineas and Lorinda (Woodworth) Joslyn, 
■)ti" natives of New York State, the former of whom 
' * was born April 4, 1792, and died in August, 
1868, at Sycamore, this county, and the latter was 
bom April 3, 1797, and died Nov. r, [881, also in 
this county. 

Mr. Joslyn was brought up on a farm in his na- 
tive county, and in his 14th year came with his par- 
ents to this county, where lie has ever since resided. 
He received a common-school education, and was 
married May :i, 1S5 1, to Misr, Sabrina, daughter of 
Rudolphus and Polly (McKay) Burr. Her father 
was born Jan. 20, 1796, in Onondaga Co., N. V., and 
died July n, 1865, of apoplexy, in this county; and 
her mother was born Feb. 28, 1796,111 Wilkesbarre, 
Wyoming Co., Pa., and died March 6, 1S66, also in 
this county. Her father was liberally educated and 
spent many years of his life as a teacher, keeping 
school some 14 months in Canada after the War of 
[812. Her grandfather, who was a native of Con- 
necticut, cut his way through the woods most of the 
distance to Onondaga Co., N. Y., where he was after- 
ward County Judge lor several years. Her parents 



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were married April -•, [820. In 1.S47, with a family 
of three children, they emigrated from Erie Co , N. 
\\, to this county, arriving March 3, and settling in 
Cortland Township. Her father and youngest brother, 
however, came here the previous year. 

Mr. and Mis. Joslyn have had four children, all of 
whom are living, namely; Ida M., bom iii Sycamore, 
111., May 29, 1856; Mary L., in Pampas, now Cort- 
land, Dec. 7, [863; Phineas H., in Cortland, April 
12, 1S6S; and Rudolphus, V., Feb. 3, 1870, in Cort- 
land Township, on the old farm. 

Mr. Joslyn has been School Director, but has de- 
clined the numerous other offices tendered him. He 
votes the Republican ticket. He has. 260 acres of 
land in his home farm, and owns land also on sec- 
tions 34 and 2S. 



acob Spansail, a farmer situated on section 
ffi EyllliJ j" 24, Genoa Township, was bom Dec. (6, 
InS'^" l ^5i> m Germany. His parents, Jacob 
' and Elizabeth D. Spansail, were natives of 
Germany and in 1850 emigrated to America, 
locating in Ohio. The) 1 had a family of seven 
children, — Jacob, Sebastian, Rosa, George, Dora, 
Catherine and Fred. The father died in Michigan 
while en route to Illinois to visit his son : the mother 
survives. 

Mr. Spansail was about 17 years of age when he 
accompanied his parents to America, and he lived in 
the Buckeye State three years, coming thence to 
Kane Co., 111. Two years later, in 1855, he removed 
to De Kalb County and became the owner by pur- 
chase of 40 acres in the township of Genoa, and has 
since maintained his residence thereon. His home 
estate now includes 320 acres and nearly the entire 
acreage is under improvement. His herd of cattle 
includes 50 head on an average and he fattens about 
65 hogs yearly. 

Mi. Spansail was married March 29, 1857, to 
Elizabeth Vote, and they have seven children, — Mary 
lv, George II., John M., Rosa (died when three 
months old), Dora J., Katie M. and Frederick \V. 
Mrs. Spansail was born March 30, 1837, in Craw- 
ford Co., Ohio, and is one of ten children born to her 
parents, — Elizabeth, Mary A., John M., Anna W., 
1, William H., Jacob G., Margaret, Charles F. 





and Franklin P. The parents, John and Anna M. 
(Karn) Vote, are natives of Pennsylvania and Ger- 
many. 

Mr. Spansail is a Republican in politics and has 
been a prominent man in the local offices in his 
township, having held the position of Road Com- 
missioner 15 years and also that of School Director. 
He is a man of acknowledged business abilities and 
acted as salesman for the patrons of the New Lebanon 
cheese factory for three years. In 1882 he was ap- 
pointed Postmaster of New Lebanon. 



eorge W. Dubrock, retired merchant, res- 
ident at Somonauk, was born Feb. 1, 18^0, 
at Rehna, Mechlenberg, in the northern 
part of Germany, also the native place of his 
parents, John and Maiia Dubrock, who had 10 
children. Mr. Dubrock is one of four surviv- 
ing children. He was 15 years of age when he left 
school and began to operate as a salesman in a mer- 
cantile establishment in the city of Hamburg, Ger- 
many, where he was employed until he emigrated to 
New York, arriving in that city in 1852. He spent 
a year in the great metropolis engaged as a cigar 
packer. At the end of that time he came to Danby, 
Da Page Co., 111. In company with his brother, 
Charles J. Dubrock, he opened a general store, in 
which relation he operated nearly seven years. In 
the fall of t86o he opened his mercantile enterprise 
at Somonauk, which he prosecuted with satisfactory 
results, until his retirement in January, 1879. Mr. 
Dubrock is the owner of his fine residence and 
grounds, the latter including one and a half acres ; 
also the same quantity south of his residence, which 
is situated on the La Salle County line, and the land 
in its rear is in that county. He has another town 
lot in another part of Somonauk village, and owns 
113 acres of farming land one mile east of that 
place. 

He was married Oct. 20, 1859, in Du Page Co., 
111., to Amelia Anderson, and they have 10 children, 
as follows: George E. is a clerk in a wholesale boot 
and shoe store ; Helen L. and Zillah are next in order 
of birth; John W. is a clerk in the same establish- 
ment in Chicago where his brother is employed. 
Jennie, Clara, Frederick F., Mary, Elizabeth and Loe 



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are the names of the others. Mrs. Dubrock was 
born July 29, 1S38, in Rochester, N. Y., and is the 
daughter of William and Mary (Headley) Anderson. 
The former died in Aurora, 111., Sept. 4, 1865. The 
latter is livingjin Aurora. The father of Mr. Du- 
brock died about 1870. His mother is 85 years of 
age, and is still living in Germany. His wife is a 
member of the Methodist Episcopal Church. 



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^rederick B. Townsend, cashier of the 
|S|L private banking establishment of Daniel 
^f " ,N Pierce & Co. at Sycamore, was born July 
30, 1858, in Malta Township, De Kalb County. 
Amos \V. Townsend, his father, is one of the 
firm, and is in active business life. Eleanor 
(Pierce) Townsend, his mother, is still living, and the 
family are residents of Sycamore. 

Mr. Townsend was a student in the schools of 
Sycamore until he was 17 years of age, when he en- 
tered the Lombard University at Galesburg, 111., 
and spent three and a half years pursuing the studies 
of the scientific course in that institution. On com- 
pleting his education, he went to Chicago and was 
employed as a clerk in the wholesale and retail drug 
establishment of Gale & Blocki, where he was occu- 
pied one year; after which he entered Eastman's 
National Business College at Poughkeepsie, and after 
pursuing a full and thorough course of commercial 
study, was graduated, in May, 1881. He returned 
to Sycamore and assumed the duties of the position 
he has since fulfilled with ability and fidelity. 



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iiTames T. Powell, retired merchant, residing 
1^ at Somonauk, was born Oct. 17, 1S23, in 
Boston, Mass. Howell Powell, his father, 
was a native of Wales, and was a gardener by 
vocation. He emigrated to the United States 
in boyhood, and in 1837 he came to Illinois. 
He bought 256 acres of land in Northville, La Salle 
Co., 111., where he died in 1858. His wife, Mary A. 
(Pritchard) Powell, was a native of England, and 
died in April, 1862, in I. a Salle County. Only two 
of five children bom to them are now living. Wil- 



liam H., only brother of Mr. Powell of this sketch, 
is a farmer of Northville. 

Mr. Powell was brought up on the homestead of 
which he became half owner when he came into pos- 
session of his inheritance from his father's estate. 
He was one of the first of the California adventurers, 
whither he went in 1849. He returned to Northville 
in 185 1. His share of the homestead was 156 acres, 
and he purchased 200 acres additional, the whole 
constituting a valuable farm. He came to Somonauk 
in 1 86 1, and, associated with E. W. Lewis, engaged 
in buying and shipping grain and stock. This rela- 
tion continued about 10 years, when it terminated, 
and Mr. Powell engaged in the sale of drugs in com- 
pany with C. E. Wright. Their joint business was in 
existence one year, when Mr. Powell retired, and has 
since engaged in nothing of an active nature. He 
is a member of the Masonic fraternity, and belongs 
to the Aurora Commandery. 

He was married in Northville, La Salle Co, 111., 
March 16, 1852, to Ann Stafford. Their three chil- 
dren were born in Northville, as follows: Ida, Feb. 
3, 1853; Ella, Jan. 16, 1855; and Carrie, Jan. 6, 
1857. Mrs. Powell was born Feb. 26, 1S27, in 
Fabius, N. Y., and is the daughter of Jacob and 
Sarah (Doubleday) Stafford. 

I Ml ' 

j^ft'jjU alter G. Adams, manufacturer and dealer 
iiL!Iii!:_ in elevator supplies at Sandwich, is the 
son of Hon. Augustus Adams, of the 
Sandwich Manufacturing Company, and was 
born July 12, 1848, in Elgin, 111. (See 
sketch of Augustus Adams.) He was nine 
years of age when his parents removed their resi- 
dence to Sandwich, where his father established the 
manufacture of the Adams corn-sheller, under the 
firm style of A. Adams & Sons. The business 
became merged in the Sandwich Manufacturing 
Company in 1S69, and Mr. Adams, of this sketch, 
entered the shops to acquire a knowledge of the 
details of the business. Afterward he went to Mar- 
seilles in the interest of A. Adams & Sons, continu- 
ing his relations therewith after that branch was 
converted into the Marseilles Manufacturing Com- 
pany. He was placed in charge of the foundry 
I department, which he conducted about five years. 




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Subsequently he returned to the works at Sandwii h, 
and for a time was variously employed, finally becom- 
ing Assistant Superintendent. In January, 1SS4, he 
I hi .line proprietor of the elevator supply department, 
which lie still controls, the Sandwich Manufacturing 
any manufacturing the wares in which he 
deals. He employs one or two traveling salesmen, 
and ships his goods chiefly to the Western States. 
Mi. Adams is a Republican in political connection 
and principles, and is a member of the Mutual Aid 
Society. 

He was married June 8, 1869, in Sandwich, to 
Emma Cox. Their children are Lydia, born Aug. 7, 
1870; Walter Vincent, Oct. 20, 1S73; and Albert 
Henry, Aug. 6, 1S76. The oldest child was born in 
Marseilles; the births of the sons occurred at Sand- 
wich. Mrs. Adams was born Aug. 15, 1850, in Nor- 
folk, Va., and is the daughter of Major A. M. and 
Emmeline (Daniels) Cox. Her parents reside at 
Sandwich. 



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Hapt. William Davis, a retired farmer and 
^ a former sea Captain, resident at Sand- 



wich, was born Jan. 1, 1802, in Westport, 
'jfj' Mass. His father, Joseph Davis, was born in 
the same place, in Bristol Co., Mass., Jan. 15, 
1782; he was a farmer and died in Dart- 
mouth, Bristol County, in 1S64. The mother of 
('apt. Davis, Judith, nee Brightman, was born Jan. 2, 
1780, in Westport and died in the same place about 
the year 1816. 

Captain Davis is the oldest of his parents' seven 
children, five of whom are still living. He was 
reared on a faun to the age of 17 years, when he 
entered upon an apprenticeship to learn the business 
of a cooper, serving two years and five months. He 
obtained a situation as cooper on a winder, and went 
on a cruise which consumed 1 ; months and 25 
days. During seven months of that period the ves- 
sel was out of sight of land. The experience of this 
whaling voyage was pleasing, and Captain Davis de- 
cided to pursue a seafaring life, and spent three years 
before the mast. After that time he became chief 
mate of a merchant brig, serving in that rank three 





years, when lie was made Captain and continued his 
life on the sea eight years, commanding different ves- 
sels. During the fust two years he made five voyages 
to Pernambuco, South America, whither he carried 
cargoes of supplies and returning thence laden witli 
hides and sugar. He also visited the West Indies, 
Amsterdam, Liverpool and most other European 
ports. He suffered shipwreck three times, on every 
occasion the vessel but no lives being lost. 

Captain Davis abandoned his career as a naviga- 
tor in 1835, and came to where Sandwich now is, 
where he is one of the earliest of the first settlers. 
He is of the opinion that there were but three pio- 
neer settlers before him who are now living. Others 
now living who were here at that time were then in 
childhood. He was accompanied hither by his 
brother-in law, Major Dennis, and they together 
bought 100 acres of timber land. They afterwards 
divided their joint property and each took up prairie 
land. The Captain's estate at one time included 
400 acres, a part of which is still in his possession 
and forms the location of his residence. He lias 
platted two additions to Sandwich on the western 
side known as Davis' Second and Third Additions. 
In company with others, he bought a piece of land 
on the north side of the town, which is designated 
Davis' First Addition. The time and place was so 
primitive when Messrs. Davis and Dennis came 
hither that their milling was done at Dayton, La 
Salle County. His postoffice was at Holderman's 
Crove, 13 miles distant. 

Captain Davis sold parts of his farm from time to 
time until he had only a residue of 1 10 acres, which 
he sold to his son, its present owner. His first abode 
was a log house which had been erected on the tim- 
ber tract previous to his purchase, and in 1837 he 
built a small frame house which still stands in its 
original position on Church Street, west of his fine 
brick residence, which he built about 1869. Captain 
Davis has been a stock-holder in the Sandwich En- 
terprise Manufacturing Company since its organiza- 
tion. 

His marriage to Eliza Dennis occurred April 13, 
1826, in l'awtucket, Rhode Island. She was born 
Oct. 4, 1801, in Tiverton, R. I., and is the daughter 
of Major and Eunice Dennis. The record of the 
five children born to Captain and Mrs. Davis is as 
follows: William, Jr., was born M.iy 29, 1S29, and 




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died Sept. 27, 1831 ; Eliza was born March 8, 1834, 
and died Aug. 27, 1881 ; Mary .A. was born June 2, 
1836; George W., born July 30, 1838, is a farmer in 
Sandwich; Amy, born Dec. 25, 1842, is the wife of 
John Armstrong, of Marseilles, La Salle Co., 111. 

IHJIji B. Gilbert, attorney, Notary Public and 
Justice of the Peace at De Kalb, was born 
in Laurens, Otsego Co., N. Y., April 12, 
-S& 1822, and is the son of Abner and Betsey 
(Balcom) Gilbert. The former was born in 
Massachusetts, the latter in New York. They 
had four children, — George M., Eli B., Elizabeth E. 
and Martin M. 

Mr. Gilbert was about eight years old when his 
parents removed to Norwich, Chenango County, in 
his native State, and he was a resident there until 
his removal in 1847 to the county of which he has 
since been a citizen. He was an attendant at the 
common schools of his native State until he was 16 
years of age, when he became a student at Norwich 
Academy, which was then under the management of 
Benjamin F. Taylor, who has since won a distin- 
guished reputation as a poet. After studying there 
about two years he engaged in teaching, which con- 
stituted his vocation for six years, pursuing it three 
years at Sycamore, where he located on coming to 
Illinois. In early life he had acquired a practical 
knowledge of the trade of builder. In 1850 he began 
its pursuit as a vocation and was occupied as a car- 
penter until 1856. Meanwhile he had devoted his 
leisure to the study of law. In the year named he 
first entered upon the career of an attorney and two 
years later secured admission to the Bar of Illinois by 
application to the Supreme Court. He has since 
prosecuted the practice of his profession in De Kalb 
and adjoining counties without intermission. 

In April, 1854, lie established his business at De 
Kalb. Two years afterward he was elected Justice 
of the Peace and has officiated continuously in that 
position since. In 1S66 he was elected President of 
the Village Board and became ex-officio Supervisor of 
l>e Kalb Township. He is a Republican in politics, 
and is the owner of considerable city property. 

A most commendable feature of Mr. Gilbert's labors 
as Justice of the Peace is his desire to amicably set- 




tle all differences between litigants. He ever lends 
his influence to make peace, which he has often done, 
and many are the differences he has thus caused to 
be settled without suit and sent the parties home 
happy. 

What a blessing it is to a community to have such 
men as public officials and guardians of the public 
peace and promoters of good will and harmony be- 
tween neighbors ! Thus, when the true character of 
Mr. Gilbert's official life is made known it is easily 
understood why he has been continuously elected to 
fill the office for almost 30 years. 

In the summer and fall of 1S60, Mr. Gilbert was 
editor of the De Kalb Leader, and advocated the 
election of the celebrated Mr. Lincoln to the Presi- 
dency. 

Mr. Gilbert was married Dec. 25, 1851, to Lois A., 
daughter of Benjamin C. Needham. She was born 
in Vermont, which was the native State of her par- 
ents. Of three children born to Mr. and Mrs. Gil- 
bert, only one survives. In 1853 the family resided 
about six months in the village of Huntley's Station, 
McHenry County, he owning a house and lot there. 
During that time Josephine L., eldest child, was born. 
Her birth occurred Dec. 29, 1S53. She grew to 
womanhood and married John S. Orr, a resident of 
De Kalb. B. Viola M. was born Sept. 23, 1858, and 
married Edward E. Spooner, of Steward, Lee Co., 
111., where she died July 10, 1S75. Jessie Luella E. 
was born July 9, 1863, and died Sept. 6, 1865, of 
diphtheria. 

As Mr. Gilbert, the subject of the foregoing sketch, 
is a representative citizen in the legal profession of 
De Kalb County, the publishers place a lithographic 
likeness of the gentleman in this work, which may 
be found in close proximity. 





lll^lijah Stiles, retired farmer at Genoa, was 

born Nov. 8, 1829, in Sudbury, Rutland 

Co., Vt. His parents, Asahel and Fanny 

5S. (Smith) Stiles, were natives of Vermont and 

* removed to Canada, leaving the Dominion sev- 

\ eral years later to come to He Kalb County, 

where they settled in the fall of 1850, locating in the 

township of Genoa. The mother died there Jan. 9, 

1SS1 ; the demise of the fat her occurred Feb. 7, [883. 






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Their children were named Elijah, Mary, Aaron, 
iret, Martha and Araminta. 

Mr. Stiles was about two years of age when his 
parents removed to Canada, and came with them to 

Pe Kalb County. His education was obtained pre- 
vious to the age of 16 years in the public schools of 
the Dominion, where he was also engaged on the 
farm of his father. His parents were members of his 
family through the last year of their lives, as he 
owned half the home farm and finally became pro- 
prietor of the entire estate, which included 160 acres 
located in Genoa Township. He remained there 
resident until the fall of 1SS0, at which time he 
rented his farm and became a resident of Genoa. In 
politics he is identified with the Republican party 
and has been active in local official matters for a long 
period of years. From 1863 to 1865 he was resident 
of Pe Kalb and associated in business with his 
brother, Aaron K. Stiles, now a resident of Chicago. 
His marriage to Mary A. White took place at De 
Kalb, March 25, 1865, and they have three children : 
Mary P. was born Jan. 15, 1866, Asahel A., March 
26, 1868, and Nettie, June 25, 1870. Mrs. Stiles was 
born June S, 1S46, in Tioga Co., N. Y., and is the 
daughter of Alfred and Ruth (Gould) White. The 
former was born in Dutchess County, the latter in 
Tioga County, in the State of New York. About the 
year 1862 they came to Illinois, locating primarily in 
Kane County, and came thence a year later to De 
Kalb County, settling in the city of the same name. 
In 1877 they removed to Kansas, where the father 
died, Jan. 1, 1 88 1. The mother is still resident there. 
Their children, seven in number, were named as fol- 
lows: Edward D., Mary A., Benjamin S., Perry G., 
Mahala, Melissa and Sarah. 



eorge P. Wild, of the firm of G. P. Wild & 
Co., merchants at Sycamore, was born at 
Valatie, Columbia Co., N. Y. His father, 
vSjir* Nathan Wild, was a native of Manchester, 
Eng., and was by vocation a print manufact- 
urer, following that calling at Valatie after his 
removal to this country. The mother, Sarah (Henry) 
Wild, was born in Providence, R. I. They became 
the parents of nine children, live of whom are living 
(1885). 

Mr. Wild was a pupil at school until he was 17 





years old, when he became a salesman in the mer- 
cantile house of Freeland, Squiers & Co., of New 
York, where he continued until the spring of 1857, 
the date of his removal to Sycamore. Soon after, the 
firm of Rogers, Wild & Smith was formed, which 
afterwards became Rogers & Wild, and later was 
constituted as at present. The house is prominent 
in mercantile circles of Pe Kalb County, and their 
stoc k represents an average of about $15,000. 

Mr. Wild is and has been a leading business man 
of Sycamore. He is a member of the banking firm of 
Daniel Pierce & Co. In political connection and 
movements he is a Republican, and has officiated in 
several of the local city offices. 

He was married at Sycamore, in December, 1862, 
to Sarah, daughter of Daniel and Phebe Pierce, a 
native of Sullivan Co., N. Y. Three children are 
now (1S85) included in the family, — Daniel, Eleanor 
and Elizabeth. 




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' ' f$S3 j>phraim Depue, farmer, section 13, Genoa 
Township, is the son of Samuel and Eliza- 
beth (Ogden) Depue, and is one of a family 
of 10 children. Ose, Sarah, Benjamin, Jesse, 
Phebe and Theo C. are the names of his broth- 
ers and sisters who reached mature life. Three 
children died in infancy. 

Mr. Depue was born Oct. ir, 1816, in Sussex Co., 
N. J. At the age of iS years he was apprenticed to 
acquire a knowledge of the wagon-making trade, and 
served an indentureship of three years. He em- 
barked independently in the business, in which he 
operated about 20 years. In 1848 he became a 
citizen of Illinois, taking up his residence at Elgin, 
Kane County. He passed three years there in the 
pursuit of his trade, and about 185T entered the em- 
ployment of the old Galena, Chicago & Illinois Cen- 
tral Railroad Company, his route extending from 
Chicago to Freeport and from Dubuque to Centralia. 

He came to De Kalb County in 1861 and bought 
90 acres of land in Genoa Township, moving his 
family hither in the autumn of the same year. His 
homestead farm now comprises 360 acres, with 230 
acres under improvement, supplied with suitable and 
creditable farm buildings and well stocked. In 
political faith and connections Mr. Depue is idenli- 



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Red with the Republican party ; he has officiated as 
School Director and other local offices. 
* He was married April 21, 1838, in New Jersey, to 
Catherine M. Dennis, and they have five surviving 
children, — Lucy, Elizabeth, Henry C, Allen and 
Emma. Anna M., Catherine M., and Caroline A. 
and a child unnamed died in infancy. Mrs. Depue 
was born Sept. 26, 1813, in New Jersey, and is the 
daughter of John and Lucy Dennis. She had two 
brothers and two sisters, born in the following order: 
Elizabeth, Henry C , Allen and Emma. She is the 
oldest of her parents' children, and is a member of 
the Congregational Church. 

Justus Preston, one of the pioneers of De 
f Kalb County, now deceased, was born Dec. 
28, T793. He married Sina Hall, who was 
born Jan. 30, 1802, in Wallingford, Conn. 
They settled in Ohio, whence they came in 
1836 to De Kalb County, and settled on a 
claim on section 29, Genoa Township, where he was 
the first permanent resident. His land was part 
timber and part prairie. He built a log house on the 
border line between the two, and the primitive char- 
acter of the locality may be inferred from the fact 
that during the first year from the front door the 
deer and wolves might be seen wandering at will 
over the prairie. After the Government survey, when 
in 1843 the land came into market, Mr. Preston went 
to the land office in Chicago, where he proved his 
claim and received his title. He improved the entire 
acreage, built suitable and necessary farm buildings, 
and a comfortable frame house, where he resided, 
and where his death occurred. 

His widow died there Feb. 25, 1S69. Their chil- 
dren were named Henry, Augustus, Charles, George 
L., Norman and Julia E. The homestead is now 
owned and occupied by the youngest son. 

George L. Preston, son of the above, was born 
April 23, 1835, in Ohio, and was a little more than 
a year old when his parents removed to the home of 
their adoption. He received an elementary educa- 
tion in the district schools of Genoa Township, and 
he afterward studied at Mt. Morris Seminary, and 
spent six months at Bryant & Stratton's Commercial 
College at Chicago. After Completii g his studies at 

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the latter place he engaged in farming. In 1854, 
associated with a brother, he purchased 200 acres of 
land located on sections 17 and 20, in Genoa Town- 
ship, for which they paid $4 per acre. After 
improving the land considerably they sold it a few 
years later. Its present market value is $65 an 
acre. 

Mr. Preston was married Sept. 19, i864,to Lucinda 
May Wadley, and they have one child, Effie Iona. 
She was born near Toronto, Ont., and is the daugh- 
ter of Samuel B. and Hannah (Caswell) Wadley. 
Her father was a native of Vermont, and was a pen- 
sioner of the war of 181 2. During the latter part 
of his life he removed to Lower Canada, where he 
was married, and later went to Ontario. After a 
short residence there the family removed to Canada 
Corners, Kane Co., 111., where the parents died. 

After marriage Mr. Preston located on section 32, 
Genoa Township, on an improved farm which he had 
previously purchased. He erected an excellent class 
of frame buildings, where he lived until 1869. In 
that year he fixed his abode at Sycamore, where he 
owned the fine residence his family now occupy. On 
removal hither he engaged in the lumber trade, in 
which he operated four years. In 1874 he embarked 
in the sale of groceries and provisions, prosecuting 
that avenue of business eight years, when he retired. 
He still owns and rents his farm in Genoa Township, 
also his store at Sycamore. 

In his character as farmer, merchant and citizen, 
Mr. Preston commands the respect and good will of 
the generation of which he is a member. He is 
unobtrusive, considerate and hospitable, and in his 
retirement from the turmoil of active business life, is 
passing the years in the simplicity and quiet that 
befits his character. 



taassius M. Conrad, County Clerk of De 

^J;^ Kalb County, was born in the town of 

"^ North East, Erie Co., Pa., March 27, 

1845, and is the son of John M. and Mary 

E. (Smedley) Conrad. The former is a native 

of Pennsylvania, and the latter was born in 

Connecticut. They are living in Erie Co., Pa. 

Mr. Conrad passed his youthful days in his native 
place, and obtained" his elementary education at the 

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mj i North Bast, and subsequently attended 
the Erie City Ai aderay, in the State of his nativity. 
In [863 he made his w \ i" De Kalb County, reach- 
ing the township of Kingston April 7 of that year. 
Six days later he tame to Sycamore, and immediately 
entered upon the duties of Deputy County Clerk. 
He fulfilled the duties of the appointment continu- 
ously until Jan. z6, 1872, with the exception of a 
lew months in 1869. At the former date he was 
appointed to fill the vacancy created by the death of 
Wallace M. More. In April following he was elected 
tj Clerk, and has since been his own successor. 
11/ has also officiated as City Clerk from July, 1870, 
to April, 1872. The quality of the service rendered 
by Mr. Conrad is fully attested by the length of time 
he has retained his relations to the position of deputy 
and chief official, at this writing (1885) covering 1 
d of nearly a fourth of a century ; and the fact 
stands as a testimonial to the discretion and wisdom 
of the people of De Kalb County as it does to his 
integrity and efficiency. Politically, Mr. Conrad is a 
Republican of inflexible type. 

He was married Dec. 27, 1870,111 Chester, N. J., 
to Anna II. Beauers, and they have had two children, 
both of whom died in early infancy. Mrs. Conrad 
was born at Chester, Morris Co., N. J. Mr. Conrad 
and his wife are members of the Congregational 
Church, and he is a Trustee of the society 



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athaniel A. Haile, miller, at Lodi, Cortland 
Township, was born March S, 1S40, in 
Brooklyn, Vt., and is the son of Charles 
and Dre.xie (Balch) Haile, both of whom arc- 
natives of the Green Mountain State. His 
parents came to Illinois when he was an infant 
of six months, making the route hither by way of the 
.1 and lakes to Detroit, coming from the latter 
to Kane County with a team. His father pur- 
c hased .1 tract of unimproved land in the township 
ol St. Charles, paying therefor $2.50 an acre. The 
family are resident of St. Charles. 

Mr. Haile grew to manhood, engaged, as is the 
custom with sons of farmers, in farm labor and 
attending school. He entered the military service 
of the United States when he was 22 years of age, 




enlisting in August, 1S62, in Co. E, 127th 111. Vol. 
Inf. His regiment was assigned to the Army of the 
West, .unl was a portion of the command under 
Sherman in the campaign through Georgia and the 
Carolinas, marched under the triumphant banners to 
the sea, and took part in the final review at Wash- 
ington, D. C. Mr. Haile was under lire at Arkansas 
Post and at Yicksburg, and in the numerous en 
ments of the arduous campaign in which his regi- 
ment was involved. He obtained his discharge in 
July, 1S65, and returned to his father's farm, where 
he was occupied with its duties until 1882, the date 
of his removal to Maple Park. He is pleasantly sit- 
uated, and has an elegant residence. 

He was married March 8, 1870, to Jane Morgan, 
a native of Indiana. 



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"ohn Betz, dealer in lumber, agricultural 

1,- implements and builders' supplies, at 

'"^ Somonauk, was born Feb. 23, 1831, in the 

' Duchy of Nassau, Germany. His parents, 

Jfc J ost H enr . v an d Margaret Betz, died previous to 
his removal to the American Continent. Four 
of their children are now living. Two sons reside in 
Germany. Margaret, only daughter, came to the 
United States with her brother and is now the wife 
William Heun, a farmer in Clinton Township, De 
Kalb County. 

They came to the city of New York in 1854 and 
two months later proceeded thence to Chicago, 
where they remained a like length of time. In Jan- 
uary, 1855, Mr. Betz came to De Kalb County and 
was occupied one year in farming, after which he 
went back to Chicago and passed a year in the dry- 
goods house of Bowen Brothers. He went next to 
Burlington, Iowa, and was there employed six months 
in a lumber yard. He came subsequently to Somon- 
auk, where he spent several years in various avenues 
of employment. In February, 1876, in company 
with P. H. Thomas, he opened a lumber yard, their 
joint relation existing one year, and at the end of that 
time he bought the interest of his partner and has 
since operated alone. In the spring of 1883 he added 
a stock of agricultural implements, wagons, plows, 
etc., his investment in stock averaging about §1 1,000. 




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His trade is in a satisfactory condition and requires 
usually several assistants. 

Mr. Betz was married July 23, 1857, in Burlington, 
Iowa, to Barbara Koetha, a native of Bavaria. They 
have one child, Ida, born Nov. 20, 1867. Mr. Betz 
is a member of the fraternity of Odd Fellows. With 
his wife, he is a member of the Evangelical Luther- 
an Church. 



ohn Ward, a farmer of Cortland Township, 
occupying the east half of the northwest 
*"** quarter of section 34, and owning 72 acres 
on the east half of the east quarter of section 
]£ 27, and 1 6 J^ acres on section 14, of Ohio Grove 
Township, — in all i68j4 acres, — was born in 
Newark, Licking Co., Ohio, Oct. 16, 1816. His 
father, William Ward, was born in Fayette Co., Pa., 
emigrated to Ohio when he was 13 years old, where 
his father soon died, and he died in Squaw Grove 
Township, this county, Feb. 3, 1870. He was born 
Feb. 24, 1790, and participated in the War of 1812. 
The mother of the subject of this sketch, Mrs. Phebe 
Ward, nee Beem, was born near Hagerstown, Md., 
Dec. 14, 1795, and died Aug. 27, 1883; her father 
was of English descent and her mother of Dutch. 
Both the latter lived to a great age, — father 96 years 
and mother 87. 

At the age of 20 years Mr. John Ward, the subject 
of this sketch, came with his parents, first locating 
in Squaw Grove, in 1837; eight years afterward he 
bought 80 acres of land, which he subsequently sold 
to his father, and he moved to his present farm of 
120 acres in October, 1845, where he has since re- 
sided. He has added to his original acreage. Since 
his location here, however, he has spent 20 years go- 
ing to, operating in and returning from California. 
He went over the plains, with a single-horse team, as 
far as Salt Lake, where he joined a company from 
La Salle Co., 111. After traveling 700 miles with 
them, he and 1 r others separated from them and 
completed their journey on foot, crossing the Great 
Desert and arriving in the gold-mining region Aug. 
2-8. The company whom they had abandoned did 
not reach the mines until the 15th of September. 
They were 12 in number, having a wagon and three 
horses, the extra horse to be used in case of emer- 




gency. Mr. Ward operated on Old Soldier's Gulch 
and part of the Poor Man and Nelson Creek, and his 
success was much better than farming. Three of 
Mr. W.'s brothers went with him to the land of gold, 
and returned with him; but in four months afterward 
went back to California, selling their farms here and 
taking their families with them. They have since 
lived there and prospered. 

Mr. Ward was first married March 25, 1835, to 
Parmelia A., daughter of Jacob and Susan (Ayers) 
Rolison; her parents died in Licking Co., Ohio, many 
years ago. Mrs. W. was born in that county, Nov. 
22, 1 81 6, near Newark, and died, of a spasmodic at- 
tack, Dec. 3, 1871, at a neighbor's where she was 
visiting. By this marriage there were seven children, 
as follows: Elmira, born July 22, 1837; William B., 
Dec. 21, 1838; Susan, April 10, 1840; Louisa, Nov. 
7, 1843; Phebe A., Aug. 27, 1850; Delila J., June 
r4, 1853; and Elmer C, Sept. 6, 1856. Phebe A. is 
not now living. Mr. Ward was married a second 
time June 8, 187- to Mrs. Laura N. Palmer, widow 
of Isaac H. Palmer, who died March 25, 1865. By 
her first husband she had five children, namely: 
Galen E., born Aug. 12, 1849; Alice E., Aug. 1, 
1850; Clara A., June 1, 1853; Frank H., Nov. 4, 
1862; and Etta E., Nov. 28, 1864. Mr. Palmer was 
born Nov. 3, 1825, in Ripley, Chautauqua Co., N. Y. 
Mrs. W. was born at German Flats, Herkimer Co., 
N. Y., Aug. 6, 1828, a daughter of Henry R. and 
Clarissa (Tennant) Gay. Her father was born April 
4. 1805, in Herkimer Co., N. Y., and is now living in 
retirement, in the town of Ripley. Mrs. G., who was 
born June 5, 1804, in the town of Warren, Columbia 
Co., N. Y., is also still living. Mrs. Ward's maternal 
grandfather was a soldier in the Revolutionary War. 

Mr. Ward is a Republican in his political views, 
has been Justice of the Peace, School Director, and 
for six years Constable. 



eorge M. D. Wright, hardware merchant 
at Somonauk, was born July 23, 1845, in 
the township of Northville, La Salle Co , 




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111., two miles east of the village where he is 
now a resident. He is a son of Levi and Es- 
ther (Whitmore) Wright, and his father was a 
native of New Hampshire. The latter came to LaSalle 




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Co., 111., about 1843, and bought 160 acres of land, 
which he converted into an excellent and valuable 
farm. He died on the homestead in 1865. The 
mother and ten children yet survive. 

Mr. Wright is the ninth in order of birth of 12 
children in his parents' family, and was a member of 
the household until he was several years past his 
majority. His first independent business venture 
was in the drug business, associated with C. E. 
Wright, in which he engaged in Somonauk two years. 
On the termination of their relation he entered into a 
copartnership in the hardware trade with C. R. 
Frank. Two years later the latter sold his moiety to 
the brother of Mr. Wright, the new relation existing 
two years. Afterward the latter became sole propri- 
etor, and has since transacted his business singly. 
Mr. Wright is conducting a prosperous trade, in 
which he has one wagon running on the road in the 
country. He is a member of the Masonic Order, and 
belongs to the Royal Arch Chapter at Sandwich. 

He was united in marriage Jan. S, T876, in Som- 
onauk, to Ilattie H. Bloom, and they have had three 
children: George R. was born Oct. 13, 1876; Helen 
M., Feb. 28, 187S; and Clifton, Sept. 23, 1SS3. Mrs. 
Wright is the daughter of Charles and Nancy Bloom, 
and was born in the State of New York Aug. 4, 1854. 




rank W. Lott, jeweler, at Sycamore, was 
born Aug. 4, 1843, in Sycamore Township. 
His parents, Zephaniah and Amanda 
%j|r (Roberts) Lott, were pioneer residents of De 
'f*S Kalb County, and he was reared under the 
parental authority until he was 17 years of age, 
when he entered upon the prosecution of his career 
of independence. He was first employed as a farm- 
er, and followed that calling until 1873. Having 
decided on the calling of a jeweler as a vocation in 
life, he bought a half interest in the jewelry estab- 
lishment of M. I ■'. Wanen, at Sycamore, where lie 
acquired a knowledge of the business. This relation 
was in existence three years, and in 1S76 he suc- 
ceeded to the sole proprietorship of the affairs of 
their joint business by the purchase of his partner's 
interest. He has since been engaged in the prose- 
cution of his business, and carries a full stock of 
goods common to similar establishments, including 

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watches, clocks, jewelry, plated ware, cutlery, optical 
goods, etc. He also combines a repair business with 
his other relations. 

Mi. Ix)tt was married in February, 1871, to Jennie 
Woodworth,a native of Auburn, N. Y., and a daugh- 
ter of John and Mary Woodworth. Their two chil- 
dren are named L. Warren and Frank W. 



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harles F. Greenwood, Treasurer of De 

t3^ Kalb County, and a citizen of Sycamore, 

was born April 6, 1835, in New Berlin, Che- 

ju nango Co., N. Y. His parents, Thomas J. 

*r* and Sally (Fairchild) Greenwood, were natives 
respectively of Connecticut and New York. In 
1844 the family came from the Empire State to Sugar 
Grove, Kane Co., 111., removing thence in August, 
1847, to the township of Clinton, De Kalb Comity. 
Land was then in comparatively small demand, and 
the father secured at first a small claim of 80 acres, 
estimating that he could always find pasture land in 
close proximity, settlers being exceptions. He- 
passed his life in the pursuit of agriculture, and died 
on his farm May 22, 1852. At the date of his 
demise he was the owner of 330 acres of land in 
Clinton Township, 80 acres in Kane County, and 20 
acres of timbered land in the township of Sugar 
Grove. The mother died on the homestead Feb. 23 
1859. They had three sons: Nathan S., since de- 
ceased ; George, a retired farmer, resident at Water- 
man, in Clinton Township; and Mr. Greenwood, of 
this sketch. 

On the division of his father's estate the latter 
became the possessor of an amount of personal 
property, and the title to real estate in Iowa, which 
latter he applied as part payment for r2o acres of 
land lying on sections 32 and 33, in Clinton Town- 
ship, whereon he resided from i860 until 1876, when 
he removed to the east half of the northeast quarter 
of section 23> where his homestead is still main- 
tained. 

He entered the army of the United States a few 
months after the commencement of the struggle 
instituted by the South for the dismemberment of 
the Union, enlisting Oct. 5, i86r, in Co. G, Second 
111. Light Artillery, under Captain Stolbrand. 



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was in action at the siege of Vicksburg and at Union 
City, Tenn., and was involved in much skirmish 
warfare. He became disabled through hardship, 
exposure and illness, and was honorably discharged 
Oct. 16, 1863, at Vicksburg. In the township of 
Clinton Mr. Greenwood earned the reward of good 
citizenship and public spirit, receiving repeated elec- 
tions to places of prominence and trust. He served 
three years as Supervisor, as Commissioner of High- 
ways, and in the various school offices. In the fall 
of 1882 he was elected to the position of which he 
is now the incumbent, on the Republican ticket. 
( Mr. Greenwood is a member of the Masonic frater- 
nity, and belongs to Potter Post, No. 12, G. A. R. 

His marriage to Catherine I. Darland took place 
July 4, 1855, in Clinton Township. Mrs. Greenwood 
was bom Sept. 28, 1838, in Fairview, 111., and is the 
daughter of Benjamin and Catherine Darland. Five 
children were born of this Union in Clinton Town- 
ship. Byron P. was born Sept. 26, 1856, and is resi- 
dent manager of a mercantile enterprise at Marble 
Rock, Iowa, of which his father is the proprietor. 
Alice was born May 16, 1859 ; Jennie J. and Charles, 
twins, were born Sept. 1, 1870. The latter died 
Aug. 21, 1872. 




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harles Wesley Marsh, whose portrait is 
presented on the opposite page, resides on 
a country place, on section 14, of De Kalb 
Township. He was born March 22, 1834, 
near Cobourg, Ont., and is the oldest son of 
Samuel and Tamar (Richardson) Marsh. 
His earliest recorded ancestor was a " Cavalier " and 
was killed at Edgehill in the course of the conflicts 
that preceded the Protectorate in England, and 
whose two sons fled to the American Continent dur- 
ing the first half of the 17th century to escape the 
vengeance of the Roundheads. The two branches, 
designated respectively as the Vermont and Con- 
necticut lines of descent of the Marshes, trace their 
origin to these brothers. 

Samuel Marsh was born Feb. 7, 1804, in Canada, 
and died in De Kalb Township, in April, 1SS4. He 
belonged to the Vermont line, his immediate ances- 




tors having originated in the Green Mountain State. 
With all the male members of his family, including 
his father, uncles and brothers, he was an active par- 
ticipant in the rebellion in the Dominion in 1837, 
known to history as the Patriots' or McKenzie's War, 
and with the others narrowly escaping the fruits of 
the vengeance of the English Government. All who 
were not arrested and placed in confinement escaped 
only by precipitate flight. Samuel Marsh was among 
the former, and was captured at Kingston, where he 
was held in jail five months. His trial was long and 
severe, and he barely escaped conviction and execu- 
tion. His wife was born March 22, 1807, in Canada, 
and is a descendant of the Mohawk Dutch, belonging 
in the maternal line to the Schermerhorn family. Her 
marriage occurred in Consecon, Can., and she became 
the mother of three children, two sons and a daugh- 
ter. The latter was born March 10, 1S38, while her 
father was a state prisoner in the jail at Kingston. 
She died at Chicago March 13, 1SS1. The mother 
of Mr. Marsh is still living. 

The father was a farmer, and, after his release, re- 
sumed that occupation. In T844 he sold his prop- 
erty in Canada and started for the part of the United 
States then known as the " West," to locate a home. 
He encountered a Millerite camp-meeting at the 
head of the Bay of Quinte, known as the " Carrying 
Place," which he attended and became a convert to 
the tenets of that sect. Firmly convinced that the 
coming of the Lord was at hand, he returned to his 
family to await the crisis. The mother, trained and 
disciplined by the trials she had already experienced, 
exercised the practical view of Abraham Davenport, 
and wisely judging that, in any event, the prospects 
of her sons would be likely to be improved by 
mental cultivation, while her husband waited, placed 
them at St. Andrews School at Cobourg. At 12 
years of age the older son entered Victoria College 
at Cobourg, having become exceptionally well fitted 
under the inflexible regime of the school, in which he 
entered at 10 years of age upon a classical course of 
study. In 1847, the practical, provident mother col- 
lected a sum of money and, by proxy, purchased a 
quarter of section 18, situated near Shabbona Grove, 
Clinton Township, in De Kalb County, whither the 
family removed in 1849. Mr. Marsh of this sketch 
was then 15 years old and within one year of receiv- 
ing his degree at Victoria College, having accom- 



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plished the curriculum of three of the four years' 
course prescribed at his Alma Mater. The failure of 
the Millerite prognostics had wrought sad havoc 
with the little fortune of the family ; and upon the 
sons, after their removal to the farm in Illinois, rested 
the responsibility of its management, and they de- 
voted themselves to the labor of reducing the un- 
broken prairie to a condition of improvement and 
cultivation. Mr. Marsh taught two winter terms of 
school, and in' 1858, in accordance with his strong 
predilection for a life devoted to mental endeavor, 
entered the law office of Hon. Charles Kellum as a 
student. He was obliged by failing health to relin- 
quish the project and returned to agricultural em- 
ploy. The details of his efforts in subsequent years 
are presented in the sketch of his business career 
which appears in full on another page. 

Mr. Marsh is an adherent to the principles of the 
Republican party and a supporter of its issues, which 
he adopted on entering upon the privileges of Amer- 
ican citizenship. In 1868 he was elected to the 
House of the Illinois Legislature, where he did ex- 
cellent service on several committees, as he did in a 
succeeding term in the Senate, to which he was 
elected on the expiration of his period as Representa- 
tive. His labors in those positions won a subsequent 
recognition at the hands of Governor Beveridge, who 
in 1873 appointed him to a Trusteeship of the Insane 
Asylum at Elgin, which he has since held continu- 
ously and of which body he has been for many years 
President. The existing condition of the institution 
is the best possible testimonial to the efforts and 
abilities of Mr. Marsh, it being acknowledged as 
among the best managed of the long catalogue of 
similar institutions in this country. 

The character of Mr. Marsh from the celebrity he 
has achieved in his connection with the machine 
which revolutionized the system of harvestingthrough- 
out the civilized world, deserves something more 
than a passing notice. His predominating trait, and 
one which renders him conspicuous, is versatility, 
and has been manifested in every enterprise to which 
he has lent his attention. The scholarship to which 
he attained in childhood was phenomenal, and he 
has retained in all their freshness and strength the 
tastes and proclivities which are his nature. Had he 
devoted himself to a literary life he would with- 
out doubt have attained distinction. Still another 



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leading characteristic of his mind is the simplicity 
of his predilections. Although in his prosperous 
days he was the possessor of a generous fortune, he 
had no aspirations beyond those of a country gentle- 
man. His residence displays no ostentation either 
in style or equipment, although planned and con- 
structed in his palmy days. But its apartments con- 
tain the evidences of a cultivated taste in rare and 
valuable books and pictures. Among the former are 
two ponderous and magnificent volumes of Hogarth's 
and Gillray's engravings from the original plates. The 
oldest and most curious volume is a copy of the 
Decretals of the Catholic Church, written by a monk. 
The work occupied 15 years and was finished in 
1409. It was done wholly with a pen, and is from 
first to last a wonderful and beautiful sample of the 
perfection attained by the scribes before the days of 
printing. The work is concluded by the copyist's 
fervent " Laus Deo." A detached papal bull issued 
by Gregory XI to a Minorite order in Spain, exhibits 
six varieties of penmanship. These are but samples 
of a most valuable collection. Mr. Marsh is the 
possessor of an interesting collection of pictures and 
photographs, gathered during a four months' tour on 
the continent, whither he went for the purpose of 
recreation and in response to an invitation from the 
Government to make trial of the Marsh Harvester in 
Hungary, where he spent six weeks. 

Mr. Marsh is an ardent admirer of nature, and his 
home and its belongings bear the evidences of the 
direction of his predilections. The park adjacent to 
the house is stocked with deer and wild fowl, and his 
library contains an assortment of hunting equipments 
and trophies of sport, both valuable and curious. 

The general estimate of the character of Mr. 
Marsh is manifest from the fact that when disaster 
overwhelmed the splendid business in which he was 
the prime factor, he was the unanimous choice of the 
creditors for the position of assignee, this tribute of 
confidence being the outgrowth of the disinterested- 
ness, integrity and solicitude for the general welfare 
which he has displayed unfalteringly throughout his 
entire business career. He can receive no better 
testimonial than the unquestioning trust of the peo- 
ple among whom he has lived from boyhood, in his 
inflexible probity and unselfishness. 

He was married Jan. 1, i860, to Frances Wait, of 
North Adams, Mass., and they became the parents 




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of three children,— George C, Mary F. and Fanny 
S. The mother died May 12, 1869. The second 
marriage of Mr. Marsh, to Sue Rogers, occurred Jan. 
10, 1S81. Mrs. Marsh was born in November, 1841, 
at Mariposa, near Lindsay, Out., and is the daughter 
of Joel and Mary Rogers. 



ames Harrington, M. D., retired physi- 
f cian, resident at Sycamore, has been a citi- 
zen of De'Kalb County since 1844, when 

he came here and settled about four miles 
W north of the present city of Sycamore. He 

was born Sept. 20, 1806, in the Province of 
Ontario, and is the son of Lot and Sarah (Sage) Har- 
rington. His paternal grandsire was a native of 
Rhode Island, whence he removed to Vermont. He 
was a surveyor by profession and pursued that busi- 
ness in the vicinity of Rutland. Lot Harrington 
was born in Vermont, and in the days of his early 
manhood went to the State of New York, where he 
was married. His wife's parents were from Connecti- 
cut. Not long after marriage they went to Canada, 
where the mother died, in 1809, leaving five children. 
Of these, Dr. Harrington is the youngest of the 
sons. 

After his mother's deatli he was taken to the State 
of New York, and was taken care of by her relatives 
in New Berlin, in Chenango County. He was edu- 
cated primarily in the public schools, and at the age 
of 17 years commmenced teaching, continuing in 
that vocation, and at the same time studied medi- 
cine, until 1829, when he opened the practice of his 
profession at Eagle, Allegany Co., N. Y. Two years 
later he returned to New Berlin, and was a practi- 
tioner there until 1844, when he decided to come to 
Illinois, and test the value of the promises that 
offered unparalleled inducements to such as desired 
to advance their fortunes. He made the trip via the 
Erie Canal from Utica to Buffalo, and came thence 
to Chicago by the lake route. He obtained private 
conveyance from Chicago to De Kalb County. He 
bought a claim of 1 20 acres of land, situated on sec- 
tions 8 and 9 of town 41, range 5, now Sycamore. 
The log house which had been erected on the place, 
served for a tenement until 1846, when Dr. Harring- 
ton built a frame house. In the same year in which 




he took possession he erected a commodious frame 
barn. In 1864 he sold the place and removed to 
Ann Arbor, Mich., for the purpose of educating his 
children. He returned at the end of a year to Syca- 
more, where he bought a block of land with a brick 
house. 

He was married in January, 183T, in Allegany Co., 
N. Y., to Charlotte, daughter of Peter and Mary 
(Wait) Walrod. Six of their nine children are living: 
Diana was born Oct. 27, 1832, and died Sept. 10, 
1856; Joseph was born April 27, 1837, and died 
Dec. 23, 1874; Susan was born Sept. 4, 184 1, and 
died in May, 1883; William S. resides in Oregon, 
and is the Presiding Elder of the M. E. Church in 
the Portland District; George L. resides at Sycamore ; 
Nelson R. is City Marshal of Sycamore; James F. is 
a farmer in Jewell Co., Kan.; Mark W. is Professor 
of Astronomy in the University of Michigan at Ann 
Arbor; Mary married P. K. Jones, druggist at Syca- 
more. The mother died in April, 1871. 

Dr. Harrington was elected School Commissioner 
in 1845, and was re-elected School Commissioner for 
1856-7. In the Legislative sessions of Illinois of 
1846-7 he was a member of the House of Repre- 
sentatives. He was one of the Supervisors of Syca- 
more during nine years, and served the entire period 
as President of that Board. 



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E-fifS'£iram Palmer, farmer on the east half of 
F-III/f !; t' ie northwest quarter of section 35, Cort- 
land Township, was born in Charlotte 
Township, Chittenden Co., Vt., May r 6, 1809, 
and in 1819 was taken by his parents in emi- 
gration to Chautauqua Co., N. Y., into the wild 
woods, moving with a horse team and taking the first 
wagon that was ever driven into the town of Ripley. 
In 1835 Mr. Palmer went to Ashtabula Co., Ohio, 
where he rented a farm, remaining there until 1836. 
In September of that year, he located in this county, 
when the prairies here were still unoccupied. He 
rented a farm near Sycamore a year and then pur- 
chased the quarter-section where he now resides. 
At that time his nearest neighbor was three or four 
miles distant and there was no house where S 
more now stands. The contrast between that time 
and the present, in the appearance and enhanced 
value of the land, as well as the experiences of life, 
sets the imagination almost wild. 



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Mr. Palmer was married May 1, 1S3 1 , to Julia 
Hill, daughter of Wyman ami Elizabeth (McFarland) 

Hill, of Scotch ancestry. Her father, a native of 
Vermont, (lied in Ashtabula Co., Ohio, about 1859, 
aged about 70 years, and her mother, a native "I 
Connecticut, died in Chautauqua Co., N. Y., in 1832, 
about 54 years of age. Mrs. 1'. was born April 17, 
1807. The immediate descendants of Mr. and Mrs. 
Palmer are: Chauncey S., born March 3, 1832, in 
1 hautauqua Co.. N. Y.; J. Sidney, Feb. 20, 1836, in 
Ashtabula Co., Ohio; Harriet I,., July 12, 1842, in 
this county; and Emetine M., Nov. 9, 1X44, also in 
this county. His father, Israel Palmer, of English 
descent, came from the old country to Rhode Island 
I lefi ire the Revolutionary War, anil thence to Vermont, 
and finally died in the town of Ripley, Chautauqua 
Co., N. Y., about 77 years of age; and Hiram's mother, 
Sally, nee Champlain, was born in Charlotte Town- 
ship, Chittenden Co., Vt., and died in 1813, in 
her native State. 

Mr. Palmer is a Republican in his political prin- 
ciples, and has held the offices of School Director 
and Road Commissioner. 

On his first settlement in this county. Mr. Palmer 
built a log house at the confluence of Ue Kalb Creek 
with the Kishwaukee River, and lived there two years, 
during which time he suffered a great deal from the 
usual ague, bilious fever, etc. He built his second 
log house at Coltonville, lived there one year; then a 
year on Phineas Stevens' farm; and finally a third 
log cabin, on his present place of residence, where 
he has now lived for 40 years. After a few years in 
the first cabin here, he moved to the place a frame 
house from a distance of seven miles, and occupied 
that as a dwelling until he erected his present fine 
residence. 



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eorge W. Nesbitt, M. D., practicing phy- 
sician and surgeon at Sycamore, was born 
Aug. 20, 1837, in Attica, N. Y. He is a 
' vjv * representative of the sturdy and vigorous race 
-1 known as the Scotch-Irish, his paternal grand- 
1 parents having belonged originally to the 
former nationality, which they left at the time of the 
Irish rebellion and settled in County Cavan, Ulster, 
Ireland. Henry Nesbitt, his father, was born in that 



county, in 1803, and became a resident of the United 
States in 1819. George W.'s mother, Eleanor 
(Smyth) Nesbitt, was born in 1802, in Argyle, Wash- 
ington Co., N. Y. Her father was of Scottish birth; 
her mother was born in Connecticut and represented 
a family of ancient origin and of probable German 
lineage. Henry Nesbitt settled in Attica after his 
marriage, pursued agriculture as a vocation, and died 
there in June, 1883. His wife died in Wyoming Co., 
N. Y., in 1862. Their eight children survive them. 
The oldest, Susannah, is the wife of A. Prentice, a 
farmer. I >avid is a farmer in the township of Attica, 
N. Y. Henry is a farmer in Saratoga Co., N. Y. Dr. 
Nesbitt is the fourth in order of birth. _ Samuel S. is 
a physician by profession and is passing his life in 
retirement on a large farm in Adams Co., 111. Jane 
resides in Attica, N. Y. James O. and John W. 
( twins) are farmers on the homestead in Orangeville, 
Wyoming Co., N. Y. 

Dr. Nesbitt received the training and primary edu- 
cation of a farmer's son, obtaining the latter by 
attendance at winter terms of school, afterwards 
completing the curriculum of study at the Genesee 
and Wyoming Seminary at Alexander, Genesee Co., 
N. Y., then a popular institution of learning and one 
which has maintained its prestige. He studied ad- 
vanced mathematics, classical and modern languages, 
and was graduated with honors. Imbued with the 
sentiment in which the youth of his generation was 
reared,— the obligation to engage actively in the 
world's work, — he came to Genoa, De Kalb Co., 111., 
and spent a winter here, engaged in teaching. He 
turned his face westward in the following spring and 
passed some weeks in travel and prospecting. Dur- 
ing the summer ensuing he was an attache of the 
Government surveying party on the Red River of the 
North, operating principally in Minnesota. In the 
winter following, he taught school in Boone Co., 111., 
and on the expiration of his engagement he went to 
Arkansas, and to other States, and pursued the same 
vocation. Meanwhile he had devoted his leisure 
and opportunities to the study of medicine and of 
law. He commenced his legal reading ander the 
instructions of the Hon. Charles Kellum, of Syca- 
more, and during the years of 1860-1 he devoted 
nearly a twelvemonth to the study of medicine in 
the office of Dr. H. H. Rice, of Randolph Co., 111. 1 Ik 
labors as a pedagogue terminated in 1861, when he 
returned to his native State, and read medicine under 



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the supervision of Dr. H. B. Miller, of Alexander. 
Later, he attended lectures at the Buffalo Medical 
College, and was graduated there Feb. 21, 1865. 

He entered into an association with Dr. G. W. 
McCray, of Buffalo, in the wholesale and retail sale 
of drugs, and also engaged in the practice of medi- 
cine. He sold his interest in the fall of 1866, and 
after an extended tour of prospective observation 
through the States of the South he located, in the 
winter of the same year, at Sycamore, where he at 
once established himself as a physician and surgeon 
and entered upon a career in his profession second 
to none in popularity in this section of Northern 
Illinois. 

Dr. Nesbitt has not limited his efforts and energies 
to the scope of his medical practice, nor confined his 
interests to the section where he is resident. He is 
an agriculturist of no mean proportions, and is exten- 
sively engaged as a breeder of valuable stock. He is 
the proprietor of 1,200 acres of farming land in 
Mitchell and Ottawa Counties, Ivan., devoted to the 
rearing of horses, cattle and swine. He has bred 
some fine trotting animals, and is at present the 
owner of four horses of acknowledged speed. He 
also raises the English draft horses. 

The intellectual attainments and proclivities of Dr. 
Nesbitt are far beyond the common order. He is 
thoroughly read in medical literature, and has a well 
earned reputation as a lecturer and contributor to the 
medical press. He has, on occasion, presented valu- 
able papers before the Illinois State Medical Society, 
and before the American Medical Association, and 
has made discoveries in the application of drugs that 
are of acknowledged benefit to the fraternity. In 
1881 he officiated as Vice-President of the Illinois 
State Medical Society, and in 1883 was elected to the 
same position. He has not been able to apply his 
abilities to the administration of local affairs, the 
duties and responsibilities of his extensive practice 
monopolizing his time and energies. He is promi- 
nent in the Order of Masonry, and is a member of 
the Royal Arch Chapter. 

Dr. Nesbitt was married June 23, 1864, at Buffalo, 
N. Y., to Mrs. Mary H. Davis, a native of Chippewa, 
Can. She had two children by her former marriage. 
The youngest, Lydia, is deceased. Cora married 
Frank Whitney, and they are residents on the farm 
of Dr. Nesbitt, in Ottawa Co., K.an. One child born 




to Dr. and Mrs. Nesbitt died in infancy. George VV. 
was born March 13, 1869; John B. was born Jan. 
31, 1873. The marriage of Dr. Nesbitt is made 
memorable by the fact that the ceremony was per- 
formed by the Rev. George H. Ball, made a char- 
acter of history through his intrepid denunciation of 
the immoral element in the Presidential campaign 
of 1884. 



illiam Raymond, farmer, section 21, 
IhUJjj ? Cortland Township, came to De Kalb 



f 



County in the spring of 1855. He spent 
the summer ensuing in Genoa, and in the 
fall of the same year located in the village 
of Cortland. In company with his brother, he 
afterward bought a farm on section 16, in Cortland 
Township, on which he settled in the spring of 1S56. 
On this property he spent some years. In 1883 he 
bought a farm on section 21, where he established his 
residence permanently, enlarging and improving his 
house and building a large barn. The place is under 
excellent improvements, and is increased in value 
by the improvements he has made. 

Mr. Raymond was born in Otsego, N. Y., Aug 1 9, 
r834, and is the son of Oliver P. and Sarah (Wilbur) 
Raymond. The former was born in Pawling, 
Dutchess Co., N. Y., and the latter was a native of 
Taunton, Mass. When Mr. Raymond was six years 
of age his father died, while engaged in the manage- 
ment of a hotel at Ashland, Greene Co., N. Y. Soon 
after that event the family removed to Davenport, 
Delaware County, in the same State, where the son 
obtained a common-school education and was reared 
on a farm, remaining with his mother until his re- 
moval to Illinois. 

He was first married in 1S56, to Minerva Burr. 
She was born in 1832, in Erie Co., N. Y., and died 
July 7, 18S0, having become the mother of eight 
children, — Frank B., Fred W., Nathan, Rodolphus 
J., Henry O., Wilbur P., Minnie and Charles. Frank 
died Sept. 12, 1879; the youngest son died July 17, 
18S0. Mr. Raymond was again married July 11, 
rS83, to Mrs. W. R. Patrick, daughter of J. C 
Hannah (Judd) Hoag. She was born in South Do- 
ver, Dutchess Co., N. Y., and was married Oct. 29, 
1867, to W. R. Patrick, by whom she had iwe chil- 
dren — Jennie C, George W. (died 14 months old), 



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Walton R. (died when two years and ten months 
old), Flora B. and Willimina. One child has been 
born of her second marriage, Leonard Light Mr. 
Patrick died Sept. 13, 1881. 



*Yfl* I' il'i am Wallace Marsh, Superintendent of 
.' f^yVN . the Turk Motor Works at Sycamore and 
" member of the firm of C. W. & W. W. 

j^' Marsh, was born April 15, 1836, near Co- 
bourg, Ont. He is the second son of Samuel 
and Tamar (Richardson) Marsh, and passed 
the years of his early boyhood on the farm of his 
father in the Dominion of Canada. He was an infant 
in his mother's arms when his father became inter- 
ested and involved in the rebellion in Canada which 
opened in 1837, and in which the members of the 
families to which his father and mother belonged 
were participants. (See sketch of C. W. Marsh.) In 
1S44, the parents resolved to seek the advantages of 
the (then) western portion of the United States; and 
the homestead in Canada was sold, the father setting 
out for a prospecting tour, but was suddenly arrested 
in his purpose by his acceptance of the tenets of the 
Millerites, who had fixed upon that year as the date 
of the termination of all earthly things; and, aban- 
doning all projects dependent upon the future, the 
father settled with his family at Cobourg, where the 
>i>ns had the advantages of the excellent Canadian 
schools. 

Mi. Marsh was but eight years old when he was 
placed at St. Andrews School, and two year? later 
entered Victoria College, where he was a student 
three years. In 1849 the family circumstances ne- 
cessitated immediate activity; and its members, con- 
sisting of the father, mother, two sons and a daughter, 
born in 1838, came to De Kalb County and settled 
on 110 acres of land, which had been purchased for 
them in 1S47 by an uncle. It was situated on sec- 
tion 18, and soon after taking possession of the place 
another tract of similar acreage was purchased on 
another section. The entire quantity of land in both 
purchases consisted of unbroken prarie, and was the 
scene of unremitting labors of the father and sons for 
nearly eight \ears. 

In 1857 began the experiments from which resulted 
the machine which will be the medium of transmit- 




ting the name of Marsh to posterity as it merits, and 
in his connection with that invention Mr. Marsh at- 
tained all the distinction he craved, and found in its 
ultimate success the satisfaction of achieving a pur- 
pose worth the devotion of a life-time of effort. The 
idea upon which the Marsh Harvester was founded 
grew from the observation that a man could bind a 
bundle of grain while another was being cut; and 
the idea that followed was the necessity of moving 
with the cutting apparatus in order to receive the 
sundered grain at the opportune moment. The years 
of experiment and struggle that followed and their 
results are given elsewhere, and form one of the most 
interesting reminiscences possible. 

One incident, which was a memorable one to Mr. 
Marsh of this sketch, is worthy of special note, as it 
was a momentous occasion for De Kalb County, as 
well as to the central figure therein. The test of the 
Marsh Harvester took place on the farm of Clark 
Barber, north of the village of De Kalb, in the pres- 
ence of hundreds of spectators. Numberless reaping 
machines were in the contest, among which were the 
pioneer wire and cord binders, both of which proved 
failures. But the Marsh machine asserted the value 
of the principles upon which it is based and achieved 
a complete triumph. Mr. Marsh of this sketch occu- 
pied the platform, and in 50 minutes bound the grain 
cut on an acre, accomplishing the work witli the 
utmost ease. 

The Marsh Harvester was thenceforward a recog- 
nized fact. On the establishment of their business 
as manufacturers, the financial interests and all re- 
lations specially pertaining to that branch of the busi- 
ness naturally fell under the supervision of C. W. 
Marsh, the mechanical portion becoming the charge 
of W. W. Marsh. The latter has been deeply in- 
terested for a long term of years in the invention 
of farm machinery, and with his brother and others 
has been the patentee of numberless principles and 
applications pertaining to agricultural implements. 
He has invented about a score of harvester appli- 
ances, and nearly as many more in other directions, 
including binders, windmills, plows, cultivators, wire- 
stretchers, paint-mill, corn-cutters, com-huskers, etc. 
He has also constructed several mechanical ap- 
purtenances which have remained unpatented and 
are now in common use, among which is the bal- 
loon harvester wheel. 

On tlie establishment of the Marsh Harvester 



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shops at Sycamore, Mr. Marsh fixed his residence 
in the city. In 1S73 he purchased the grounds 
where he built his residence, which include about 
12 acres and constitute an attractive and valuable 
homestead. With the spacious and beautiful family 
mansion, they are valued at $15,000. His marriage 
to Mrs. M. J. Smith occurred Jan. 8, 187 1, in Chi- 
cago, and of their union two children have been 
born, — William \V. and Sarah Alma. Mrs. Marsh is 
the daughter of Rufus and Sarah D. Brown. They 
are among the pioneer settlers of Chicago. 

Mr. Marsh is a Republican in political opinions 
and connections. In 1S73 he was elected Alderman 
of Sycamore and continued to serve in that capacity 
five years. He did much effective business in ob- 
taining high license, which was afterward adopted 
and is at present (1S85) operative in Sycamore. 



-43= 



eorge F. Schoonmaker, farmer and dairy- 
man, section 32, Franklin Township, was 
born on the same section, in the same 
township, Feb. 3, 1856. An account of his 
parents is included in the sketch of his father, 
J. M. Schoonmaker, which may be found on 
another page of this work. He was brought up as a 
farmer's son under the direction of his father, acquir- 
ing a practical knowledge of the details of agriculture, 
and obtaining a common-school education. At the 
age of 16 years he entered the High School at Syca- 
more, where he completed a full course of study and 
was graduated in June, 1875, being one of the first to 
pursue and finish the prescribed course in that insti- 
tution. He was thenceforward engaged in teaching 
winters and farming summers for some years. 

He finally determined on a permanent settlement 
in life and was married March 4, 1878, to Florence 
Amelia Ellis, at Fielding. Her parents, Gilbert and 
Caroline (Childs) Ellis, were of Eastern origin and 
her mother is yet living. Her father died at Field- 
ing, Dec. 26, 1883. He was a cabinet-maker by 
trade. The daughter was born Nov. 6, 1853, in 
Virgil Township, Kane Co., 111. She was a resident 
in her native county until she was 1 1 years old, when 
her parents removed to Sycamore, where she entered 
school and completed her education when 16 years 
of age. She then became a member of the family of 






a sister at Fielding, where she continued to reside 
chiefly until her marriage. The family of Mr. and 
Mrs. Schoonmaker includes two children : Flora B., 
born Dec. 23, 1S78; and Blanche M., born Oct. 5, 
1880. They are residents on the paternal home- 
stead, and Mr. Schoonmaker is the owner of 110 
acres situated in South Grove Township. He is a 
Steward in the Methodist Episcopal Church, and is 
also Assistant Superintendent of the Sunday-school. 
He is a decided Republican in political faitli and 
action. 



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. ohn Heath, farmer, section 34, Genoa Town- 
- ship, has been a resident of De Kalb 
'^ County since 1846, and a landholder in the 
township of which he is now a citizen since 
1848. He first secured a claim of 80 acres, 
and has since increased his estate by the later 
purchase of 92 acres additional. Of the entire tract, 
160 acres have been placed under an excellent type 
of culture. 

In political creed and action he adopts the princi- 
ples and issues of the Republican party. He has 
discharged the duties of Supervisor of Genoa Town- 
ship five years and acted as the incumbent of several 
other official positions. 

He was born Feb. 19, 18 17, in Argyle, Washington 
Co., N. Y. His parents, Isaac and Elizabeth (Alger) 
Heath, were natives respectively of New Jersey and 
Vermont. They had nine children, of whom Mr. 
Heath is fifth in order of birth. At the age of 20 
years he engaged as a deck-hand on a sloop plying 
on the North, or Hudson River, and was occupied in 
that vocation two years. His next venture took him 
to New Orleans, where he passed two years tending 
bar. returning thence to his native State, where he 
remained two years and came thence in June, 1846, 
to De Kalb County. 

The first marriage of Mr. Heath, to Elizabeth 
McQuarie, took place in Chatham, Out., May 24, 
1846. She was a native of New York, and became 
the mother of three children, — Webster, Eliza and 
Diana. The youngest child died when two months 
old. The mother died July 24, 1859. Mr. Heath 
was a second time married Jan. 24, i860, in Genoa 
Township, to Hannah Shurtliff, a native of Canada. 



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The five children born of this union arc named 
Libby, Mabel. Lillian, Emily and John. The latter 
died when he was id years of age. 

A line lithographic portrait of Mr. Heath is given 
on a preceding page. He is one of the old residents 
of his township, and justly entitled to be cl 
among his representative citizens. The picture from 
which the portrait is engraved was taken in 1883. 



. ames C. Wright, farmer on the southwest 
I?" quarter of section 30, Cortland Township, 
3v ,r ^' was born near Manchester, Lincolnshire, 
England, July 2, 1826. Two years afterward 
his parents, William and Elizabeth (Credland) 
Wright, emigrated with their three children to 
America and located in Vernon Township, Oneida 
Co., N. Y., on a farm of 50 acres, — land once owned 
by the Oneida Indians. Mr. W. failed to pay for this 
farm, and leaving his family there for a time, he came 
to St. Charles, Kane Co., 111., in 1834. Being a first- 
class mechanic, he worked as a wheelwright and in 
other capacities of a similar nature, and in a year 
and a half he brought his family to St. Charles, the 
whole distance from New York State in a one-horse 
wagon! On this were stowed a wife, three children, 
two beds, cooking utensils, etc. They were nine 
weeks on the road. Father and two eldest sons 
walked the entire distance! Only two nights did the 
family sleep in a house, and all their meals were 
cooked by the roadside. They landed at St. Charles 
about the first of November. 

The following fall the father died, and James C. 
and his brother, who had gone out to work for their 
living, returned to aid in sustaining the family; but, 
their mother marrying again, the subject of this sketch 
started out into the world to take care of himself, 
being then only 13 years of age. First he was a farm 
laborer for two years, receiving $6 a month and board, 
then for two years $9 a month, by which time he had 
saved from his earnings $50; then for a year $12 a 
month, three years $11 a month, working for Henry 
Wager, then for Jerry Brown two years at $11 a 
month, when he purchased 52 acres of land, going 
$600 in debt. Subsequently he bought 40 acres 
more of I. R. Hamlin, running again in debt $600, 
then 40 acres of Mr. Royce, incurrring another debt 




of $600, then 23 acres of E. S. Root, incurring a debt 
of $1,400, and finally, in 1867, sold out ami went 
with the family to California, by the water route, 
where he resided four years. He bought 1,450 acres 
of land there of the Government, and raised grain 
and live stock, having of the latter 107 head of cat- 
tle, 400 hogs and a few horses; but he finally ex- 
changed that farm for his old one here in Illinois. 
In his travels he has crossed the Atlantic Ocean 
twice, and the Pacific Ocean, Caribbean Sea, Central 
America and the Isthmus of Panama each once, — 
the latter requiring eight days. 

Mr. Wright, Feb. 26, 1854, married Miss Elizabeth, 
daughter of Nicholas and Diana (Wager) Wilbur, 
the latter of whom are deceased. Mrs. W. died in 
California, March 20, 1871, leaving one child, Albert, 
who was Gom June 18, 1869, in the Golden State, 
in Sutter County, on the banks of the Sacramento 
River. Sept. 3, 1873, Mr. W. married Harriet L., 
daughter of Silas and Clarissa (Converse) Whitmore, 
neither of whom is now living. She was born June 
22, i842,in the State of New York. 

Mr. Wright's father died in St. Charles, 111., about 
Sept. 1, 1837, and his mother in January, 1S52, on 
the county poor farm, her second husband, James 
Cortwright taking possession of the farm in 1S40: 
he died about 1S57. Both of Mr. Wright's parents 
were of English descent. 

The subject of this sketch is a Republican in his 
political principles. While in California he was a 
Justice of the Peace. Both himself and wife are 
members of the Methodist Church. Although Mr. 
W. has always been a farmer, in his younger days, 
before he became settled, he studied some for the 
ministry, then began to learn the blacksmith's trade, 
and then the wagon-maker's, when he finally deter- 
mined upon farming. 



I lsey P. Young, a former resident and 
prominent citizen of De Kalb, now de- 
ceased, was born July 21, 1819, at Mans- 
field, Ohio. He was the son of John and 
Elizabeth (Logan) Young, members of the agri- 
cultural class, and Mr. Young obtained a prac- 
knowledge of that calling in early life. He 




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distasteful, and essayed teaching; but feeling that 
eminence in that profession could be attained only 
through the medium of a liberal education, he de- 
termined on testing the gist of Bishop Berkeley's 
famous words, "Westward the course of empire 
takes its way," and seek advancement in the fields of 
promise situated in the direction of the setting sun. 

He left his early home and associations, and 
arrived in Sycamore in 1839, where he soon after be- 
came associated in a mercantile enterprise with 
James S. Waterman. He married Caroline Water- 
man, the sister of his partner, in 1846. The house 
which Mr. Young built about that date, at Sycamore, 
is still in existence, on the premises of Hon. Reuben 
Ell wood. His wife died in 1852, after becoming the 
mother of two children, a daughter and a son. The 
latter died in infancy ; the former, when in the 
bloom of early womanhood, aged 20 years. 

In 1847 Mr. Young officiated as Sheriff of De Kalb 
County. In 1854 he was a merchant at Albion, Ind., 
associated with Mr. H. Day, his brother-in-law. 
Early in 1856 he transferred his stock of goods and 
his business to De Kalb Center, and in the same 
year he married Alida L. Ellwood. Two daughters 
formed the issue of the second marriage, the elder of 
whom died at four years of age, the younger when 
nine months old. 

In i860, in partnership with Dr. Rufus Hopkins, 
he established a banking enterprise at De Kalb, in 
which he was interested to the time of his death. 
That event transpired at Hot Springs, Ark., March 
14, 1874. 

The life and character of Mr. Young were such as 
command general respect, and he left to the citizens 
of the county where he was a resident over 40 years 
the record of an honorable and upright career and a 
stainless name. 



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Nicholas Lanan, farmer on section 22, May- 
field Township, is a son of John and Mar- 
\ garet Lanan, who were natives of Belgium. 
In their family were Nicholas, John, Henry 
1G Joseph and Catherine. The first mentioned 
was born in that country, Dec. 21, 18 17, and came to 
America in the fall of 1833; after a perilous voyage 
of three months and three days, he landed in New 




York, and remained in that State four years and a 
half; he then came to Illinois, in a sailing vessel 
from Buffalo to Chicago. The lakes were very rough 
during the entire voyage. He then came by wagon 
to De Kalb County, and purchased a quarter of sec- 
tion 22, Mayfield Township, where he still resides. 
He is therefore one of the first pioneers now living. 
At present he owns 190 acres, most of which is in a 
state of good cultivation. He raises cattle, horses 
and hogs. 

He was married in Chicago, 111., Nov. 13, 185 1, to 
Phillipine Becker, who was born in Germany, in 
October, 1818, and came to America with her mother, 
Mary Ann (Hoffman) Becker, her father Nicholas 
Becker having died when she was a child. Her 
mother was a second time married, in Germany. 
After coming to America she settled in Chicago, 
where she died, Nov. 28, 187S. 

Mr. and Mrs. Lanan are the parents of seven chil- 
dren : Mary was born June 29, 1852, and was mar- 
ried in April, 1872, to John Delles; Elizabeth was 
born Nov. 7, 1854, and married William Gregory in vi'. 
November, 1882; Margaret was born Feb. 18, 1856, 
and married John Witte, in May, 1877 ; Catherine 
was born July 15, 1857, and was married in May, 
1876, to August Ullrich; John was born Jan. 24, 
1 8 S 8. 






_ <3 




| athan Lattin, senior member of the firm of 
N. & D. B. Lattin, dealers in coal, Batavia 
stone, etc., at Sycamore, was born May 2, 
1834, in the township of Veteran, Chemung 
Co., N. Y. His father, Ransom Lattin, was 
born March 19, 1797, in Fairfield Co., Conn., 
and was married in 1828, to Almy C. Crawford. She 
was a native of Saratoga Co., N. Y., and died in 
Veteran, at the age of 82 years. The senior Lattin 
died in the same township Feb. 14, 1883. They be- 
came the parents of eight children. Daniel B. is a 
farmer in Afton Township. Mary W. is the wife of 
M. L. Egbert, of Horseheads, N. Y. Parthenia died 
in infancy. Melissa E. married Peter A. Miller and 
died in 1859. Clarissa died in 1S67. Carmi held 
the homestead and was the custodian of the comfort 
of his parent's closing years. Sydney is a farmer of 
Shabbona Grove. 

Mr. Lattin is the fourth child of his parents, and 

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was reared at home on the farm. His elder brother 
had come to De Kalb County about 1854, and he 
came to Sycamore in April, 1857. He engaged in 
the purchase and sale of stock and grain, in which 

he has passed the intervening years of his life to this 
date (1885). In the fall of 1882 he admitted his 
brother, D. 15. Lattin, to a partnership. The coal 
trade of the firm is about 3,000 tons annually, and 
their traffic in grain is proportionally heavy. Their 
warehouses are situated on De Kalb Avenue, opposite 
the depot, and are conveniently located on each 
side of the railroad track. 

Mr. Lattin has been prominent and efficient in 
local positions of trust and responsibility in the 
municipal affairs of Sycamore. He officiated as 
Alderman several years, and held the office of Mayor 
of the city four years, — from 1877 to 1881. From 
1S74 to 1878 he was Supervisor of Sycamore Town- 
ship. 

The marriage of Mr. Lattin to Mary H., daughter 
of Stephen and Miriam T. Bemis, took place in De 
Kalb Township, Dec. 24, 1S57. Of this union three 
children have been born: Judson, now a student in 
the mechanical and military departments of the In- 
dustrial University at Champaign; Clara L., a teacher 
in the graded school at Sycamore; and Fred, acting 
as assistant in the business of N. & D. B. Lattin. 



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I.,: hilip King, a farmer on section 9, Mayfield 

'JBfs; Township, is a son of William and Mary 

\ S ; M <c (Fy) King, natives of Germany, who emi- 

j grated to America in an early day and settled 

•j![\. in Crawford Co., Ohio, where they died. They 

had ten children, — Lana, Abraham, Philip, 

Jacob, Margaret, Susan, Barbara, William, Mary and 

Henry. 

Mr. King was born in Germany April 26. 1S26, 
and was six years old when his parents came with 
him to America. He served an apprenticeship of 
three years to learn the trade of shoemaking, which 
he followed till 1848, when he came to this county 
and pre-empted 80 acres in Mayfield Township, on 
the section where he still resides. At present he 
owns 208 acres, with about 190 in a fine state of cul- 
tivation. He has held the offices of Overseer of 

S^sTi ^-1<: ; [| fj 




Highways and School Director, and in his political 
principles he is a Democrat. 

He was first married in Kingston Township, this 
county, Feb. 2, 1853, to Miss Elizabeth, daughter of 
Daniel and Elizabeth (Dawalt) Coonfair, who were 
natives of Pennsylvania. She had two children — 
William and Mary E. — and died Sept. 15, 1856, in 
Mayfield Township; and Mr. King was again mar- 
ried, Oct. 15, 185S, in Crawford Co., Ohio, to Miss 
Maria, daughter of Solomon and Rosa A. (Lutz) 
Scott, who also were natives of the Keystone Stale. 
The latter had 11 children, — Maria, Jane, Amelia, 
William, Laura, Ellen, Harriet, John, Ann, Chris- 
topher and Amanda. Mrs. King was born in Craw- 
ford Co., Ohio, Sept. 15, i84r, and the children of 
Mr. and Mrs. K. are Rosa A., Henry D., Margaret 
J., Frank P., Orilla L., Laura I >.' and Amelia, — seven 
in number. 



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1 ) D^.Killon S. Brown, member of the banking 

C i l : /r 

jlle^fj' house of Brown iS: Brown at Genoa, was born 

3jj!t)»v- May 12, 1852.111 the township of Genoa. 
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Jeremiah L. Broun, his father, was a native 
of Scarborough, Maine, and was twice m.ir- 
\ ried. His first wife, Judith (Richardson) 

Brown, bore seven children, two of whom are de- 
ceased. The survivors are James P., Jeremiah W. 
(see sketch), Judith, Esther E. and Abigail J. The 
mother died in Genoa Township, and the father 
married Eliza A. Jackman. Four children were born 
of the second marriage, — Emma R., Dillon S., 
Charles A. (see sketch) and Lizzie M. The senior 
Brown removed his family to Illinois and settled in 
Genoa Township in the fall of 1837, engaging in 
fanning. lie died Jan. 5, 18S2. 

1 ). S. Brown attended school until the age of 25 
years, residing on the home farm during his vaca- 
tions: graduated at the Illinois Industrial University 
in the spring of 1875 and from the Montreal Veter- 
inary College at Montreal, Canada, in 1S77, from 
which time he practiced his profession at Sycamore 
until the spring of 1SS0, when he became interested 
in a mercantile enterprise at Genoa, associated with 
H. II. Slater. The relation was terminated at the 
end of a year by the withdrawal of Mr. Brown. In 
May, 1882, he inaugurated his present business en- 

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terprise, forming a partnership with his brother, 
Charles A. Brown. The venture has proved satisfac- 
tory, and the firm have gained a substantial reputa- 
tion in the management of financial matters. 

Mr. Brown was married May 16, 1878, to Emily 
E. Pond. Their children were born as follows: 
Claude, Earl and a child who died in infancy. Mrs. 
Brown is the daughter of A. H. and Amy N. 
(Hollembeak) Pond, who were natives of Pennsylva- 
nia, where she also was born. 

Mr. Brown is a Republican in political faith and 
action. He has served as -Village Trustee and as 
President of the Board. 



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eorge Kleinsmid, hardware merchant at 
MM. Sandwich, was born June 26, 1831, in the 

IjW^k p russ j an province of Westphalia. Bern- 
e's 5? > hard Kleinsmid, his father, died when he was 
a child of three years, leaving the family to 

? the care of the mother, Mary Kleinsmid, who 
brought her children to the American continent in 
1848, when her son George was 17 years of age. 
They located in Cincinnati, where he learned the 
business of a shoemaker, and was occupied in the 
prosecution of the trade at that point until 1851, in 
which year he removed to Chicago. He was simi- 
larly employed in that city for some time, but, find- 
ing his health affected by confinement, he engaged 
as a salesman in a hardware store, and acquired a 
thorough knowledge of the details and specialties of 
that vocation. He came to Sandwich in 1S56 and 
established a hardware enterprise, associated with 
George L. Ismon. Their relations were suddenly 
and disastrously terminated a little less than three 
years later by the simultaneous disappearance of Mr. 
Ismon and all available resources in the way of 
cash. Mr. Kleinsmid collected his courage and suf- 
ficient means to again establish his business, which 
he opened in 1S59, and has since conducted with 
satisfactory results. His stock represents an average 
estimate of $12,000, and he transacts annually a large 
amount of business in all the branches connected 
with his establishment. He employs several tinners 
and one general assistant. Two sons act as sales- 




men when occasion demands. The business block 
in which he operates was built by him in 1864, and 
is 24x105 feet in dimensions. It is constructed of 
brick and is three stories in height above the base- 
ment. Mr. Kleinsmid is a pioneer in his business, 
which is of nearly 30 years' standing, and was one of 
the earliest established in De Kalb County. He is 
the owner of a handsome brick residence, two stories 
in height, having a tin mansard roof and containing 
20 rooms. The adjoining grounds contain nearly 
three acres of land, and the place is among the most 
attractive at Sandwich. Mr. Kleinsmid owns also 
two acres in the north part of the city devoted to 
nursery purposes, and a tenement house and lot. , 

He was united in marriage in Chicago, -Oct. 18, 
1855, to Louisa, daughter of Gotleib Simon, of 
Waldo, Wis. (Her father is still living and is a nona- 
genarian.) Of their union 13 children have been 
born. Louisa and Frank, the two oldest, ate de- 
ceased. The survivors are George, Bertha, Raymond, 
Lucretia, Lilly, Walter, Austin, Rufus, James, Maud 
and Mabel. 






JrcM;' amuel Stephens, retired farmer, residing 
\ fe&r J at Genoa, is the son of Benjamin and Eliz- 
s< abeth Stephens, and was born Sept. 6, 
l\\N 1809, in Pennsylvania, his father being a na- 
) tive of the same State. His mother was born 
in Ireland. Mr. Stephens is one of a family of 
seven children, and when he was three years of age 
his parents removed to Ohio, where they resided 
about five years, going thence to Indiana. They 
came to DeKalb County in 1837 and located in the 
township of Kingston. He has been a resident in 
various parts of De Kalb County and has owned 
land in different localities, which he has disposed of 
with the exception of 80 acres, which he still holds. 
In 1882 he retired from active fanning life, his resi- 
dence being in Genoa village, where he has lived 
since 1837. 

His first marriage occurred in Woodstock, Mc- 
llenry Co., 111., where lie formed a matrimonial 



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alliance with Rebecca Patterson, a native of Penn- 
sylvania. Of their union one son was born, Joseph 
B. Stephens, who is a resident of Sycamore and 
officiating in the capacity of State's Attorney of De 
Kalb County. The mother died at Genoa. Mr. 
Stephens was a second time married, in Genoa Town- 
ship, Doc. 14, 1S52, to Philena, daughter of Allen 
and Sophronia Crocker. The latter was born in the 
State of New York, the former in Massachusetts. 
They were among the pioneer settlers of Genoa 
Township, and died at the home of Mr. Stephens in 
the village of Genoa. Mrs. Stephens is second in 
order of birth of six children born to her parents, and 
her birth occurred April 1, 1830, in Genesee Co., N. 
Y. She has been the mother of two children. Her- 
bert, the oldest, died when he was nearly four years 
of age. The second child died in infancy. Mr. and 
Mrs. Stephens are members of the Advent Church. 
He is a Prohibitionist in political principle. He has 
acted eight years as Justice of the Peace, and has 
been a member of the Village Board of Trustees of 
Genoa. 




-: 



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/ Aavid W. Stark, farmer, section 3, Mayfield 
Township, is the son of William and Ruth 
• ij r • (McClara) Stark, natives of Pennsylvania, 
m"* wno nacl nve children, — Lewis G., Peter F., 
fh David W., John K., Calista and Amelia. The 
* subject of this sketch was born in Wyoming Co., 
Pa., April 15, 1826, lived in his native county until 
21 years of age and then sought a home in the West. 
Coming to Illinois in 1847, he lived most of the 
time until 1852 in Sycamore, engaged in different oc- 
cupations. In the spring of that year he went to 
California for the purpose of mining, and was thus 
engaged for six months. After that he worked out 
by the month, until May, 1857, when he returned to 
De Kalb County and settled on 40 acres of section 
3, Mayfield Township, which he had bought when he 
first came to Illinois and where he now resides. He 
has added to his estate until he now has almost 300 
acres. Mr. Stark has served as Deputy Sheriff two 
years (1849-50). In political matters he votes with 
the Republicans. 

He was married in Mayfield Township, Oct. 28, 
r8s9, to Amanda Judd, daughter of Ariel and Eliz- 
abeth (Deadly) Judd, the former of whom was a 




native of the State of New York and the latter of In- 
diana. They came to Do Kalb County in 1837 and 
settled in Kingston Township, where Mrs. J. died, in 
May, 1847; Mr. J. afterward came to Mayfield Town- 
ship, and died Feb. 23, 1869. They had a family of 
nine children, Mrs. S. being the only one who lived 
to grow up. Mr. and Mrs. S. are tha parents of five 
children, — William A., Lizzie J., Frank W., Clara C. 
and Perry J. 




■•<*4##>-*---4- 




eorge E. and Irving W. Miller, general 
merchants and dealers in hardware and 
agricultural machinery at Fielding, Frank- 
lin Township, started their business in Feb- 
ruary, 1S84. The building where they manage 
their affairs is a brick structure, 50 x 50 feet in 
dimensions, and they have a finely assorted stock 
suited to the local trade. 

Their parents, Daniel and Catherine M. (Bouk) 
Miller, were natives of New York and farmers in 
Herkimer County. They removed thence to Frank- 
lin Township in 1846, and were among the early set- 
tlers. They purchased 280 acres of land, and later 
became the proprietors of additional tracts until, at the 
date of the father's decease, Oct. 4, 1874, the estate 
included 560 acres, to which there were five heirs, — 
William O., George E., Emma J., Irving W. and Frank. 
Frank died Oct. 21, 1874, soon after the death of his 
father. William O. moved to Kansas, where he and 
his wife both died after being in that State about a 
year; he died Dec. 23, 1879, and his wife about two 
weeks afterward. One daughter of the senior Miller, 
Emma J., resides on the homestead with her mother. 
George E. Miller was born in Franklin Township, 
Aug. 12, 1854. He was educated in the district 
school of his native township, and was married June 
4, 1876, at Rockford, 111., to Mary A. McClellan. 
She was born in De Kalb County, Jan. 26, 1852, and 
was educated in the common schools, later going to 
Rockford to complete a more extended course of 
study. Her mother died soon after her birth, and 
her father went not long afterward to California, 
where all traces of him were lost. She was brought 
up and educated by her aunt. She is the mother of 
two children, — Frank D. and Lee W. 

Irving E. Miller was born Jan. 28, 1S57. The 



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brothers both lived at home until the opening of their 

present business enterprise. They retain their claims 
to which they succeeded through inheritance, the 
elder brother holding 190 acres; the tract received 
by the younger includes 160 acres. In political be- 
lief and connections they are Republicans. 

■ ■ >! < o.s (HB » e b*] — $—$<—— 

|?rson W. Rice, engineer in charge of the 
stationary pump of the Chicago, Milwaukee 
& St. Paul Railroad Company at Kirkland, 
was born Jan. n, 1837, in Lorain Co., Ohio. 
He is the son of Nahum and Betsey E. 
) (Blaine) Rice, who were natives of Ohio. 
They came from the Buckeye State to Boone Co., 
111., in the spring of 1837, when the son was but a 
few months old, and located on a tract of Govern- 
ment land. In 1S45 they returned to Lorain Co., 
Ohio. In 1848 the father died, and later the mother 
remarried and removed with her husband to Van 
Buren Co., Mich., where she is still living, at the age 
of 72 years. 

Mr. Rice accompanied his parents in their several 
removals, and obtained his education in the town- 
ship of Eaton, Lorain Co., Ohio. He was the fourth 
of seven children, and after the death of his father 
was dependent on his own exertions for self-main- 
tenance. He engaged in farm labor in his native 
State, and was occupied in that avenue of labor un- 
til he entered the Army of the United States as a 
defender of the National integrity. He enrolled as 
a soldier April 16, 1S61, at Cleveland, in the Eighth 
Ohio Vol. Inf., in Co. H, under Captain Starr, enlist- 
ing under the first call for troops. The regiment was 
attached to the Army of the Cumberland, and was 
in the service three months. On his discharge he 
immediately re-enlisted for three years' service in the 
150th Battalion, under Captain Spears, and was 
assigned to the Army of the Tennessee. Mr. Rice 
was in action at Corinth, Coldwater and Vicksburg, 
at which last place he was under fire through the 
entire siege. The regiment went thence to Jackson, 
Miss., and there encountered Johnson's army, going 
next to Lookout Mountain, where they fought under 
Sherman. After repulsing the enemy they crossed 
the Tallahassee and pushed on to Atlanta, Ga., 
where the command was transferred to the corps of 





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General McPherson After the loss of the command- 
er at Decatur, Ala., July 22, 1863, he served under 
Logan until after the siege of Atlanta, when lie was 
transferred to the command of Gen. Francis P. 
Blair, under whom he fought at Jonesville. After 
this action he was made Orderly at headquarters, 
and continued in that rank until the close of the war, 
and under it was detailed frequently for special ser- 
vice. On one occasion he was sent with a special 
dispatch to General Thomas, directing him to make 
a certain movement. This was a duty that required 
speed and sagacity, and he executed its obligations 
in a manner that won for him much commendation. 
Mr. Rice was mustered out of the United States ser- 
vice at Washington, D. C, June 2, 1865, after the 
close of the war. He was in the army of the North 
during the entire period of the war, his service last- 
ing four years, four months and ten days. 

Mr. Rice came to Illinois, to the township of Frank- 
lin, while on a furlough, and was married Sept. 19, 1862, ' 
to Ruth Penwell. She was born Aug. 13, 1843, in 
Boone Co., III., and is the daughter of Luke and /£ 
Elizabeth (Middleton) Penwell. Mr. P. was born in ^ 
Fayette Co., Ind., in i8i7,and Mrs. P. in Ohio, in £c£ 
1818, and went to Indiana when she was very young. \ 
They moved to Boone Co., 111., in 1836, and to De £, 
Kalb County in 1883, where they now live. 

On receiving his discharge from the army he joined 
his wife in Franklin Township and engaged in farm- 
ing, following that vocation until 1870. In that year 
he went to Belvidere, and there established a boot 
and shoe store. He disposed of his business rela- 
tions in 1879, and came to Kirkland, where he pur- 
chased a house and lot, and has since resided. 
In 1882 he entered upon his present employment. 
He is a Republican in political connection, and is 
serving as a member of the Village Council, to which 
he was re-elected in 1884. 



of section 18, Cortland Township, was born 
, in Jordanville, N. Y., May 28, 1825. His 
father, John J. Cristman, was born April 15, 
1799, a descendant of the Mohawk Dutch, and 
died about 1874, in South Grove Township, this 



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county. His mother, Rachel, net Eggbroad, was 
horn July 20, 1803, and died about [833. 

Mr. Cristman, the subject of this sketch, learned 
the trade of blacksmith when a young man, and fol- 
lowed that occupation more or less during life, having 
a shop on his farm. He worked several years at his 
trade at Jordanville, N. Y. On coming to this county 
in 18/54, he worked about a year at the business at 
Sycamore, the meanwhile purchasing a farm of H. 
11. Mason, on which he lived and labored until his 
death, which occurred on October 9, 1863. He was 
injured by a threshing-machine, and died from the 
effects three days afterward. When he bought his 
farm it comprised 240 acres, and had some small 
improvements. These he supplanted with better, 
and subsequently sold about 53 acres to Mr. Bing- 
ham. At his death he left 180 acres as his real 
estate. He was a Republican, and served for a time 
as Highway Commissioner. 

Mr. Cristman was married Sept. 10, 1852, to 
Almira Pooler, daughter of Henry Pooler. She was 
born March 22, 1829, and died Sept. 16, following 
her marriage. He was again married Oct. 4, 1857, 
to Miss Philany Pooler, at German Flats, Herkimer 
Co., N. Y. She was born July 9, 1835, at that place, 
and was a daughter of Henry Pooler, whose biogra- 
phy appears in this book. His portrait is also given 
in this Album, on page 232. Mrs. Cristman is the 
mother of two children, namely : Lorena A., born 
May 22, 1S59, and John M., Aug. 25, 1863. 

As one of De Kalb County's representative self- 
made men, we place the portrait of Mr. Cristman in 
this Album. He was well known, highly respected, 
and a most worthy citizen. He left a large and 
esteemed family connection in this county. 



illiarn W. Wyldc, farmer, section 18, 

Genoa Township, has been a resident of 

the State of Illinois since the age of two 

years, when his parents, William and Maria 

(Webb) Wylde, emigrated with their family 

from England to America and settled in Boone 

111. The father died in 1854, in Belvidere. 

Wylde was born Feb. 28, 1840, in England. 

nt from home when he was 1 3 years of age, to 

e a farm laborer, and he operated in that 





capacity until he was 21 years old, remaining in the 
employment of Daniel Ball, of Genoa. On coming 
of age he bought 94 acres of land in the township 
where he had labored eight years and where he has 
been a resident most of the time since 1853. Polit- 
ically he is a Republican. 

His marriage to Mary Leonard took place in Octo- 
ber, 1862, in Belvidere, and they had three children, 
Jennie, Ida and another who died in early infancy. 
Ida died at the age of two years. The mother is a 
native of Illinois. Mr. Wylde was a second time 
married Oct. 1, 1879, to Mrs. Martha J. Olmstead, 
daughter of Clark C. and Mary (Everson) Thomp- 
son and widow of Chester II. Olmstead. Her 
first husband died in 1876, leaving a daughter, — 
Mabel G. Mr. and Mrs. Thompson were born re- 
spectively in Vermont and New York. Mrs. Wylde 
was born in Coral, McHenry Co., 111., Nov. 23, 1846. 
Her father was a Union soldier, enlisting in the 95th 
111. Vol. Inf., Co. E, in i860, and died at Baton 
Rouge, La., April 13, 1S61, from over-exertion caused 
by a forced march through Tennessee. 



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W Craig, 



iMsSli obert Craig, merchant at Fielding, Frank- 
-12^ Hn Township, was born Aug. 16, 1853, in 
" the city of Philadelphia. His father, George 
came in 1S55 to Flora Township, 
Boone Co., 111., and located on a farm, where 
the son was reared to manhood, attending 
school and working on the farm until he was 22 
years of age For some months previous to that age 
he was at school at Cherry Valley, Winnebago Co., 
Ill, and on leaving there entered the general mer- 
cantile establishment of Keith & Blake at that place. 
He remained in that employment but a short time, 
entering the service of the Chicago & Northwestern 
Railroad Company as baggage agent at Dixon, 111. 
After nine months he accepted a similar position at 
Fielding, in which he officiated but a short time, and 
engaged in a mercantile enterprise with his former 
employer, Mr. Keith. Later he attended school at 
Cherry Valley, going thence to Chicago, where he 
spent two years as a street-car conductor. In 1879 
he came to Fielding and, associated with Frank 
Romney, established a general mercantile establish- 
ment, beginning trade with a stock of less than 



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$i,ooo value. From that small beginning the rela- 
tions of the firm have steadily and uniformly in- 
creased and grown in popularity until they carry 
stock averaging $10,000 in value, and transact a 
yearly business aggregating $25,000. Mr. Craig is 
the possessor of a valuable and attractive home in 
Fielding. 

He was married Sept. 30, 1S79, at Cherry Valley, 
Winnebago Co., 111., to Libbie Reid, and they have 
two children, — Edna M., born Sept. 29, 1SS0, and 
Arthur, born Nov. 13, 1883. Mrs. Craig was born in 
July, 1S56, in the State of New York. She came to 
Illinois in childhood, and at the age of n years be- 
came a member of the family of a merchant named 
John McKee, with whom she made her home until 
her marriage. 

Mr. Craig is a Republican and is at present a 
School Director of the village of Fielding. 






■■' I* ffj'-'oseph Sixbury, deceased, farmer, was a 
\'.|Hi] " native of Amsterdam, Montgomerj Co., X. 

Wf Y '' born N ° V ' ' 7 ' ' 8l °' Malinda ( Ell_ 
T/ !M. wooc Sixbury, his widow, is a native of Min- 
if den, Montgomery Co., N. Y., born March 2, 
I 1815. Joseph Sixbury and Malinda Ellwood 
were united in marriage in their native county Jan. 
15, 1834, and in July, 1837, removed to Sycamore, 
De Kalb Co., 111., where they continued to reside. 
The fruits of their union were two children, — Chaun- 
cey E. and Mary Eliza. The former was born in 
Sycamore, May 30, 1838; the latter, May 28, 1845. 
Chauncey E. Sixbury was married to Jennie 
1 Ainley, also of Sycamore, April 11, 1866, and now 
resides in Boone Co., Iowa. Mary E. Sixbury was 
united in marriage to James H. Schuyler, a resident 
of Sycamore, May 9, 1866, and settled in Nunica, 
Midi. Two children were born to them, and are 
named Colfax Schuyler and James C. Schuyler. Col- 
fax was born in Nunica, Mich., Feb. 23, 1868. James 
C. was born in the same town, March r, 1874. Mary 
E. Schuyler died in Nunica, Feb. 17, 1876. Her re- 
My 'mains were brought to Sycamore and repose in Elm- 
fj\ wood Cemetery. The two children thus early left 
(® motherless have since continued under the watchful 
2. and affectionate oversight and care of their grand- 



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mother, Malinda (Ellwood) Sixbury. Joseph Sixbury 
departed this life Dec. 28, 1879. 

It has already been remarked that Joseph Sixbury 
and his wife came to De Kalb County as early as 
July, 1837, the pioneer days of this section. Those 
who removed here from the midst of the older civili- 
zation of the East, were obliged to encounter more 
or less in the way of deprivation so far as the com- 
forts of life were concerned, both socially and other- 
wise ; and Mr. and Mrs. Sixbury were called upon to 
bear their share of the privations and trials of pioneer 
life. Outside of the discomforts that naturally and 
inevitably beset the white people, were the disagree- 
able, not to say dangerous, proclivities of the Indians, 
who at that period occupied in part this particular 
section. The surrounding groves were their rendez- 
vous, from which they made frequent incursions into 
the settlements to beg for food and other favors. Al- 
though not particularly hostile, they sometimes were 
troublesome. In relating to the writer some of the 
ways of the aborigines, Mrs. Sixbury said sometimes 
they would appear at the cabin door of the settlers 
and cast their blankets inside. If the occupants of 
the cabin allowed the blankets to remain, the Indians 
considered it an invitation to come in and take their 
repose, but if the blankets were taken up and placed 
outside, the Indians accepted the act as a refusal to 
allow them to tarry, and, picking them up, passed 
along. Soon after the period indicated, the Indians 
were removed by the Government to Council Bluffs, 
Iowa. 

Joseph Sixbury, besides taking an active part in 
helping to improve the Western wilderness, to which 
he had removed previous to the Government land 
sale, was public-spirited as well, and was one of the 
few men who assisted in the location of the county 
seat of De Kalb County at Sycamore. His land 
patent covered a portion of the site of what is now 
the beautiful and thriving city of Sycamore. Him- 
self and wife were devoted members of the Methodist 
Episcopal Church, in the upbuilding of which in 
those primitive days they both bore an important 
part. Each abounded in works of benevolence and 
charity. Those were the days in which the grand 
and rugged eloquence of Father Cartwright and other 
able and eloquent pioneer Methodist preachers were 
heard in the cabins of the settlers and in the groves 
and forests. It almost seems strange, but those early 



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comers often speak of the days of old, and associate 
with them some of the pleasantest and most enjoya- 
ble episodes of their lives. Their necessary depend- 
ence one upon another made closer and stronger the 
bond of friendship and sympathy between them, and 
though few in numbers and deprived of much that 
happily surrounds them in these latei days, they yet 
were happy and contented. All honor to the-cour- 
ageous and hardy pioneer of the West. 

Mr. Sixbury was a Steward and Class-leader in his 
Church up to the time of his death. He also occu- 
pied, positions of responsibility and trust in the civil 
affairs of the town and qounty, having been chosen 
assessor of his town many years, and was also elected 
to the important office of County Treasurer two suc- 
cessive terms. 



l^.enry P. Grout, dealer in agricultural in- 
5 struments at Kirkland, was born July 16, 
1S36, in Windsor Co., Vt. He is a de- 
scendant from a prominent family in that part 
of the Green Mountain State, his grandfather 
Grout being an early settler there, and was one 
of the Government surveyors of New Hampshire 
and Vermont. His grandmother figures in the his- 
tory of Vermont as an Indian captive, but her early 
release was secured. John Grout, father of Mr. 
Grout of this sketch, was born in Windsor County, 
where he maintained his home all his life. He was 
a soldier of the War of 1812, and after the close of 
that conflict lived on a land grant conferred in con- 
sequence of his services. He became prominent in 
general affairs and occupied high position in the pub- 
lic esteem. He died in 1 S 5 7 , aged about 60 years. 
His wife Polly, (McAllister) Grout, was born in Wind- 
sor County, and there lived all her life. She died in 
[855, and was the mother of nine children. Her 
father was a pioneer settler of Windsor County. 

Mr. Grout was the youngest child and attended 
district school until he was 17 years old, when he 
came West and located at Sycamore. Within a year 
both his parents died and he determined upon a per- 
manent residence in Illinois. He accordingly en- 
gaged in labor to sustain himself among strangers, and 
continued to operate in De Kalb County until i860, 
when he joined a party of gold hunters and went to 




Pike's Peak, where he remained 18 months. He re- 
turned to this county without accumulated possessions, 
and determined on entering the Army of the United 
States, the Civil War being then in progress. He en- 
listed in September, 1861, in Co. C, 52dm. Vol. Inf., 
and went to the front under Capt. J. S. Brown, of 
Sycamore. The regiment was attached to the West- 
ern Army, and he continued to experience the vari- 
eties of military conflict until the battle of Shiloh, 
Tenn., where he rsceived a gunshot wound, the bul- 
let entering the stomach two inches above the 
periphery of the diaphragm. Twenty-one days after- 
ward the leaden missile was dislodged and passed 
through the intestines. This is one of the most remark- 
able incidents in the surgical history of the war, and 
is the only one on record of its kind. Mr. Grout was 
discharged July 21, 1862, at Chicago, for disability. 
He returned to Sycamore and was married March 19, 
1863, in Franklin Township, to Mrs. Mary A. Foster, 
daughter of William H. and Betsy (Gorham) Rowen. 
She was born Jan. 12, 1835, in Genesee Co., N. Y. 
When she was nine years of age her parents settled 
in the township where she was married to Thomas 
Foster, a native of Indiana, who died in the town- 
ship of Kingston, in i860. She became the mother 
of three children by her first marriage, — Wallace T., 
Betsy A. and Joseph W., — ■ all of whom are married. 
Hattie is the name of the only child born of her 
second marriage. 

A year after his marriage, Mr. Grout purchased So 
acres of land in Kingston Township, whereon the 
family resided until 1880, the date of their removal 
to Kirkland. Mr. Grout is the owner of an addition 
to Kirkland, which contains ten acres. Since his res- 
idence there, he has been engaged in the sale of 
agricultural implements. He is a zealous Republi- 
can, and is the present Township Treasurer. 




looses Dean, farmer and dealer in real 

estate, resident at Sycamore, has been 

identified with the history and develop- 

$5^% ment of De Kalb County since 1856. He 

: j£ was born Jan. 27, 1815, in the town of Never- 

sink, Sullivan Co., N. Y., and is the son of Reu 

ben and Elizabeth (Divine) Dean. Moses Dean 

great-grandfather, is his earliest known ancestor 






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emigrated from England when a young man, and 
settled near Hartford, Conn. He was a preacher and 
spent his life at Hartford, where he died at the age 
of 104 years. Solomon Dean, his son, grandfather of 
Mr. Dean of this sketch, was born at Hartford, and 
was a soldier of the Revolution. He was a member 
of an engineer corps known in those days as "Sap- 
pers and Miners," and was with the command of 
Washington at Newburg, Valley Forge and Brandy- 
wine, and was a witness of the surrender of Lord 
Cornwallis at Yorktown, in 1781. He settled at New- 
burg after the termination of the Colonial struggle, 
and died there in 17^6. His remains were buried in 
the cemetery near Washington's headquarters. His 
widow became the wife of a Revolutionary soldier, 
named Samuel Johnson, and in JS04 the family 
settled in Sullivan County. 

Reuben Dean, son of Solomon Dean and father 
of the subject of this sketch, was born near Newburg, 
Orange Co., N. Y., and settled with his stepfather's 
family in Sullivan County. 

He married Elizabeth Divine, who was born near 
Newburg. He was a soldier in the second struggle 
with Great Britain, and was stationed at Brooklyn 
Heights. He died in January, 1846. The grandparents 
of Mr. Dean on the mother's side, Eleazer and 
Lydia Divine, were early pioneers of Sullivan County, 
and remained residents there until their decease, that 
of the grandmother occurring when she was 98 years 
old. 

Mr. Dean was reared on his father's farm and ob- 
tained a good and available education in the public 
schools. Previous to his marriage he passed the 
summer seasons in farming, and engaged in teach- 
ing winters. He was married June 16, 1840, to 
Rachel Evans. She was born Jan. 26, 1S16, at 
Fallsburg, Sullivan Co., N. Y., and was the daughter 
of George and Mary (Eller) Evans. In 1841 Mr. 
Dean became proprietor of a farm and a hotel at 
Grahamville, in his native county, and managed them 
jointly two years, then selling his property, and buy- 
ing a grist and saw mill and a farm at Hasbrouck, 
Sullivan County, N. Y. In 1845 he sold out again 
and engaged in mercantile business, combining 
therewith farming and trade in lumber at Hasbrouck. 
He continued his operations there until 1854, when 
he again sold out and bought an interest in a tan- 
nery at Liberty in Sullivan County, where he car- 




ried on that business connected with farming until 
1856, the year of his removal to Sycamore, whither 
he came in May. He first embarked as a landholder 
at Charter Grove in Sycamore Township, where he 
located and engaged in fanning and rearing stock 
until 1869. In the latter he took great pride and in- 
terest and made great exertions with the purpose of 
improving the stock in the county, engaging in rais- 
ing thoroughbred cattle and sheep, the latter in- 
cluding Leicesters and Southdowns, and making a 
specialty of Devonshire cattle. During his agricul- 
tural operations he owned and improved about 1,400 
acres of land in De Kalb County, and was instru- 
mental in the construction of ten barns and six 
dwellings. 

In 1867, associated with Daniel Pierce and R. L. 
Divine, he established a private banking house at 
Sycamore. Mr. Divine withdrew in 1871, andthe 
business was prosecuted by the remaining partners 
until March 1883. Since that date Mr. Dean has 
engaged in the improvement of land in De Kalb 
County and in Iowa, owning 500 acres in the latter, 
all under improvement, fenced, stocked and managed 
by tenants. 

The early political opinions of Mr. Dean were in 
consonance with the Jeffersonian school, and he cast 
his first Presidential vote in 1836 for Martin Van 
Buren. He is a conservative Democrat, and has 
been a counselor in the ranks of his party, but never 
an aggressive politician. During the war he aided 
materially in the vigorous prosecution of the struggle 
to preserve the Union. While engaged in his farm- 
ing operations he was a member of the Agricultural 
Society of the county and officiated several years as 
its President. He has been a member of the State 
Board of Agriculture, and while officiating in that 
capacity devoted much time and attention to the 
necessary preparations for the expositions at Quincy 
and elsewhere, where he was active in personal 
superintendence during the exhibitions. Since his 
residence at Sycamore he has been its Mayor, and a 
member of the Council. In 1S7 1 he was in charge 
of the erection of the county buildings, and of placing 
them in complete order for occupation. He has also 
been a member of the Board of Education. 

In December, 1874, he went with his wife and two 
youngest children to California, where he spent a 
year and visited most of the noted places of interest. 



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IK- wrote from there a series of descriptive letters, 
which were published in the Sycamore papers. 

In [876 Mr. Dean purchased about 20 acres, 
formerly a portion of the estate of I >r. Page, and in- 
cluded within the city limits. This tract he sub- 
divided and platted, ami it is now known as " Mean's 
Addition." His present resilience is included in it, 
and comprises a square containing neatly two and a 
half notes of land. It is an attractive and valuable 
location. 

Mr. Dean is liberal and tolerant in religious opin- 
ion. He attends the services of the Universalis! 
Church, but contributes generously to the mainten- 
ance of other denominational bodies. 

Mr. Dean and his wife became the parents of five 
children, four ot whom are now living: Delia mar- 
ried Joshua Siglin; Ann li. is the wife of A. R. Court ; 
Mary A. married 13. F. Whipple; Arthur married 
Fannie Beckler, Feb. 3, 1S70. To each child Mr. 
Dean gave a fine farm, on which he built handsome, 
spacious houses ; and they are settled near him. 
There are six grandchildren, the son and two 
daughters having each two sons. Ira Dean, the old- 
est son of Mr. Dean, was born in August, 1844. He 
enlisted Feb. 1, 1864, in Co. L, 17th 111. Cav. He 
was stationed for a time at Fort Riley, Kansas, dur- 
ing the Indian disturbances. His last communica- 
tion to his friends was dated in August, [865, and he 
was heard from through his comrades about the dale 
of the expiration of the period of his enlistment in 
November, 1865, since which his parents have no def- 
inite information concerning him, and it is supposed 
that he is dead. Mrs. Dean died April 26, [883, 
after an illlness of nearly a year's duration of cancer- 
ous tumor of the stomach. 



■ 



^{■Mojmarles Miner, hardware merchant at Kirk- 
*' ~j <3 land, was born Feb. S, 1854, in the town- 
ship of Franklin, and is the son of Daniel and 
JmT Eliza J. (Ives) Miner, for an extended ac- 




cation. In [880 he established his mercantile enter- 
prise -at Kirkland and obtained a stock of hardware 
sundries worth §-',500. His relations in his trade are 
LSing, and he is gradually placing his business 
on a par with similar establishments in De Kalb 
County. 

He was married Oct. 20, W877, to Mary E. Allison, 
and they are the parents of one child, Eva, Mrs. 
Miner is the daughter of James and Margaret (Wood) 
Allison. Her parents are resident on a farm in 
Franklin Township, where they were among the 
earliest of the pioneer settlers of that portion of De 
Kalb County. She was reared at home until she was 
1 4 years of age, and previous to that time was a pupil 
in the district school. She was then sent to the col- 
lege at Belvidere. 

Mr. Miner is a Republican in political opinion and 
lias served as a member of the Village Council. 



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fv count ot whom see sketch ot I. N. Miner 
Previous to the age of 18 years he remained 
at home, attending the district school and working on 
the farm. In 1872 he began his career of independ- 
ent manhood and became a farm laborer, spending 
two winters in school, securing a good business edit- 

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^,on. Hiram Loucks, retired farmer and ex- 
Representative of the Seventeenth District 
•>•'"** of Illinois, was born April 26, 1S23, in 
Sharon Township, Schoharie Co., N. Y., and is 
the son of Abram and Elizabeth (Ten F.vck) 
Loucks. He was reared on a farm and com- 
pleted his education in the Oneida Academy. He 
was married in Mav, 1848, to Amanda Yosburg, a 
native of the State of New York. Of their union 
seven children were born. Abram isdeceased. I mo- 
gene is the wife of William Ray, editor of the Shab- 
bona ( De Kalb County) Express. Nelson is a farmer 
in Champagne Co., 111. Ann is the wife of Henry A. 
Severy, a farmer and stockman of Somonauk Town- 
ship. Tames is a farmer of Victor Township in De 
Kalb Count). Henry is a hardware merchant in 
Erie, Whiteside Co., 111. Josephine is deceased. 
Their mother died Jan. 15, 1868, in Victor Township. 
Mr. Loucks was a second time married Jun 
1876, in Geneseo, Henry Co., 111., to Mrs. Anna M. 
(Shailer) Smith. She was born June 28, 1835. in 
Richfield, Ohio. 

In the fall of 1S57 the family settled in Victor 
Township, De Kalb County, where Mr. Loucks 
bought a farm comprising 200 acres of land. The 
proprietor continued the personal management of the 
property until the fall of 1879, when he placed the 



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farm under the management of his son James, who 
is making a specialty of dairying thereon and has a 
fine herd of thoroughbred and graded Holstein cat- 
tle. The place also maintains and fattens for market 
about 80 hogs yearly. Mr. Loucks and his sons own 
also 320 acres of land in O'Brien Co., Iowa, and 200 
acres in Champagne Co., 111., and under excellent 
improvement. While a resident of Victor Township 
he was prominent in local affairs, and officiated in 
all the local positions of trust and responsibility. 

Mr. Loucks was nominated at the Republican 
Convention held in the fall of 1879, at Yorkville, 
Kendall County, to represent the Seventeenth Dis- 
trict in the Legislature of Illinois. He received the 
election and soon after removed to the village of 
Somonauk, where he resided until the spring of 1884, 
the date of his removal to Sandwich. He was an 
able and efficient member of the State Assembly and 
served on the following Committees : Public Char- 
ities, Highways, County Organizations, and Fish and 
Game. Since the expiration of his term as Repre- 
sentative he has devoted his attention to the im- 
provement of his lands in Iowa. 



ilBjf* r °f essor David M. Gibbs, resident at Ge- 

BSIj; noa, was born May 8, 1839, in Otsego Co., 

ilKS*^ N. Y. His father, Alanson Gibbs, was a 

m J native of Massachusetts and married Sophronia 

■Jll"^ Main, a lady born in the State of New York. 

' They remained in Otsego County until 1845, 

when they settled in Franklin Township in De Kalb 

County, and are still residing there. Their children 

are named, Eustacia V., Alanson D., Benjamin S., 

David M., Parker T., Mercy M. and Ammi. 

Professor Gibbs is the third son of his parents and 
was a lad of six years when they transferred their 
family and interests to De Kalb County. In boy- 
hood and youth he was a pupil in the common 
schools, and in 1867 entered the State Normal 
School at Normal, 111., and was a student at that in- 
stitution more than two years. On completing his 
course of preparation, he entered upon the business 
which he has made the vocation of his life, having 
charge of the schools at Rosamond, Christian Co., 111., 
retaining the position seven years. In 1S77 he came 
to Genoa, and assumed the management of the 




Genoa graded school and has since conducted its 
affairs. It comprises four departments and 120 
pupils constitute the average attendance. 

Professor Gibbs is an avowed prohibitionist, though 
he is otherwise a Republican. In the fall of 1S64 
he was drafted into the Union Army and was 
assigned to the 30th 111. Vol. Inf., serving until the 
termination of hostilities,. His command was in the 
March to the Sea, through Georgia and the Carolinas, 
and Professor Gibbs encountered all the varied ex- 
periences of that famous campaign. After obtaining 
his discharge at Springfield, III., he returned to Boone 
Co., 111., and resumed his former occupation. 

His marriage to Julia A. Slatar occurred Jan. r, 
1 86 1, at Belvidere, Boone County. She was born 
June 5, 1842, in Chenango County, N. Y., and is the 
daughter of Joseph and Sally (Silvius) Slatar, the 
former of whom was a native of Chenango County, 
and the latter of Northampton Co., Pa. The father 
died in Chenango County, when the daughter was a 
child of five years, and the mother afterwards married 
U. S. Hollenbeck, and settled in the township of 
Spring, in Boone County. She died Oct. 13, 18S0, at 
Genoa, having resided with her daughter, Mrs. 
Gibbs, for three years. Mr. Hollenbeck died April 
8, 1877. Mrs. Gibbs is the youngest (living) of six 
children, the other five being Lydia, Almon, Louisa 
and Oscar J.; one child died in infancy. Mrs. Gibbs 
was carefully educated in the common schools of 
Boone County, and became a student in the Normal 
School at the same time as her husband, with whom 
she has been associated 15 years as teacher. 

Among the truly typical men of the county, one 
who is worthy to appear among the list of prominent 
and representative men, is Prof. Gibbs; and we take 
pleasure in presenting his portrait in this Album as 
a companion to the portraits of the leading citizens 
represented in this manner. The portrait is engraved 
from a photograph taken in 1877. 



** ; §H idney P. Harrington, resident at Kirkland, 
was formerly a farmer of prominence in 
the township of Franklin, of which lie has 
been a citizen since 1840. In that year lie 
purchased 40 acres of land on section 20, and 
immediately interested himself with vigorous 
energy in its improvement, with the ultimate purpose 



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of constructing a home and establishing a perma- 
nent citizenship. He was one of the first settlers in 
the tOWQship, and steadily but surely advanced in 
lerity, and added to his possessions until he was 

' the owner of 310 acres of valuable land, which he 
redeemed from its natural condition, lie realized 
all the hardships and perplexities to which the set- 
tlers of that period were subjected, hauling his grain 
to Chicago, the nearest market, and selling it at three 
shillings a bushel, and encountering (and overcom- 

y ing) other obstacles thrown in his way by existing 

V) circumstances. 

Politically he was a Whig in the days of his early 
manhood, and since the inception ami organization of 
the Republican party he has been a steady adherent 
to its principles and issues. He passed many years 
of his active life in local official positions, serving in 
minor offices, three terms as Justice of the Peace, 

\ and three terms each as Township Trustee and 
Treasurer. He also served 14 years as Postmaster. 

. Mr. Harrington is living in retirement at Kirkland, in 
\*± the enjoyment of the comfort earned by a life of 
™ effort and usefulness. 

1 — r He was born July 20, 1809, in Shaftsbury, Ben- 
^T 1 . nington Co., Vt. His father, Phineas Harrington, 

' was a native of Connecticut, and went in early life 
to Vermont, where he married. His wife was born 
in Rhode Island. She was the mother of three chil- 
dren at the time of her death, and 10 children were 
bom of his second marriage, while the family resided 
in Vermont. Four of his children still survive. 
Mrs. Phebe Green lives in Iowa, and is 71 years 
old. Whipple Harrington is a bachelor, aged 73 

• years, and lives in Erie Co., N. Y. Mrs. Aurilla 
Wait is also a resident of that county, and is 79 years 
old. Five children, who are now deceased, died in 
infancy, besides one who attained to advanced age. 
The father died in February, 1S44, in Erie Co., N. Y., 
whither he removed from Vermont in 1827, and was 
84 years old. The mother died in 1848, at the resi- 
dence of her son in Franklin Township, at the age 
^N of 7 1 years. 

Mr. Harrington was 19 years of age when he 
accompanied his parents to Erie Co., N. Y., where he 
was a resident 13 years, and came thence to the 
township of which he has since been a citizen. He 
(@) was married in the State of New York, June 28, 
^ 1833, to Polly Hicks. She was born April 6, 1S06, 



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in Chautauqua Co., N. Y., and was brought up and 
educated principally in Massachusetts. She became 
the mother of eight children. Hiram, the oldest, 
died from disease contracted in the army while a 
soldier in the civil war. Henry H. and Mary I. died 
in Franklin Township. Mercy L., Mary, Whipple 
A. (see sketch), Sidney P., Jr., and Samuel H. are 
the names of the survivors. The .mother died Dec. 
20, 1880, universally lamented in the community of 
which she had been so long a leading and honored 
member. 



eorge W. L. Brown, farmer, section 26, 
, Genoa Township, is a native of Cook Co., 
"5o^( III-, where he was born April 19, [848. 

His father, Schuyler Brown, was a native of 
New York, and married Mary A. Youngs, a 
native of Canada. The family settled in Cook 
County about 1830, where the parents resided until 
the fall of 1868, the date of their removal to Iowa, 
where the father is still living. The mother died in 
Iowa in March, 1869. They had nine children, all 
of whom survived infancy with one exception. Wil- 
liam, Horace, Lewis and Peter are dead. They 
were named Charles, William S., George VV. L., 
Horace, Lewis, Peter W. and Alexander. 

Mr. Brown obtained a good common-school edu- 
cation, and at 16 years of age entered the Army of 
the United States, enrolling in the 39th 111. Vol. Inf., 
and was in the service until July 29, 1865. In the 
siege of Petersburg, Ya., April 2, 1865, he sustained 
a gunshot wound in the left thigh, which kept him 
from active military life during the remainder of the 
war. 

In 1S66 he came to De Kalb County, and in 1876 
became the owner by purchase of 1 2 1 acres of land 
in Genoa Township, which has all been placed under 
improvement. Mr. Brown has been continuously a 
resident of this township, with the exception of three 
years, when he was a resident of Iowa. 

He was married in the township of Genoa, Oct. 
1.1, [869, to Margaret J. Vote, and they have been 
the parents of five children, — Charles E., Clara P., 
Maggie M.', George W. L., Jr., and Charles F. The 
oldest born child died when four months old. Mrs. 
Brown was born Feb. 7, 1849, in Seneca Co., Ohio, 



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and is the daughter of John and Mary A. (Karn) 
Vote. The children born to her parents were 10 in 
number, Elizabeth, Mary A., John, Anna M., Susan, 
William, Jacob, Margaret J., Charles and Franklin. 
The parents were of German nationality. 

Mr. Brown is a believer in and an adherent of the 
principles of the Republican party. He is interested 
in school matters, and has officiated as School Di- 
rector. 



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elson Delavergne, farmer, section 20, 
Franklin Township, is the son of William 
'\ and Catherine (Overacker) Delavergne, 
and was born in Brownville Township, JefFer- 
^5 son Co., N. Y., Dec. 23, 1S36. His parents 
were natives of Herkimer Co., N. Y., and were 
respectively of French and German parentage. They 
belonged to the agricultural class in their native 
State, and resumed that occupation after their re- 
moval to Illinois in 1868. They located in the town- 
ship of Flora, in Boone County, where the father still 
resides, aged 88 years. The mother died on the 
homestead in 1S69, when 63 years of age. Their 
family included four sons and four daughters, all yet 
surviving save two of the latter. 

The subject of this sketch was a pupil in the com- 
mon schools of his native county until he was 19 
years of age, when he embarked in his struggle with 
the world, becoming a farm laborer. In 1S55 he 
came to Franklin Township, where his skill and 
energy obtained for him plenty of employment, and 
where he operated in the same capacity until he 
entered the army of the United States. He enlisted 
Sept. 9, i86r, from Belvidere, Boone Co., 111., in Co. 
I, 37th 111. Vol. Inf., which was under the command 
of Ran son Kennicutt, of Chicago. After some ser- 
vice in Missouri the regiment was ordered to Arkan- 
sas, where it took part in the battle of Pea Ridge. It 
was next involved in the siege of Vicksburg, where it 
was in daily action for four weeks. In the summer 
of 1863, while the regiment was stationed at New 
Orleans, Mr. Delavergne had a long and severe 
attack of intermittent fever, after which he obtained 
a furlough of 60 days. On rejoining his regiment he 
was sent to New Orleans and went thence to Browns- 
ville, Texas, where he was assigned to duty in heavy 

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artillery, and while there his period of enlistment ex- 
pired. He obtained honorable discharge at Chicago, 
Oct. 6, 1864. He returned to Franklin Township, 
where he resumed his former work as a farm assistant. 
He was married March 4, 1869, to Hannah E. 
Losee. She was born in the township of Wilton, 
Niagara Co., N. Y., and is the daughter of Morgan 
and Hannah M. (Forbes) Losee. (See sketch of M. 
Losee.) Her mother died at her birth Dec. 22, 1837, 
and the daughter was brought up by her grandpar- 
ents until the second marriage of her father. She 
came to Franklin Township in 1842, with her par- 
ents. For three years after their marriage Mr. and 
Mrs. Delavergne resided on section 28, of Franklin 
Township, but in 1872 they removed to the home- 
stead of Mr. Losee, which they have since managed. 
Mr. D,. is a Republican in political sentiment and has 
held the minor local offices of his township. 



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^^^harles D. Patch, of the grocery and pro- 
tsJ&T vision house of Rowe, Norris & Patch, at 
gjflp^ Sycamore, was born Dec. 25, 1S55, in 
Northumberland Co., Pa. He is the son of Sa- 
W lathiel C. and Margaret A. (Watson) Patch. 

{ The former was born Aug. 17, 1812, in New- 
ark, N. J. The latter is a native of Pennsylvania, 
and was born March 7, 183 1. Both are still living 
at Sycamore. 

Mr. Patch is the only child of his parents. He 
passed the years of his minority on the homestead 
farm. After he was 2 1 years old he taught school 
during two winters in his native State, and in the 
spring of 1877 came to Sycamore. He entered the 
store of which he is now one of the proprietors and 
acted two years in the capacity of clerk. 

In September, 1879, he entered the Law Depart- 
ment of the University of Michigan; at Ann Arbor, 
where he studied onp term. Returning to Sycamore, 
he assumed editorial charge of the Daily Free Press 
during the Presidential campaign of 1880, continu- 
ing in that avenue of business until November. In 
April, 1SS1, he again entered employment in the 
provision house of which he is a member, as a sales- 
man, and operated in that capacity until April, [883, 
when he bought a third interest in the stock. It is 
valued at an average of $6,000. 

Mr. Patch was married June 1,1881, in McGregor, 



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[owa, to Rosa B., daughter of Seymour and Laurinda 

Chilson. She was burn east of Cortland, in De Kalh 
County, and died Dec. 23, 1881, six months after 
marriage. 

Mi. Pati li has been for some time the regular cor- 
ident of the Chicago Inter-Ocean, and Ins a 
decided taste and ability for newspaper work. 



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j^dward H. Wilcox, farmer, resident at Ge- 
noa, was born May 11, i860, in Dade Co., 
Mo. He is the son of E. S. and Sarah 
jS& (Clark) Wilcox, and his parents were natives 
I respectively of New York and Vermont. After 
J their marriage they settled in Geneva, 111., and 
subsequently removed to the State of Missouri. On 
the advent of the rebellion they were obliged to re- 
) turn North, and they settled at Elgin, Kane Co., III., 
^ where the mother died in 1861. Mr. Wilcox, senior, 
/S afterwards located at Genoa, where he remained 
=3 until 1 88 1, the date of his removal to his present 
VjX residence at Springfield, Mo. They had three chil- 
ca dren, — Eva, Sarah and Edward H. 
•f? The death of the mother occurred when the latter 



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v was about a year old, and he was adopted by his 
aunt, Mrs. Cornelia A. Hill, who filled a mother's 
place until her death, when he was nine years of 
age, and he became again an inmate of his father's 
home. His earlier education was obtained at the 
common school, and at the age of 13 years he was 
sent to the academy at Sugar Grove, Kane Co., 111., 
where he was a student during the terms of one year. 
He passed the next two years in travel, and entered 
Lombard University at Galesburg. After nearly 
three years of study at that institution, he was 
obliged to suspend his intellectual labors because of 
failing health. Change of scene and employment 
were imperative, and he went to Colorado and passed 
two years on the plains herding cattle, receiving from 
the rude mode of life necessarily entailed the benefit 
he sought. Returning to Genoa, he was married 
Aug. 10, 1881, to Virginia M. Crocker. She was 
born March 24, i860, in the township of Genoa, and 
j is the daughter of Alvero A. and Susannah Crocker. 

sy Mr. and Mrs. Wilcox have one child, Ellery V.,bom 

(® Dec. 16, 1883. 

Immediately after their marriage they went to 



Waco, Texas, where Mr. Wilcox became interested 
in a machine shop and foundry, in which he operated 
about 18 months. In 1883 he was compelled to sus- 
pend his relations in that direction on account of his 
health. He owned there a sheep ranch, with a herd 
numbering about 1,000 head, which he sold. He 
still retains his ownership in the machine shop. He 
owns 172 acres of well improved land in Genoa and 
Kingston Townships. In political opinions and ac- 
tion Mr. Wilcox is fully committed to the interests of 
the Republican parly. He is still a very young man, 
but unusually well qualified to conduct his relations 
with the world in the most creditable manner, pos- 
sessing fine powers of perception and observation, 
and a knowledge of the world at large, which he has 
obtained in his extensive travels, including nearly 
every State and Territory of the Union 




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fames H. Kirk, dealer in stock and general 
- farmer, resident on section 25, Franklin 
^** Township, was born Dec. 8, 1853, on sec- 
tion 22 of the township of which he has been 
a resident all his life. He is the son of Wil- 
liam T. and Louisa (Riddle) Kirk, whose sketch 
is on other pages of this volume. Until he was 17 
years of age he was engaged in alternate labor on 
the home farm and in acquiring an elementary edu- 
cation, and at that age he entered the college at Be- 
loit, Wis., where he studied two years, and went 
thence to the academy at Evanston, where, in 1874, 
he completed a course of collegiate study. On his 
return to his native township he became an inde- 
pendent farmer on 240 acres of land, living one year 
with a tenant on the place. He was married Feb. 
28, 1877, to Mary E. Chamberlain. She was born 
Dec. 19, 1854, and is the daughter of Henry and 
Sarah (Hart) Chamberlain. Her parents belonged 
to the farming class in tke State of New York, and 
were of New England origin. They settled in Boone 
Co., 111., where the father died, in 1875. The mother 
is still living, at Belvidere. Mrs. Kirk obtained a 
good common-school education, and afterwards be- 
came a student in the schools of higher grade in 
Belvidere. Later she entered the college at Mt. 
Carroll, where she was graduated in 1875. She was 



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*>^ engaged a short time previous to her marriage in 
teaching. 

Mr. Kirk is a most decided Republican, and is a 
prominent farmer and trader in stock in his native 
township. He is rated as one of the substantial citi- 
zens of the county, and is prominent and popular. 



Rector H. Coleman, a farmer on section i, 
Mayfield Township, was born in Orange 
Co., N. Y., March n, 1837. His parents, 
John and Phebe (Ketcham) Coleman, were na- 
tives of the same county; the former was born 
Nov. 8, 17 9 1, and the latter Aug. 25, 1805. 
His father was a soldier in the War of 181 2, and died 
in Orange County, Nov. 9, 1859. Mrs. Coleman re- 
sides with her son Hector. There were 15 children 
in his father's family, 13 of whom grew up, namely: 
Sarah A., Abigail, Mary, Nathan, Horton, George, 
John, Martha, Harrison, Hiram, Charles, Hector H. 
and Eugene. Antoinette and Josephine died in 
infancy. 

Mr. H. H. Coleman, of this sketch, lived in Orange 
County till 1875, engaged in agricultural pursuits. 
In October of that year he emigrated West and set- 
tled in Mayfield Township, where he is now a 
resident. He has held the offices of Overseer of 
Highways and School Director. In politics he is 
independent. 

He was married in Mayfield Township, Nov. 30, 
1 86 1, to Miss Mary R., daughter of Harrison and 
Mary (Hall) Mackey. (See sketch of H. Mackey.) 
She was born in Orange Co., N. Y., May 19, 1836 
and is the mother of one child, H. Mackey, born 
Feb. 19, 1863. 




— sGi- 

aleb Olmstead, a retired farmer, residing 
at Genoa, is a pioneer settler in De Kalb 
County, whither he came in 1846, and 
life bought 80 acres of land on section 16, in the 
/^ township of Genoa. He was born Oct. 3, 
I 1810, in Davenport, Delaware Co., N. Y., his 
parents, Anson and Charity (Wilbur) Olmstead, being 
also natives of the same State, in which they mar- 
ried and settled. John, Hiram, Caleb, William, 



Drias, Walter, Catherine, Thene, Melinda, Lydia A. 
and Electa are the names of their children. 

Mr. Olmstead was a resident of his native county 
until his removal to Genoa Township, where he has 
been the proprietor of various tracts of land variously 
located. He removed to the village of Genoa in 
February, 1877, and has since participated very little 
in the cares of active business life. Politically lie is 
a Republican. 

His marriage to Samantha Wager occurred Oct. 9, 
1831, in Delaware Co., N. Y., and they have been 
the parents of 1 1 children, — Andrew H, Albert A., 
Sophronia, Chester, Lester S., Caroline,* Mary H., 
Henry N., Emmeline, Ella and Emmer. Chester 
and Ella are deceased. Mrs. Olmstead was born 
May 2, 18T4, in Delaware Co., N. Y.,and is a daugh- 
ter of Cornelius and Mehitable (Bates) Wager. The 
biographical notes of Andrew H, Albert A. and 
Henry N. Olmstead may be found elsewhere in this 
volume. 



-~^^Sp*<J^"v^ 





Scarry Martin, a pioneer of De Kalb County, 
resident at Sycamore, was born Aug. 17, 
1807, in Chelsea, Orange Co., Vt. His par- 
ents, John and Rachel (Bliss) Martin, were born 
in Lebanon, N. H. They became pioneers in 
Chelsea in early life, removing there during the 
closing years of the 18th century. The father bought 
a farm which was still in its primeval condition and 
covered with timber. He made a clearing, erected a 
log house and underwent the privations and privileges 
of the life of a first settler in an uninhabited region, 
dying there in 1823. The homestead was under the 
personal management of Mr. Martin and his brother 
John during the three years subsequent to their 
father's demise. In 1826 the former went to Dans- 
ville, N. Y., and was there occupied about twelve 
months in a tannery. Returning to his native town, 
he found employment in the same line of business, 
and acquired a thorough knowledge of the trade. In 
1833 he formed a partnership with his former employ- 
er at Dansville, which proved a disastrous venture, as 
the latter was heavily involved in debt. Their joint 
operations continued until 1838, when Mr. Martin 
decided to abandon a manifestly hopeless struggle, 



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and came West. His net capital amounted to $20, 
and he made his way by stage to the city of Albany, 
where he took the cars, — a memorable incident, as he 
had never before seen the modus operandi of railroad 
transit. From Schenectady he traveled to Buffalo by 
the Erie Canal, and came thence to Detroit by the 
lake. He arrived in the City of the Straits and set 
out for Ypsilanti on foot, and took passage from that 
place to St. Joseph, Mich. From there he made his 
way to Chicago on a steamboat. The remainder of 
his journey was made on foot, and he arrived in De 
Kalb County wholly without means. He went to 
Union Grove, where he found a friend in Captain 
Eli Hames, through whose instrumentality he readily 
obtained employment. 

In September, 1839, Mr. Martin's wife joined him 
ami they took up their abode in the building now- 
known as the City Hotel, which was their residence 
until February, 1840, when they moved into the house 
of Captain Barnes at Union Grove. In 184T he 
moved to his brother's claim in that township, where 
he started the first tannery established in the county 
of De Kalb. The preliminary operations were, for 
obvious reasons, on a limited scale. He moved into 
the village of Sycamore in the following year, and 
continued the prosecution of his business a few years 
singly, when, in company with C. M. Brown, he em- 
barked in a nursery enterprise, in which he was inter- 
ested until the attempt by the South to destroy the 
National Government. Since 1861 he has been 
variously engaged. He is occupying his original 
house at Sycamore, a brick house that he built on a 
tract of five acres, which he bought in 1843, paying 
$20 for the claim and $1.25 per acre to the Govern- 
ment on receiving his deed. This is now included 
within the limits of Sycamore. He is one of the 
original members of the Congregational Church at 
Sycamore and has been a Deacon many years. 

Mr. Martin was married Jan. 11, 1836,10 Jane 
Ann Slack. She was born Oct. 4, 18 10, in Plainfield, 
N. H. She died Sept. 12, 1879, and of five children 
of which she became the mother two still survive, — 
Amelia, wife of Capt. H. C. Whittemore, and Charles 
F., present Postmaster at Sycamore. 

The latter was born at Sycamore, on his father's 
homestead, where he grew to man's estate and ob- 
tained a good education in the public schools. He 
was a clerk in the employment of the late John 



Waterman, and afterwards operated in the same 
capacity in the interests of M. Relyea. In 1864 he 
was appointed Assistant Postmaster by Chauncey 
Ellwood, and remained in the position of Deputy until 
his appointment as chief. In 1 878 he was re-appointed 
Postmaster of Sycamore. The affairs of the office 
are conducted systematically and in a way that gives 
general satisfaction, and wins for the chief official 
universal commendation. 




® 



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g illiam H. Garland, farmer, section 14, 
j Franklin Township, is engaged in gen- 
eral agriculture and dairying. He was 
born Feb. 8, 1840, in the township of Ma- 
lone, Franklin Co., N. Y. His parents, 
Gilman and Emmeline (Lewis) Garland, were 
natives of Vermont and New York respectively, and ( " 
descended from Welsh and English ancestry, of New 
England birth. The father was a farmer in the 
State of New York, and in 1855 came to Illinois, 
where he was similarly occupied for some years. In 
April, 1867, he removed to Seward Co., Neb., where 
the mother died, April 22, 1884, at the age of 68 
years. The father is 78 years old. 

Mr. Garland is the fourth child in order of birth of 
14 born to his parents. He was a pupil in the com- 
mon schools of his native county, whence he came 
with his parents to Illinois when 15 years of age; 
and he completed his education in the public schools 
of De Kalb County. Afterward he was occupied as 
a farm assistant in various places until he enlisted 
in the army of the United States to aid in the sup- 
pression of the Rebellion. He enrolled at Belvidere, 
Aug. 8, 1862, in Co. G, 95th 111. Vol. Inf. His com- 
pany went to the field under the management of 
Capt. E. M. Bush, of Belvidere. The command was 
attached to the Army of the West. Mr. Garland 
was detailed by special order from General Blair, 
corps cammander, for services as Orderly on duty at 
headquarters, and he continued to act in that ca- 
pacity until the termination of hostilities between the 
Government and the insurgents. He received an 
honorable discharge May 25, 1865, and at once re- 
turned home and resumed farming. 

He was married July 2, 1S65, in Franklin Town 
ship, to Emily Penwell. She was born Nov. 





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1846, in Flora Township, Boone Co., 111., and is the 
daughter of Luke and Elizabeth (Middleton) Pen- 
well. (For a satisfactory and more extended account 
of her parents, see sketch of O. \V. Rice.) Mrs. Gar- 
land was but five years of age when she came to De 
Kalb County, and has since resided in the townships 
of Kingston and Franklin. Of her marriage to Mr. 
Garland three children have been born. Alice died 
Jan. 30, 1 88 1, at the age of 15 years. Lizzie was 
born Oct. 9, 1868; Walter, Nov. 25, 1871; and 
Loa Lu Ella, born Feb. 8, 1885. 

After marriage, Mr. and Mrs. Garland fixed their 
residence on a farm in Kingston Township, and a 
year later came thence to the township of Franklin. 
Later they went to Flora Township in Boone County, 
where they were engaged in farming three years. 
Subsequently they returned to Franklin Township 
and bought 70 acres of land situated in a grove on 
section 14. The entire acreage is practically under 
cultivation, and is supplied with good farm buildings 
constructed by the proprietor. 

He is a Republican and is present School Trustee. 
He has officiated in other local township offices. 

ISfohn C. Waterman, deceased, was a busi- 
ly ness man of prominence at Sycamore for a 
period of nearly 40 years. He was born in 
Salisbury, Herkimer Co., N. Y., Sept. 9, 18 14, 
and is the son of John D. and Mary Water- 
man. (See sketch of J. S. Waterman.) He 
went to Geneva, N. Y., when he was 16 years old, to 
avail himself of a proffered opportunity to occupy a 
clerkship in the mercantile establishment of Abel 
Whitney. On the removal of the latter with his busi- 
ness interests to Northampton, Mass., Mr. Waterman 
accompanied him and remained in his service until 
he came to man's estate. In 1835 he came West, 
and, stopping at Cleveland, Ohio, he obtained a situ- 
ation in the jewlery store known as "Crittenden's." 
In 1839 he came thence toNewburg, Winnebago Co., 
111., and embarked in a mercantile enterprise with his 
brother, Charles Waterman. This relation continued 
operative until November, 1845, when he came to 
Sycamore, and, associated with his brother James, 
established the sale of dry goods. The brothers 
Waterman conducted their commercial enterprise 






jointly a few years, and afterward operated singly, 
becoming leaders in mercantile affairs at Sycamore. 

John C. Waterman died at Sycamore Oct. 19, 1883. 
In the early days of his political bias he was an ar- 
dent Whig, and on the re-establishment of the prin- 
ciples on which that party was founded he became a 
zealous Republican. While in business at Newburg, 
he officiated as Postmaster a number of years, and 
after his removal to Sycamore filled the same posi- 
tion. He was popular among his fellow citizens and 
identified himself with the public spirit that prevailed 
in the most active business period of the place, aid- 
ing substantially in the formation and permanency of 
its general interests. In his domestic relations he 
sustained the character of true and innate manliness, 
and ever preserved the tenderest and most consid- 
erate attitude toward his household. 

He was twice married. Caroline E. Hoyt, daugh- 
ter of B. F. and Arna Hoyt, became his wife Sept. 
20, 1 84 1, at Newburg, 111. She was born in Stamford, 
Conn., and the five children of this union are all liv- 
ing. Kate D. is the wife of William Moulton, of Cal- 
ifornia, a dealer in real estate. Sarah J. Moulton re- 
sides at Sycamore. Albert H. lives at the same place. 
Caroline W. became the wife of John Syme, of Syca- 
more. James D. is a commercial traveler in Chicago. 
Their mother died Feb. 9, 1866, in Sycamore, and 
Mr. Waterman married Caroline M. Rogers, at Ball- 
ston Springs, N. Y. She was born March 20, 1834, in 
Auburn, N. Y. Her parents, Elam and Caroline 
Rogers, were natives of Worcester, Mass. Mr. and 
Mrs. Waterman became the parents of three children, 
all of whom were born at Sycamore, as follows : 
Mary W., Dec. 26, 1869; Emily A., Dec. n, 1870; 
John C, Jan. 7, 1874. 

Mr. Waterman was a member of the Order of 
Masonry at Sycamore and belonged to Blue Lodge, 
No. 315. He was one of a family of six sons and 
three daughters. Two of the former and one of the 
latter are now living. Charlotte J. Waterman, re- 
siding with the widow of John C. Waterman, came to 
De Kalb County in October, 1840. Charles is a 
retired merchant and resides at Freeport, 111. Robert 
W., of the firm of Waterman & Porter, proprietors of 
silver mines in California, is a resident of San Ber- 
nardino, in the Golden State. 

One of the unique events of the life of John C. Wa- 
terman was his attendance at the funeral services of 



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President Lincoln, when lie was an attache of the staff 
of Gov. Oglesby. The sash and rosette which he 
wore on the occasion are still preserved by his family. 
The portrait of Mr. Waterman on another page 
will be appreciated by the generation to which he 
belonged, and by those of future years, as a pioneer 
in the development of De Kalb County, and as a 
substantial citizen of Sycamore. 

\ ev. David N. Kinne, farmer, sec. 35, Som- 
onauk Tp., also minister of the Baptist 
Church, in whose service he was ordained at 
Lisbon, Kendall Co., 111., is the son of /Esop 
and Lydia (Beebe) Kinne. His father was 
lorn July 12, 1806, in Onondaga Co., N. Y., 
where lie was a pioneer settler on a farm, a portion 
of which is now within the incorporated limits of the 
city of Syracuse. He died Nov. 5, 187 1, in the city 
which had grown within his knowledge until it had 
absorbed a part of the land which he had reclaimed 
from a wild state. The mother of Rev. Mr. Kinne, 
was born in the State of New York March 13, 1809, 
and died 111 Syracuse, March 22, 1864. Six of their 
ten children are now living. 

Mr. Kinne is the second in order of birth, born 
May 19, 1831, in Syracuse, N. Y. He was brought 
up on the homestead and received a good elementary 
education, which he rendered more complete by two 
years' study at Madison University, after which he 
taught school and also worked as a farm assistant. 
He entered upon a licentiate in the interests of the 
Baptist Church in 1853, and in March, 1855, he 
came West, settling, with only $8.50 as his cash capi- 
tal, near Morris, Grundy Co., 111., where he engaged 
in farming. After his ordination at Lisbon in 1858, 
he assumed the charge of the Baptist societies at 
Piano and Big Rock, where he officiated nearly three 
years. In 1861 he bought 16b acres of land in sec- 
tion 18, Somonauk Township, where he spent more 
than three years, and during a portion of the time 
was Pastor of the Somonauk Baptist Church. In 
1867 he was called to take charge of the Baptist 
Society, at Kaneville, Kane Co., 111., and discharged 
the duties of that position nearly three years. In 
1869 he came to Sandwich, where he bought a part 
of the farm he now owns, and, in connection with its 





management occasionally supplied the pulpits of the 
Baptist churches in Sandwich and Somonauk. His 
farm now includes no acres, with 90 acres under 
excellent cultivation and improvements. He owns 
20 acres of timber land. He has a fine herd of 
Alderney cattle, which comprises nine thoroughbreds, 
and a number of excellent grades. 

Mr. Kinne was first married March 15, 1855, near 
Syracuse, N. Y, to Huldah Pierce, and after the 
birth of one child — Mary E., deceased in infancy — 
the mother died, in Grundy Co., 111., Sept. 8, 1857. 
Mr. Kinne was united in marriage July 22, 1858, to 
Sarah P. Kirkland, a daughter of Andrew Kirkland, 
a pioneer settler of Big Grove Township, Kendall 
Co., 111. Mrs. Kinne was 13 years old when she 
came with her parents to Illinois. The entire route 
from Rome, N. Y., was made with a two-horse team, 
and the journey consumed six weeks. They had 
four children, of whom there is but one survivor, 
Belle E. Two children died in infancy. One son, 
Arthur, died in his 15th year. The mother died on 
the farm where the family now reside, Sept. 17, 188 1. 
Mr. Kinne formed a third matrimonial alliance, with 
Caroline Wokersine, Aug. 27, 1882, at Somonauk. 
Mrs. Kinne was born in Germany, and is the mother 
of two children, Earl Kinne, born June 17, 1883, on 
the farm; also an unnamed daughter, born March 7, 
1885. 

In addition to the pastoral duty performed by Mr. 
Kinne in the fields named, he operated in his minis- 
terial capacity six months in Linn Co., Iowa, whither 
he went in September, 1855. In the spring of 1856, 
he went with an emigrant party to the western part 
of Iowa, and preached in Sac County until Novem- 
ber, 1856, when he returned to Grundy Co., 111. 




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fv^f' H. Hinds, of the firm of Hinds & Holmes, 
»1( liverymen at De Kalb, was born in the 
* town of Stanstead, Canada, June 18, 1826, 
and since 1856 he has lived here, except the 
three years he was in the hotel business at 
Wutertown, N. Y. Before coming West he fol- 
lowed agricultural pursuits. He returned from New 
York to Clinton Township, this county, where he fol- 
lowed farming, excepting the eight years (1875-83) 
lie was engaged in the livery business at Waterman, 



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>f this county. While there he was Collector. On 
^Jj) coming to De Kalb in October, 18S3, he formed his 
*$• present partnership with Mr. Holmes. In politics 
he is a Republican. He has never been married. 

His father, Jonas Hinds, was born Feb. 25, 1785, 
in the town of Barre, Worcester Co., Mass., of Eng- 
lish and Irish descent, and died June 26, 1864, in 
Clinton Township, this county. The mother of the 
subject of this sketch, Trypheua, nee Holden, was 
born in Charlestown, N. H., Jan. 19, 1791, and died 
April 7, 1868, also in Clinton Township. They had 
six children, of whom T. H. was the fourth. The 
latter was four years old when the family emigrated 
from Canada to the township of Derby, Orleans Co., 
N.Y., in 1830. In 1839 they removed to Jefferson Co., 
N. Y., and lived there until 1854, when they emi- 
grated West, settling in Clinton Township, this 
county. 



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saac N. Miner, of Kirkland, is Township 
Clerk, a Justice of the Peace, and by calling 
a harness-maker. He was born March 29, 
1842, in Oswego Co., N. Y. His parents, 
Daniel and Eliza (Ives) Miner, were respect- 
ively of Yankee and German extraction. They 
were married in the State of New York, where they 
remained a few years and were occupied in farming. 
They came in 1S44 to Lake County, 111., where they 
were residents until 1859, the date of their removal 
to De Kalb County, when they purchased a farm in 
Franklin Township. 

Mr. Miner was two years of age when he came to 
the Stale where he has since lived. He was 19 
years of age when civil war startled the nation, and 
he enlisted in Co. A, 39th 111. Inf., and went to the 
front under the captaincy of G. D. Sherman, of 
Elgin. The regiment was assigned to the Army of 
the Cumberland. Mr. Miner was in the actions at 
Pea Ridge, where he fought "mit Sigel," at Pittsburg 
Landing, Corinth, Chaplain Hills, Stone River and 
all the principal battles of the campaign, including 
that at Mission Ridge. Starting with his command 
for Knoxville, Term., the regiment veteranized Jan. 1, 
1864, and hastened on to take part in the siege of 
Atlanta, moving on to Jonesboro. After the division 
of the army and movement of Sherman toward the 




sea, the "Old Fourth Army Corps " returned to Fort 
Pulaski under General Thomas. The Division 
pushed on to Nashville in pursuit of General Hood, 
and thence to New Orleans, where Mr. Miner ob- 
tained his discharge, Nov. 25, 1865, the war being at 
an end. He suffered the fate of war in being 
wounded in the elbow and hand, in the fight at Stone 
River, and a few moments later he was in the hands 
of the Rebels, who sent him into the horrible cap- 
tivity of Libby prison at Richmond, where he was in 
bondage six months, and was then sent to City Point 
for exchange. 

After obtaining his discharge he returned to Rich- 
mond Township in McHenry County, where he en- 
gaged in farming, combining therewith a traffic in 
Texan ponies, in which he was interested about one 
year. He went thence to Fulton, Whiteside Co., 111., 
and, associated with his father-in-law, was engaged 
more than two years in the management of a hotel. 
He was subsequently interested several years' in a 
billiard hall, and suffered heavy loss from fire. 

In the spring of 188 1 he came to Kirkland and 
embarked in the business of a harness-maker, and 
has since operated successfully in that line. 

His marriage to Sarah Gilgore took place March 
14, 1866, in the township of Richmond. She was 
born at London, Ont.,in 1846. She was reared as a 
farmer's daughter, and in girlhood accompanied her 
parents to Illinois and was educated in McHenry 
County. One child — Arthur D. L. — was born of this 
union, and died when he was eight years of age. 

Mr. Miner is a zealous and ardent Republican. 



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jfciram Eddy, retired farmer, resident at De 
Kalb, was born Oct. 17, 1825, in a portion 
of Genesee Co., N. Y., which was formerly 
included within the municipality of the county 
of Wyoming. His father, Harry Eddy, was born 
in Otsego Co., N. Y.; his mother, Anna (Whit- 
ney) Eddy, was a native of Massachusetts. In 1837 
the family removed to Kane Co., 111., and were among 
its early pioneer settlers. The mother died July 26, 
1854. The demise of the father occurred Jan. 26, 
1883. Eight children were included within their 
family, named as follows: Maria, Henry, Hiram, 
Asenath, Phebe, Edmund P., Asahel and Henry (2d). 



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The two oldest and the youngest are not living. 

Mr. Eddy obtained such education as the unde- 
veloped condition of the country permitted, and as- 
sisted his father on the farm until the period of his 
legal freedom arrived ; and he continued in the same 
avenue of operation until he was 26 years of age. In 
1 85 1 he joined the army of agriculturists in Illinois 
by the pure base of a farm in McHenry County, on 
which he settled. He there pursued the vocation to 
which he had been bred until 1866, when he sold his 
farm and purchased a small tract cf land in the town- 
ship of De Kalb, fixing his residence in the village of 
the same name. He is identified with the Dem- 
ocratic element in politics. In 1875 he was elected 
Assessor of the township, and has since officiated in 
that position. 

He was married March 9, 1852, in Kane Co., 111., 
to Mary H.. daughter of Joseph and Olive Lindsay. 
The latter died in Kane County ; the former died at 
the residence of his son in Sycamore. Mrs. Eddy 
was born June 20, 1826, in Canada. Olive A., only 
child, was born Aug. r2, 1853. 



j-Sharles L. Misick, physician and surgeon, 
^Wvate at Sandwich, was born Nov. 2, 1823, at 
East Troy, Rensselaer Co., N. Y. Henry 



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Misick, his father, was born Jan. 7, 1789, in 
Claverack, Columbia Co., N. Y., and was a 
tanner and currier by profession in Howard Town- 
ship, Steuben Co., N. Y., where he died Sept. 10, 
185 1. The mother, Louisa (Rose) Misick, was born 
Jan. 14, r796, at Rome, Oneida Co., N. Y., and died 
at Howard, Steuben Co., N. Y., Aug. 8, 1864. Fol- 
lowing is the record of their nine children : Nellie 
E., born July 27, i8i5,died Jan. 8, 1840. Emily 
M. was born Jan. 10, 1817, and died Oct. 20, 1834. 
William II., born Nov. 25, 18 19, is a medical practi- 
tioner at Marengo, 111.; Abraham \V., born Nov. 3, 
182 1, is a dentist at Donovan, Ripley County, in 
Southern Missouri. Dr. Misick of this sketch is fifth 
in order. Sidney S. was born Jan. 14, 1S26, and is 
engaged in farming in Steuben Co., N. Y. Rachel 
C, born March r6, 1829, married R. Collier, a me- 
chanic at Hornellsville, N. Y. George W., born 
March 24, 1831, died in Nora, 111., Nov. 19, 187S. 




Ann M., born Nov. 31, 1833, died in November, 
rS S 8. 

Dr. Misick attended the common school during 
the years of his early youth, and completed his pre- 
paratory studies at the Howard Academy. He ob- 
tained a good education, which he made available in 
teaching several terms of school, and interspersed 
that method of employment by working as a carpen- 
ter and joiner. Meanwhile he read for his profes- 
sion, and in 1856 entered the Eclectic Medical Col- 
lege at Cincinnati, attending the chief part of two 
terms of lectures at that institution, and going thence 
to the Ohio Medical College at Cincinnati, where he 
was graduated in 1857. He had become a resident 
of McHenry County, in Illinois, in 1855, and after 
he obtained his credentials he opened the career of 
a medical practitioner at Marengo, pursuing his pro- 
fession there and at Byron about 1 2 years. In the 
winter of 1868-9 he attended the Hahnemann Med- 
ical College at Chicago, and took his degree from 
that body in 1869. He established his business at 
Rockford, 111., where he practiced nearly a year; and 
in the fall of 1870 he opened an office at Sandwich, 
and has since conducted a prosperous business. He 
is a member of the Masonic fraternity and of the 
State Medical Society. 

Dr. Misick's marriage to Susan Collier took place 
at Howard, Steuben Co., N. Y., Sept. 3, 1848. She 
was born Feb. 20, 1831, and is the daughter of John 
D. and Tabitha Collier. Of her marriage four chil- 
dren have been born. Louisa, born June 20, 1849, is 
the wife of Ernst Mix. Viola and Iona, twins, were 
born Sept. 20, r85 2. The former, now Mrs. W. H. 
Palmer, resides in Florida. The latter is Mrs. E. W. 
Trout, and resides at Grand Rapids, Mich. Addie 
Mae was born Jan. 15, 1865. 



1 olaski Hix, editor, and senior member of the 
! r))-P lj firm of Hix & Van Galder, proprietors of 




$j/ y *' the Sycamore City IVcekly, was born April 
(Y 25, 1837, in Clarendon, Orleans Co., N. Y., and 
I is the son of Ephraim and Laura W. (Williams) 
, Hix. He is one of nine children, eight of whom, 
seven sons and one daughter, lived to maturity. The 
father was a native of Steuben County, N. Y., born 
December 9, 1803, and was the son of Ephraim 



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and Lucy Hix. Ephraim Hix, Sr., was born Novem- 
ber 6, 1768, and died July 22, 1834. His wife, 
Lucy, was born February 9, 1772, and her death 
transpired Nov. 12, 1824. The mother was a native 
of Colchester, Conn., born Sept. 2, 1804. She was a 
daughter of Barnabas and Amy (Perkins) Williams. 
Barnabas Williams was born in Groton, Conn., Dec. 
25, 1772. His wife was born in the same town and 
State, June 5, 1775. 

The Hix (or Hicks) family came originally from 
England, and the generations of to-day are the de- 
scendants of three brothers, two of whom settled in 
the North, the other taking up his abode in the South. 
Ephraim Hix, Jr., married Laura W. Williams, May 
1, 1825, in Barre, Orleans Co., N. Y., removing from 
there to the adjoining town of Clarendon, and from 
thence to Alabama, Genesee County, that State. In 
September, 1848, they, with their seven sons, came 
to Kingston, De Kalb Co., 111., and there located 130 
acres of land, which by later purchase was increased 
to 337 acres. Mr. Hix also located 80 acres of land 
in McHenry Co., 111. Upon becoming a citizen of 
Kingston he identified himself with the general in- 
terest and welfare of the community. His intelligence 
and integrity received due recognition, and for years 
he held the office of Highway Commissioner and 
Justice of the Peace. He died in Kingston, Jan. 13, 
1863, while the death of his widow occurred June 14, 
1875, in the city of Sycamore, the place of her later 
residence. 

The subject of this sketch was brought up on his 
father's farm and obtained a fair common-school 
education, afterwards attending school one year at 
Mount Morris Seminary and Wheaton College. He 
taught two terms of district school and passed sev- 
eral succeeding years in the occupation of a farmer. 
In 187 1 he carried out a long cherished desire to 
establish a newspaper. His first venture was in Sep- 
tember of that year, when he issued the first number 
of the Dc Kalb County Farmer, published at Syca- 
more, a small monthly agricultural journal, which in 
September, 1872, was succeeded by the Sycamore 
City Weekly. The latter was conducted on an inde- 
pendent basis, politically, until the Presidential elec- 
tion of 1876, when it supported the Republican 
National and State tickets, and has since continued 
a Republican paper. Never much of a partisan, Mr. 
Hix was originally a Democrat, and cast his first 




V© 



Presidential ballot in i860 for the Hon. Stephen A. 
Douglas, a strong Union man and before his death 
a strong war Democrat. It was his first and last 
ballot for a Democratic candidate for President. 
When a young man just attaining his majority an 
opportunity was offered him of seeing a portion of the 
South, as it was in the days of slavery. His obser- 
vations during a somewhat protracted stay in Ten- 
nessee, the trip leading him into Kentucky, Alabama 
and Georgia, as well as Tennessee, supplemented by 
the events of the War of the Rebellion, and by the 
attitude of the two chief political parties following the 
war, both in relation to measures of reconstruction 
and other matters of national import, caused him to 
identify himself with the Republican party, when, at 
the time indicated, he made his paper an exponent 
of party principles and party policy. The success 
and popularity which signalized the journalistic en- 
terprise of Mr. Hix was the result of his own energy, 
ability and perseverance under the weight of ob- C A 
stacles which would have prevented like effort on the 
part of most men. He had the disadvantages of small 
capital, obscurity, and influence which at best was 
but nominal. He had, moreover, to encounter the 
active and determined opposition of a rival paper 
long established. The first number of the City 
Weekly was received with manifest favor, and it has 
attained to an enviable position in the ranks of 
country journals. In September, 1878, F. O. Van 
Galder acquired a half-interest in fhe paper, and has 
since continued to be associated with its management. 

On Nov. 17, 1864, Mr. Hix was united in marriage 
to Louisa Parker, of Kingston, where her parents 
removed in 1854 and still reside. She is a native of 
Hammond, Spencer Co., Ind., born May 9, 1843, and 
is the daughter of Henry N. and Mary A. (Stillwell) 
Parker. Her father is a native of Ontario Co., N. Y., 
while her mother is a native of Campbell Co., Ky. 
The father of the latter was a member of a slave- 
holding family of position and influence, but refused 
to own property in his fellow man, being opposed 
theoretically and practically to the institution. The 
children of Mr. and Mrs. Hix are five in number, 
named May, Lewis P., Eva L., Floyd and Arthur W. 

Naturally unpretending in his ways and unambitious 
politically, Mr. Hix has never put himself forward as 
a seeker after political preferment, but has been con- 
tent to devote his whole time and energies to the 



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upbuilding of the paper which he successfully 
founded. He was made the last Secretary of the 
De Kalh County Farmer's Association in 1873-4, 
and is now Secretary of the Farmers' Picnic Asso- 
ciation. In 1875 he was chosen to fill a vacancy in 
Nr' the office of City Clerk of the city of Sycamore. 



. red S. Mosher, banker at Sandwich, was 
born July iS, 1841, in Ballston Spa, Sara- 
toga Co., N. Y. His father, Silas B. 
,. Mosher, was a native of the same county and 
passed his whole life within its borders, follow- 
ing his business as a builder and dying at 
Ballston Springs. The mother, Caroline E. (Castle) 
Mosher, was born in the city of Albany and died at 
Ballston. Their six children are all living. Sarah 
) is the wife of a capitalist at Alexandria, Minn. ; Eliz- 
^ abeth married William Garrett, foreman of the Axe 
/>s Works at Ballston Springs ; Cynthia C. is the wife of 
e=x Samuel Gould, Jr., a merchant at the same place; 
«^»x Caroline S. is Mrs. John W. Allison (the latter is a 




1 



stockman near Denver, Col.); Mary J. is unmarried. 

Mr. Mosher is the only son and is third in birth 

. of his parents' children. He was a pupil at the ex- 

(\^ cellent schools of his native place, and completed 
his preparatory education at the well known Gilmore's 
Academy at Ballston, where he closed his studies in 
1861, and he read law thenceforward until the ad- 
vent of civil war with its terrors and disasters. Pre- 
ceptor and pupil alike rose to the emergency and a 
recognition of the responsibilities inherited from the 
founders of the nation. Associated with Hon. Geo. 
N . Batchelor, with whom he was studying for a pro- 
fession, Mr. Mosher raised a company of volunteers, 
which was attached to the 115th N. V. Vol. Inf., and 
of which he was made First Lieutenant on its organ- 
ization. Among the first engagements in which he 
took part was that at Harper's Ferry, where 11,000 
men were captured. Mr. Mosher was among the 

^9* number, and was, with the rest, paroled. The com- 
mand was soon in the field again and participated in 

*|* the siege at Sumter, and in the actions at Olustee, 
Fla., the battle of the Mine, Cold Harbor, the siege 
and capture of Fort Fisher, at Fort Cilmore and 
throughout the Potomac campaign. Early in 1864 
he was promoted to a Captaincy, and when he re- 




ceived his discharge and was mustered out of the 
army at Raleigh N. C, he was operating as Judge- 
Advocate of the Second Division, 10th Army Corps, 
under Gen. A. Ames, Division Commander, and Gen. 
A. H. Terry, Corps Commander. 

On being relieved from army service, Mr. Mosher 
came to Sandwich and entered upon the duties 
of cashier of the Sandwich Bank, and also be- 
came interested financially in the lumber and coal 
trade at Sandwich in company with his uncle, Hon. 
M. B. Castle. He is now one of the banking firm 
and continues to act in the capacity of business 
manager. Mr. Mosher has served one term as 
Mayor of Sandwich, and has performed efficient ser- 
vice in school affairs, having officiated several terms 
as member of the Board of Education. He is one of 
the Grand Trustees of the I. O. M. A. of Illinois, 
and belongs to the Congregational Church at Sand- 
wich. 

He was united in marriage at Litchfield, Mich., 
Jan. 12, 1869, to Libbie V. N. Smith, and they have 
four children, — Caroline P., Edward Castle, Nellie 
Wing and Mary Louise. Mrs. Mosher is the daugh- 
ter of William and Pamelia Smith, and was born in 
Hillsdale Co., Mich. She is a graduate of Hillsdale 
College. 



^ohn N. Culver, Supervisor of Somonauk 
"g Township and dealer in general merchan- 
dise at Sandwich, was born Feb. iS, 1840, 
in Cambridge, Washington Co., N. Y., and is 
the son of Nathan and Eliza (Gilmore) Culver. 
He was reared on a farm until he reached his 
majority, attending school winters. He finished his 
educational course in the academy at Cambridge, the 
place of his nativity. He came to Sandwich in the 
fall of i860 and entered the employment of his 
brothers James and George, who were then mer- 
chants and located at the stand where his own busi- 
ness is now situated. 

Mr. Culver became a soldier in the military service 
of the United States during the War for the Union, 
enlisting at Sandwich in Co. H, Tenth 111. Vol. Inf., 
and went to the field under Captain Carr. His 
period of service terminated with the end of the 
war, lasting three years and three months ; and he 
was under fire at Shiloh, Corinth, Kenesaw Moun- 











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tain, siege of Atlanta and in numberless engage- 
ments of minor importance during the several cam- 
paigns in which his regiment was involved. On 
obtaining his discharge he returned to Sandwich and 
passed four months in his former employment. In 
1870 he embarked in the sale of general merchan- 
dise, in which he met with satisfactory results from 
the outset. In 1S75 he became the owner of the 
stock and business relations of his brothers, since 
which date he has prosecuted a substantial and pop- 
ular business. Mr. Culver is a member of the Ma- 
sonic fraternity. He is serving his second term as 
Supervisor of Somonauk Township, in which he has 
proved the wisdom of his selection for the position 
and his integrity and ability in official relations. 

He was united in marriage Sept. 21, r866, in Go- 
shen, Ind., to Imogene Miller, and they have four 
children: Harvey M. and Maud M. (twins) were 
born March 22, 1868; George W. was born June 1, 
1870; Bessie L. was born March 16, 1872. Mrs. 
Culver is a native of New York, and is the daughter 
of George and Margaret Miller. 



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^Tseter H. Helmer, farmer, section 12, De 
jj/j Kalb Township, was born April 15, 18 to, 
J ■ J r £ in Warren, Herkimer Co., N. Y. He was a 
i ~j farmer in his native State until 1862, the year 



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^ in which he removed to the township where he 
1 * has since been a resident. He first made a 
purchase of 125 acres of land, to which he added 10 
acres by a later purchase, and the entire tract is un- 
der a good quality of cultivation. His stock com- 
monly includes 20 head of cattle and several head of 
horses, besides other varieties. 

In political views and actions he is a Republican, 
and has held the office of Path Master. Mr. Helmer 
was married March 25, 1841, in his native county, 
in the township of Columbia, to Rosanna House, and 
they have had five children, — Celinda, Elizabeth, 
Frances, Clarissa A. and Florence L. Mrs. Helmer 
was born Sept. 3, 1S22, and is the daughter of John 
and Fanny (Welch) House, and were natives of Con- 
necticut. The parents of Mr. Helmer, Adam F. and 
Margaret (Harter) Helmer, were of German descent 
and passed their entire lives in the Empire State, 




where they were born. Mr. and Mrs. Helmer are 
members of the Congregational Church, of which 
Church Mr. H. has been a Deacon for 20 years. 

^iJWjt ra Douglass, farmer, section 12, Mayfield 
i : EJI|t Township, is from New York State. His 
parents, Joseph and Hannah (Symonds) 
Douglass, natives of Vermont, settled in Gene- 
see Co., N. Y., and afterward in Cayuga Coun- 
ty, that State. The senior Douglass died in 
Canada, Dec. 6, 1839, and his widow came to Illi- 
nois and finally died in Winnebago County, July 23, 
1839. They had 10 children, — Mary, Joseph, Sarah, 
Joel, Abigail, Hannah, Patience, Warner, Lucy and 
Ira. 

The youngest in the above family, the subject of 
this biographical outline, was born in Caledonia, 
Genesee Co., N. Y., Nov. 22, 1814, and made his 
home with his parents until the fall of 1835, when he 
came to Ottawa, 111., and in the fall of 1836 to this 
county, settling in the township of Mayfield, where 
he built a log house, near where his present fine 
residence is located. Here the venerable pioneer 
has lived ever since his first location on the place, 
excepting four years which he spent in Rockford, 111. 
He now owns about 450 acres in this county, keeping 
about 50 head of cattle, 20 horses and fattening 50 
to 100 hogs and 50 to 100 sheep annually. He has 
held the office of Overseer of Highways and School 
Director. In his political views he is a Republican, 
and in religion he belongs to the Methodist Church. 
He was first married in the township of Sycamore, 
in May, 1845, to Miss Cyrena, daughter of David and 
Robey (Campbell) Goodrich, who were natives of the 
State of New York. By that marriage there were 
four children, — Sarah, Ariadna C, Dilana L. and 
Carrie. Sarah died in infancy ; Ariadna is now the 
wife of Henry Townsend, and resides in Cortland 
Township; Dilana is now Mrs. Charles Nichols and 
resides in the township of Kingston, this county; and 
Carrie, the wife of O. S. Young, resides in Bureau 
Co., 111. Mrs. Douglass died in Rockford, 111., Oct. 
30, 1856, and Mr. Douglass was again married, in 
Pecatonica, Winnebago Co., 111., Feb. 27, 1S57, to 
Hannah J. Powell, daughter of David and Joanna 
(Parry) Powell, nativos of Wales who emigrated to 



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America in an early day, settling in Pennsylvania, 
where they passed the remainder of their life. They 
had a family of six children, — Llewellyn, David, Wil- 
liam, Samuel, Mary A. and Hannah J. The last 
mentioned (Mrs. D.) was horn in Clearfield Co., Pa., 
March 13, 1825, and has had by her present mar- 
riage, four children, namely: Cyrus A., who was 
born March iS, i860; Ella V., Jan. 30, 1862; Wil- 
liam H., Nov. 27, 1863; and Ira W., Jan. 16, 1S66. 
Ella V. died at the age of two and a half years. 

Among the portraits of pioneers of De Kalb Coun- 
ty presented in this volume may be found that of Mr. 
Douglass. None are more worthy a place in this 
record of the county's representative men than he. 
He has not only witnessed the transformation of the 
wilderness into a fruitful and prosperous country, but 
took an active part in the arduous and self-sacrificing 
work necessary to achieve such great results. Pos- 
terity will long to see likenesses of the faces of these 
grand old pioneers, who did so much for it, and we 
are glad to be able to present so many of them as 
we do. 

j? rlando Carter, liveryman at De Kalb, was 
born Jan. 29, 1830, in Chenango Co., N. Y. 
When he was 11 years of age his parents, 
Jared and Lydia (Ames) Carter, removed to 
Ohio, where they continued to reside two years, 
at the end of that time making another trans- 
fer to Iowa. In 1848 they came thence to Illinois 
and settled in what is now the township of De Kalb, 
engaging in farming. The father died in July, 1855; 
the demise of the mother took place in November, 
1872. Their children were, Evaline, Ellen, Orlando, 
Clark, David, Lydia, Jared and Joseph. 

Mr. Carter accompanied his parents to De Kalb 
County, which has been his home and field of busi- 
ness operation for nearly 40 years. He has led a life 
of activity and is one of the solid men of the town- 
ship, owning a fine farm of 320 acres, all under ex- 
cellent improvements. Besides, he is proprietor of 
valuable property in the city where he is a resident. 
In 1881 he became the owner of the livery property 
and its relations, and has continued its management 
since. 

Politically, Mr. Carter is a Democrat. He is a 

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leader in the local branch of the Odd Fellows at De 
Kalb, of which he was a charter member. He was 
first married July 4, 1852, to Elizabeth Campbell, a 
native of the State of New York. She was the 
daughter of William and Sally Campbell, formerly 
residents of Afton Township, De Kalb County. In 
1879 they removed to Nebraska. Mrs. Carter died 
April 6, 1853, and her husband was again married in 
De Kalb, Dec. 25, 1855, to Huldah White. Their 
children were born as follows: William, Charles D., 
Jessie, Ernest, Eva, Mabel and Cleo. 



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enry Augustus Adams, Mechanical Super- 
intendent of the Sandwich Manufacturing 
Company, was born in Pine Valley, N. Y., 
Jan. 2r, 1837, and is the third son of Hon. 
Augustus and Lydia A. (Phelps) Adams. An 
extended account of the career of his father 
may be found on other pages of this volume. He 
obtained such education as the schools of Elgin af- 
forded at the time his father was engaged in busi- 
ness at that place, whither the family had removed 
in 1840, and he obtained a practical knowledge of 
the details of the machine shop under the direction 
of his father in the foundry at Elgin, becoming a 
competent iron-molder. On the establishment of the 
business of A. Adams & Sons at Sandwich in 1857, 
he accompanied the family hither and engaged in 
the manufacture of the corn-sheller of which his 
father is the inventor, taking charge of the foundry 
department, which he conducted about ten years. 
At the expiration of that time he assumed control of 
the entire mechanical department as Superintendent, 
and has since continued to discharge the duties of 
the position. The working force includes from 100 
to 250 men, and the products comprise the Adams 
Corn-Sheller and the Reliance Harvester and Binder. 
Every variety and capacity of sheller is constructed, 
from 60 to 3,000 bushels per day (capacity), also 
power machines ; and they are in demand for hand, 
mill and warehouse work. 

Mr. Adams is a Republican in political faith and 
relations, and has served several terms as an Alder- 
man of the city. He is a member of the Mutual Aid 
Society, and, with his wife, is connected with the 
Congregational Church. 

He was married Sept. 29, 1859, in Sandwich, to 



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Augusta Carpenter; and they have four children, all 
of whom were born in Sandwich, as follows: Min- 
nie G.. Dec. 3r, 1862 ; H. May, March 19, 1867; 
Charles, July 28, 1869; and Jessie, July 13, 1872. 

The residence of Mr. Adams is on Main Street, 
and the grounds include two lots. He also owns 
two acres in the north part of Sandwich. 



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j^harles A. Brown, banker, member of the 
firm of Brown & Brown at Genoa, was 

born Jan. 12, 1858, in Genoa Township, 
3? where he obtained his elementary education 

in the common schools, and at 19 years of 

age entered the High School at Genoa, where 
he was a student four years, and was graduated in 
1 88 1. He went thence to Bryant's Business College 
at Chicago, where he studied one term. Returning 
to Genoa, he spent several months in farming. On 
the first of May, 1882, he formed a partnership with 
his brother, D. S. Brown, and they established the 
banking enterprise in which they have since operated. 
(See sketch of D. S. Brown.) 

In political connection Mr. Brown is identified 
with the Republican party, and is Treasurer of Genoa 
Township, to which position he was elected in the 
winter of 1883-4. He is the proprietor of an im- 
proved farm in Genoa Township, containing 240 
acres. 



fames H. Beveridge, ex-Treasurer of the 
Ijj?- State of Illinois, is a farmer on section 4, 

W&9 




Somonauk Township. His father, George 
Beveridge, was born March 16, 1785,111 Hebron 
%V Township, Washington Co., N. Y., and married 
, Ann Hoy, by whom he became the father of 
nine children. She was born in Jackson Township, 
Washington Co., N. Y., June 17, 178S, and died in 
Somonauk, May 18, 1865. The senior Beveridge 
removed to Illinois in 1838, and in 1839 settled in 
Somonauk Township. He bought a large tract of 
land, including both prairie and timber, the latter 
comprising over 100 acres. He brought his family 
here in 1842 and fixed his location on section 4, 
where he died, May 10, 1870. He was a man of 




radical views and an active Abolitionist. His 85 1 
years of life covered the most momentous and inter- 
esting period of the history of the American people, 
and he lived to note the splendid development of this 
country. He fixed his abode in De Kalb County in 
its pioneer period, and was a. prominent member of^- 
his generation. His home was the first white man's 
house in De Kalb County, and was located on the 
east bank of Somonauk Creek. It was on the claim 
when it became his property, and it was for many 
years a haven of rest and refreshment, both physical 
and spiritual. All new-comers found a hospitable 
welcome at the " Five-room Tavern." It was the 
scene of the first meeting of the local branch of the 
United Presbyterian Church, of which Mr. Beveridge 
and his wife were the first members and aided in its 
organization. A small church was built in 1849, on 
the site of the present elegant edifice, — one of the 
finest country churches in the State. While Mr. 
Beveridge was yet alive, he was gratified by being a ( 
personal observer of the increase of the society from s 
a membership of about a score to one of the largest <fo 
and wealthiest and most useful and influential relig- ^ 
ious organizations in the ecclesiastical body of which fe" 
it forms a part. The character of George Beveridge, ^ 
as a man, pioneer, philanthropist and Christian, [£' 
merits perpetual remembrance. Six of his children «; 
are living. Jeannelte is the wife of James Henry, a r 
prominent citizen and agriculturist of Somonauk 
Township. Isabella is the widow of William French, 
formerly a wealthy and influential citizen of Somo- 
nauk Township. James H. is next in order of birth. 
Andrew M. is a clergyman of the Presbyterian 
Church and resides in Lansingburg, near the city of, 
Troy, N. Y. Thomas G. is deceased. He was a « 
farmer, and his widow is still a resident of Somonauk 
Township. John L., ex-Governor of Illinois, is a 
resident at Evanston, 111., and is a general broker and 
real-estate dealer, having his office in Chicago. Agnes 
is the widow of Alexander Patten, and resides in 
Chicago. The youngest child died in infancy. 

Mr. Beveridge was reared on his father's farm, and ^-> 
received a liberal education, attending school in 1 
Cambridge, N. Y., in Grandville, and at Mt. Morris, \ 
111. In the institution at the latter place he studied 
two years preparatory to entering college, but he was 
needed on the farm at home. He came to Somonauk 
in 184' and took part of the claim of his father and 




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brother Thomas, where he pushed forward his agri- 
y cultural interests until 1852. 
' .* Mr. Beveridge was, from the beginning of his 
p ilitical career, outspoken in his preference in favor 
■J of the Liberty party, and he was an influential factor 
in achieving for De Kalb County its proud prerogative 
as one of the foremost Republican counties of the 
State of Illinois, — a distinction approached only by its 
splendid resources and development. In 1849 Mr. 
Beveridge was elected one of the Associate Justices 
/ of the county, and in 1S52 was elected Assessor. In 
: 1854 he was instrumental in calling the Anti-Ne- 
braska Convention which was held at Sycamore and 
which developed the true sentiments in the hearts of 
the majority of the voters, and the movement resulted 
in giving strength to the Republican party. Mr. 
Beveridge was made a Delegate to the first Repub- 
lican State Convention of Illinois, which was held at 
', ) Bloomington in 1856. 

In the fall of 1852 he was elected Circuit Clerk 

ifa and Recorder of De Kalb County, and in January 

1 following removed to Sycamore to enter upon the 

transaction of the duties of the position at the county 

= seat. In 1856 he was re-elected and served another 

term of four years, and he resided at Sycamore until 

his selection to fill a State office. 

In the fall of 1864 he was elected Treasurer of 
Illinois, and removed in the spring following, for ob- 
vious reasons, to Springfield. He officiated as custo- 
dian of the finances of Illinois two years. In 1S67 
he was made State House Commissioner and acted 
in that position until the office was abolished in 1878, 
when he returned to his farm in Somonauk. During 
the period of his last appointment the present United 
Presbyterian house of worship was erected near his 
father's early home, and he supplied the plans and 
specifications for the structure. He has been promi- 
nent in the county from the outset of his career as 
one of its citizens. He took a decided position in 
religion and morality, and has continued in the pros- 
ecution of a consistent and upright course of life. 
He has been known as an inflexible temperance man 
and has been connected with several organizations 
devoted to the cause. He is a member of the Pres- 
byterian Church at Sandwich. 

He was united in marriage, in Somonauk Town- 
ship, Dec. 24, 1849, to Elizabeth A. Disbrow, and 
they became the parents of five children, only two of 

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whom survive. Gertrude, born Aug. 18, 1850, i> the 
wife of Rulus E. Thompson, a mining speculator in 
the Black I tills. The second child died in infancy. 
James H., born July 6, 1852, died Sept. 16 following. 
Lois A., born Feb. 10, 1854, died March 5, 1S64. 
Merritt Hoy, born June 16, 1869, resides with his 
parents, Mrs. Beveridge was born Aug. 26, 1826, in 
Fairfield Co., Conn., and is the daughter of Levi and 
Lois Disbrow. 

The farm of Mr. Beveridge contains 376 acres, is 
in admirable condition and the family residence and 
farm buildings are of an excellent and creditable 
class. The proprietor is giving intelligent attention 
to raising Jersey cattle, and owns a herd comprising 
11 thoroughbreds and a considerable number of ex- 
cellent grades. The dairy products of the farm are 
in demand, and are shipped to Chicago. 



'(5y|^dwin Townsend, a farmer on section 14 
■:ttJHk of Mayfield Township, was born Nov. 11, 



- 



of New York, who settled in this township in 1S37, 
where they both finally died, — he May n, 1S79, and 
she April 26, 18S0. They had 11 children, — Mary 
A., Edwin, Francis, Marinda, Orrissa, Erastus, Clar- 
issa, Caroline, Harrison, Charles N. and one who 
died in infancy. 

Mr. Townsend, whose name heads this sketch, has 
resided here all his life, but was nine months in the 
army. He enlisted in March, 1865, in the Ninth 111. 
Vol. Cav. In his politics he is a Republican, and in 
his township he has been honored with the offices 
of Overseer of Highways, Highway Commissioner, 
School Trustee, etc. He is at present the owner of 
222 acres of land in this township, with about 200 
acres in cultivation. 

He was married at Cedar Falls, Iowa, Jan. 20, 
1869, to Miss Lorinda M, daughter of Sumner and 
Sarah (Kelsey) French, the former of whom was a 
native of New Hampshire and the latter of New 
Jersey. They came to De Kalb County about 1840, 
settling in Genoa Township, but removed to Iowa in 
1869, where he died Oct. 20, 1873; she is still liv- 



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giH^"* 1838, in the same township, and is there- &, 

*S. fore probably the oldest native-born resident in ^ 

the county. His parents, Charles and Phebe 

(Nichols) Townsend, were natives of the State 







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ing. They had seven children, — Sumner, Lorinda 
M., Whitcomb, Jerusha, Stillman, Rolla and Mary. 
Mrs. Townsend was born in Genoa Township, June 
16, 1850. The children of Mr. and Mrs. T. are 
Charles S., Orrissa S., Leona C. and Olive A., four 
in number. 



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%. eorge S. Treat, farmer, section 5, Somo- 

nauk Township, is the son of Thomas R. 

s and Nancy (Seymour) Treat, and was born 




June 23, 1823, in Mayville, the county seat of 
Chautauqua Co., N. Y. His father was born 
in that State Aug. 26, 1795. In early life the 
latter was a hatter by trade, and later a miller. In 
1838 the family came to Illinois, and not long after 
settled near Piano, where the father bought a large 
farm and was resident there until 1872, when he 
went to Oakland, Cal. He is still living and is 90 
years of age. His wife was a native of New York 
State, and of their five children four survive. Royal 
C. is a merchant at Meadow Valley, Wis. Henry 
B. is a farmer and nurseryman at Atchison, Kansas. 
Julia is deceased. Emily VV. is the wife of Edwin 
Brayton, a ranchman of California. 

Mr. Treat is the second child of his parents, and 
has lived in Illinois since he was 15 years old. He 
became his "own man" when he was 19 years of 
age, and until his marriage was occupied as a farm 
assistant. He was united in marriage to Cordelia S. 
Culver, Oct. 13, 1846, at Westfield, N. Y., and they 
have had four children : George M. was born Dec. 
6, 1847, in the township of Little Rock, Kendall Co., 
111.; Julius J. was born in Westfield, Dec. 13, i85r, 
and is engaged in fruit culture at Sunny Side, Spauld- 
ing Co., Ga. ; Milton A., born Aug. 29, 1S53, is a 
farmer near Spencer, Clay Co., Iowa ; Nora L. was 
born Dec. 2, 1872, and died the same day. 

The farm on which Mr. Treat is at present resi- 
dent has been his property since July, 1S60, when 
he made his first purchase of 120 acres. He now owns 
140 acres on sections 5 and 8, and ten acres of tim- 
ber land in Squaw Grove Township ; also 40 acres 
in Ernmett Co., Mich., and 160 acres in Clay Co., 
Iowa. He is extensively interested in bee culture, 
and has an apiary of about 50 colonies. He obtains 
annually a considerable quantity of honey for market, 

l^ff- ^^ — e-^o II 




and also conducts a small dairy business. During 
six years his farm was rented, and he was for that 
period chiefly a resident of Sandwich. He has 
officiated 1 2 consecutive years as Commissioner of 
Highways. 

His first wife died on the farm in Somonauk, May 
19, 1878, and Mr. Treat was again married Dec. 25, 
1879, to Eliza D. Olds, who was born May 6, 1837,- 
in the State of New York. The paternal grandpar- 
ents of Mr. Treat, Charles and Hope Treat, were of 
pure Yankee extraction. The grandfather was a sol- 
dier in the Revolutionary struggle. 



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lva Clark, farmer and stockman on section 
32, Franklin Township, is the son of Gilbert 
and Miranda (Stevens) Clark, who were 
natives of Ontario, Can. They were farmers 
in the Dominion, where the mother died when 
45 years of age. The father died in Michigan 
at the age of 60 years. Mr. Clark was thrown upon 
his own resources when he was 13 years of age. He 
supported himself by work as a farm laborer, and at 
17 years of age he went to Jefferson Co., N. Y., re- 
maining there three years, and going thence to Os- 
wego County in the same State, where he passed 
some time engaged in teaming. From that time 
until 1866 he was variously employed in different 
places, and in that year came to Illinois. He first 
made a permanent location in the township of Mon- 
roe in Ogle County, where he continued to live until 
r879, the date of his becoming a land-holder in De 
Kalb County, where he purchased 120 acres on sec- 
tion 32 of Franklin Township. Of this he took pos- 
session in the same year. In his political preferences 
Mr. Clark is a Republican. 

His marriage to Electa Van Voorhis took place 
Feb. 25, 1880, at Fielding. She is the daughter of 
George and Amy (Ferguson) Van Voorhis, natives of 
the State of New York. The daughter was born 
Dec. 10, 1854, in Booneville, Oneida Co., N. Y. Her 
father was a farmer, and both her parents were of 
German origin and ancestors, who were born in 
Dutchess Co., N. Y. Her mother died in Oneida 
County May 9, 1863, where her father still lives and 
where the daughter was a resident until she was 15 
years of age. She was a good scholar, and at that 



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age began teaching, which she pursued in her native 
county until 1877, when she came to Fielding. She 
was a teacher there and in Ogle County two years 
previous to her marriage. Gilbert V., the only child 
of Mr. and Mrs. Clark, was born June 16, 1883. 



i hilip G. Young, a coal and lumber mer- 
• chant at De Kalb, was born in the town of 
W^ Stark, Herkimer Co., N. Y., May 19, 1S28. 
sij 'The first 30 years of his life were passed in 
7,v his native county, and he came to Illinois 
about 1858, first settling on a farm in Ogle 
County, which he conducted three years. In 1861 
he bought 80 acres of land in the township of De 
Kalb, which he managed with shrewdness and in- 
dustry, adding to its extent until he was the proprie- 
tor of 320 acres, and of which he held the ownership 
until the spring of 1884, the date of his removal to 
his present place of abode, when he sold his estate. 
In April, 1S83, Mr. Young formed his present busi- 
ness relation with David D. Brown, for the purpose 
of trade in coal and lumber, the firm taking the style 
of Brown & Young. 

Mr. Young is a Democrat in political faith and ac- 
tion. He has been active in local school matters 
and lias officiated as Alderman of De Kalb four 
years, he having been a resident of the city from 
1 87 3 to 1878; he then returned to the farm. 

He was married Oct. 20, 1856, in Herkimer Co., 
N. Y., to Elmira Chrissman, a native of the Empire 
State. They have two children, — Wolstine D., born 
March 21, i860, and Phila E., born Dec. 13, 1862. 



#># 



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fWml illiam G. Beveridge, farmer on section 5, 
gJI^S |l Somonauk Township, was born in the 
place where he is a resident, July 30, 
J\^2> J853- His father, Thomas G. Beveridge, 
"wV was ' )0rn April 9, 1822, in Greenwich, Wash- 
( p ington Co., N. Y., and was the son of George 
and Ann (Hoy) Beveridge, who were pioneer settlers 
of Somonauk. (See sketch of Hon. J. H. Beveridge.) 
Thomas G. Beveridge married Elizabeth Irwin, who 
was born Dec. 18, 1827, in Washington Co., N. Y., 

%&*h ^*€^ ^A^DII® 




and they became the parents of three children. 
James H. was born May 2, 1856, and died April 2, 
1857. Anna M. is the wife of R. R. Brown, of Clin- 
ton Township, De Kalb County. She was born May 
27, 185S. The father received 160 acres of land 
originally included in the vast tract that was pur- 
chased by George Beveridge. He died April 24, 
1859, and his widow is an inmate of the family of 
the son who inherited the estate of his father. 

Mr. Beveridge is the oldest child. He was mar- 
ried in Pana, Christian Co., 111.. Dec. 15, 1880, to 
Ella M. Finley. Their children were born as fol- 
lows: Maggie, Dec. 18, 1881 ; and Thomas, March 
20, 1884. The latter died six days after birth. Mrs. 
Beveridge was born May 31, 1855, in New Athens, 
Harrison Co., Ohio, and ; s the daughter of Thomas 
and Ellen Finley. 

Mr. Beveridge has added by later purchase to his 
ancestral estate and is now the proprietor of 295 
acres of excellent land. He has a valuable herd of 
graded Short-Horn cattle, which comprises 40 head. 

evi F. Welty, a farmer on section 30, South 
Grove Township, was born in Oswego, 
Kendall Co., 111., Nov. 30, 1848. His par- 
ents, Daniel and Diana (Ernest) Welty, were 
natives of Parry Co., Pa , and were of German 
lineage. Soon after their marriage, they came 
to Illinois and located primarily in Kendall County, 
removing thence to De Kalb County. Their stay in 
the latter was temporary, and they proceeded to 
Winnebago County. In 1S68 they took up their per- 
manent abode in De Kalb County, where they 
bought a half section of land, established their 
homestead and passed the remainder of their lives 
there. The father died in March, 1882; the latter 
in October, 1881. They were aged 65 and 56 years 
respectively. The parents of Mr. and Mrs. Welty 
belonged to a representative class in De Kalb County 
who constitute its best type of citizenship, and they 
have left to their children the heritage of lives of 
worthy effort and a stainless, honorable name. They 
had nine children, born in the following order: Wil- 
liam H., Levi F., George W., Emma J., Lauretta, 
Charles D. and Samuel A. Those deceased were 
named Jeremiah E. and Alice. 

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In 1878 Mr. VVelty formed a partnership with his 
brother George W. in the pursuit of agriculture, and 
they have operated successfully since that date in 
general farming and raising stock. They own 160 
acres, all of which is under the best order t>( culti- 
vation, and forms a valuable piece of property. They 
are Republicans in political opinions. 

Mr. Welty was married Dec. 27, 1883, at Hinckley, 
De Kalb County, to Mary A., daughter of J. K. and 
Rebecca (Eberly) Kuter. Her father is an insur- 
ance agent, and officiated six years as County Coro- 
ner. Mrs. Welty was born Dec. 28, 1859, in Pierce 
Township, and was reared and educated in the place 
of her birth. 




(!) 



tJr i§ jj', lonzo Ellwood, merchant at Sycamore, is 
M one of the pioneer business men of De 

f-iy Kalb County. He was born June 17, 1823, in 
the town of Canajoharie, Montgomery Co., N. 
Y., and is the son of Abraham and Sarah (De- 
long) Ellwood. (See sketch of Hon. Chaun- 
cey Ellwood, page 241, for further notice of parents.) 
At the age of 15 years Mr. Ellwood went to Mo- 
hawk, Herkimer Co., N. Y., and served three years 
acquiring a knowledge of the manufacture of car- 
riages and sleighs, remaining several years as an 
employee in the establishment, where he was after- 
ward foreman for a number of years. 

Mr. Ellwood went to California in the spring of 
1852 and prosecuted placer-mining on the Middle 
Fork of the American River until 1854, when he re- 
turned home. In the spring of 1855 he came to 
Sycamore and commenced his business career by 
engaging as a clerk in the establishment of George 
VValrod. Six months later, associated with Willis 
Lott, he founded a hardware business. They con- 
ducted its affairs jointly about three years. In 1858 
he purchased his partner's interest, and not long after 
admitted his brother Reuben to a partnership. In 
1867 he sold his interest to the latter, and, in com- 
pany with Chauncey Ellwood and O. M. Bryan, he 
built a flax-mill, which is still in existence at Syca- 
more. Previous to the establishment of this enter- 
prise he had been appointed Assessor of United 
States Revenue; and, the duties of the position be- 
coming pressing, he sold his interest in the flax- 




-x^n 






mill to Mr. Leonard Orendorf. In 1870, asso- 
ciated with Mr. N. C. Warren and Mr. James S. 
Waterman, he opened a hardware store at Syca- 
more, which was in existence four years. The estab- 
lishment with stock and fixtures was consumed by 
fire, involving a loss of $1 1,000, partly covered by an 
insurance of $8,000. Messrs. Ellwood and Warren 
became sole proprietors by purchase of the business 
relations and re-established the trade. A year later 
they sold out. Meanwhile, Mr. Ellwood had relieved 
himself of the burdens of the position of Assessor, 
which he had held eight years, and in company with 
his brothers, Chauncey and James E., erected two 
stores of the Central Block at Sycamore, which is 
two stories high above the basement, is 46x90 feet 
in size. The basement is utilized for business pur- 
poses and the upper story as offices. 

Messrs. A. and J. E. Ellwood in 1857 embarked 
in the sale of drugs and groceries, which relation 
existed until 1881, when J. E. Ellwood sold his in- 
terest to George M. Sivwright, since which date the 
business and its connections have been conducted as 
at present. The stock is estimated at a cash value 
of $10,000, and includes staple and fancy groceries, 
drugs, crockery, paints, oils and other articles com- 
mon to similar establishments. 

The local business relations of Mr. Ellwood have 
been commensurate with, and in the same public 
spirit which has pushed the general enterprises con- 
nected with Sycamore into prominence and success. 
He was one of the projectors and original stock- 
holders of the Sycamore & Cortland Railroad, and 
was Director of its affairs until it was transferred by 
sale to the Chicago & Northwestern Railroad Com- 
pany. He was a stock-holder in the Marsh Har- 
vester Company and is now a stock-holder in the 
Marsh Binder Company. At the time of the 
organization of the R. Ellwood Manufacturing Com- 
pany, he became a stock-holder, and still remains 
one of its Directors. He is the owner of a consider- 
able interest in the Wisconsin & San Juan Min- 
ing Company, whose claims are situated on Henson 
Creek, Colorado, and is President of the corporation. 
The mines are advancing in development with flat- 
tering prospects of substantial results. 

Mr. Ellwood is Vice-President of the Covenant 
Mutual Benefit Association of Illinois, which position 
he has occupied since 1879. The organization was 
established in 1877, and has more than iS,ooo mem- 



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DE KALB COUNTY. 



bers at this date ( 1 S85). He is a heavy land-holder 
at various points, owning 360 acres in Hancock Co., 
Iowa, a valuable improved farm in Dallas Co., Iowa, 
and five acres of platted land in South Lawn, in the 
suburbs ol Chicago. 

He has been active and prominent in local polit- 
ical and official positions in the several places where 
he lias resided. He served three years as Postmaster 
of Columbia, Herkimer Co., N. Y., and was Chairman 
of the Board of Village Trustees of Sycamore three 
years. By virtue of that office he became a Super- 
visor of his town. After the latter place was incor- 
porated as a city he was elected Alderman of the 
First Ward, and now occupies the position. 

He became a member of the Odd Fellows Order 
on attaining his majority, and has reached unusual 
prominence. In 1880 he was elected Deputy Grand 
Master of the State of Illinois, and was a candidate 
for Grand Master in the year following. His defeat 
was nominal, James S. Ticknor, of Rockford, receiv- 
ing the election by a majority of 45 votes. He was 
a candidate again in 1S82, and was elected at the 
annual session in Springfield by a majority of 1,100. 
The order included at that date about 32,000 mem- 
bers, and during the year of Mr. Ellwood's incum- 
bency its membership increased nearly 3,000. He 
declined a proffered nomination in 1S84 as Grand 
Representative to the Sovereign Grand Lodge, a body 
whose scope includes the organizations of the world. 
Mr. Ellwood is also an active member of the Masonic 
fraternity and belongs to the Knights Templar. 
While a resident of Herkimer County he was Captain 
of a company of Light Guards, which were ordered 
to report for duty in the war with Mexico, but the 
declaration of peace precluded the necessity of taking 
up arms, and the organization did not leave the State. 

Mr. Ellwood's present wife was Mary M. Baker, to 
whom he was married Dec. 27, 1865. Three chil- 
dren were born to them, — Leana Maud, Glenn Baker 
and Ella Baker, — of whom only the first named sur- 
vives: she was born March 17, 1868. Mrs. Ellwood 
was born in Plato, Kane Co., 111., and is the daugh- 
ter of L. M. and Sarah A. Baker. Her father wis a 
pioneer farmer of that county. 

The active business career of Mr. Ellwood is 
marked by the same industry, enterprise and persist- 
ent energy which characterize the brotherhood of 
which he is a member, and he is regarded as one of 



the founders and principal allies of the substantial 
business interests of Sycamore. The quality of his 
public spirit is unquestioned, and the advantage of 
his judgment and efforts in furthering and sustaining 
the permanent welfare of the city is generally recog- 
nized and acknowledged. His portrait appears in 
this volume, witli those of his five brothers, and is no 
less important in value to the community with whose 
general interest and well being he is identified. 






saac Crill, farmer, resident at Fielding, 
Franklin Township, was born in Stark 
Township, Herkimer Co., N. Y., April 26, 
1820. James Crill, his father, was a farmer of 
Herkimer Co., N. Y., and came West in i844 ) 
settling in the township of Monroe, Ogle Co., 
Mr. Crill of this sketch accompanied his parents 
to Ogle County, being then 24 years of age, and he 
was married there March 20, 1856, to Eleanor Cole. 
They had two sons, — James E. and Joseph, — both 
of whom died in infancy. The household includes 
a foster child, Mary Houdeshell, born Dec. 25, i860, 
in Perry Co., Pa. Mrs. Crill is the daughter of Joseph 
and Mary (Davis) Cole. Her parents were natives 
of Pennsylvania, of Welsh and German ancestry. 
The daughter was born Aug. 10, 1822, in the Key- 
stone State, where her mother died, in 1831. She 
lived with her father until 1854, when she came to 
Lee Co., 111., with two married cousins. She went 
later to Ogle County, where she resided two years 
previous to her marriage. After that event, Mr. and 
Mrs. Crill settled on a farm and entered into a part- 
nership with his brother, John I. Crill, in agricultural 
operations. Mr. Crill is owner of 440 acres of land, 
situated principally in Monroe Township, Ogle 
County. 

Mr. Crill of this sketch is the owner of a hand- 
some residence in the village of Fielding, where he is 
also the proprietor of an elevator having a capacity 
of 13,000 bushels of grain. Mr. Crill is an active 
Republican, and exerts his influence in the interests 
of that element in politics. With his wife, he is a 
member of the Methodist Episcopal Church. 

The grandparents of Mr. Crill were natives of 



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Perraany, and his parents settled primarily among 
the class of people in Herkimer County known to 
tradition and history as " Mohawk Dutch." 



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XL 




illiam C. Tuttle, an extensive dealer in 
lumber and all builders' materials, at Kirk- 
land, was horn Dec. 6, i S 1 8, in Berkshire 
Co., Mass. David Tuttle, his father, was 
born in Massachusetts, and in 1S22 emi- 
grated to Genesee Co., N. V., where he died in 
1 83 1, aged about 65 years. He was of New England 
lineage and became the owner of considerable prop- 
erty. The mother, Sally A. (Bowen) Tuttle, was also 
a native of the Bay State and died in Genesee Co., 
N. Y., in 1S53. They had nine children. 

Mr. Tuttle was the seventh child and was four 
years old when his patents removed with their family 
to Genesee County in the Empire State, and there he 
attended school until he was 15 years old. At that 
age he began to learn the trade of a carpenter, which 
he followed until 1852. In the spring of 1843 he 
came to the township and county where he is now 
resident, and where he was occupied at his business 
as a builder. In 1852 he went to Belvidere and es- 
tablished a mercantile enterprise, in which he was 
interested two years. At the end of that time he be- 
came engaged in a planing mill, terminating his rela- 
tions therewith in 1S58. In 1858 he was elected 
County Treasurer on the Republican ticket, holding 
the incumbency two years. On the expiration of his 
term of office he followed his trade until 1868, 
operating as a contractor and builder, and in that 
year he went to Chicago and established himself in 
the same business, operating successfully until 1879. 
He returned thence to Kirkland, and there followed 
his trade two years. In 18S2 he founded his present 
line of business interests. He owns a house and two 
lots in the village, and his transactions annually 
amount to $12,000. 

Mr. Tuttle was married Jan. 1, 1840, in Genesee 
Co., N. Y., to Margaret De Mott. She was born Nov. 
25, 1825, in that county, and there grew to woman- 
hood, when she came West with her husband. She 
died in Belvidere, Dec. 31, 1865, and was the mother 
of six children, two of whom are deceased. Rufus 



i) 



was drowned Dec. 24, [864, in the river at Belvidere 
while skating cm the ice, by falling through all air- 
hole. Sarah married Mr. Chamberlain, a locomotive 
engineer residing at Memphis, Tenn., where she died. 
Those who are living are Daniel I.., Harriet A., Addie 
and Huldah. Mr. Tuttle was married a second time 
Jan. 14, 1S68, to flattie Washburn, of Dixon, Lee 
Co., 111. Mrs. Tuttle is a descendant of the cele-. 
brated family named Washburn from Maine. She 
was born Oct. 16, 1837, in Paris, Oxford Co., Maine, 
and is the daughter of Luther and Abigail Washburn. 
Her parents came to De Kalb County before her 
arrival, and she lived with them until her marriage. 
Lena, first issue of the second marriage, died when a 
little more than 15 months old. Another child died 
in early infancy. 



„■ '■■•.. 

arren Gilchrist, farmer, resident on sec- 
tion 20, Franklin Township, was born 
' Dec. 19, 1839, at Hicks' Mills in the same 
!> township where he now lives. David M., 
N his father, was born in Washington Co., N. 
Y., of Scotch parentage, and married Elizabeth 
Schoonmaker, a native of Long Island. The family 
came West in 1837, after spending ten years of mar- 
ried life in the State of New York and Canada. 
Franklin Township was in its earliest days of pioneer 
life and history, and they were among its element of 
development and progress. The former died at his 
home in 1873, aged 73 years. The mother died in 
March, [882, while visiting a son at Strawberry Point, 
Clayton Co., Iowa, at 77 years of age. Their chil- 
dren included five sons and a daughter. 

Mr. Gilchrist is the third son and fourth child of 
his parents. He passed the years of his youth and 
early manhood on the farm of his father, which he 
helped to develop, meanwhile obtaining an education 
at the common schools. He was married May 30, 
1877, to Henrietta, daughter of Silas B. and Elizabeth 
(Taylor) Roach. Her parents were born in Noble 
Co., Ohio, where also her birth occurred Oct. 20, 1853, 
and they settled on a farm on section 4 in Franklin 
Township, whither they removed in 1862. They are 
now members of the family of Mr. Gilchrist, and are 
aged respectively 54 and 56 years. Mrs. Gi 




the only surviving child of her parents. (An older 



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child died in infancy. ) She is the mother of two 
children, — Leafie, born Dec. 18, 1878, and Charles 
E., born May 23, [881. 

After his marriage Mr. Gilchrist, associated with 
his brother, Charles II. Gilchrist, assumed the man- 
agement of his father's homestead, and is a partial 
owner of 445 acres of land connected therewith. He 
is a consistent and straightforward Republican and 
has held several prominent local offices. He has 
been Supervisor two years and is present Justice of 
the Peace. 



•:--.. 



illiam Docker, farmer, section 16, South 
Grove Township, was born Nov. 30, 1835. 
in Crawford Co., Ohio. James Decker, 
s father, was born in New Jersey, in 1S10, 
New England parentage, and early in life 
went to Ohio, where he engaged in farming. 
In 1852 he removed to Ogle Co., 111., whence he came 
after a stay of two years, to De Kalb County, and 
settled on section nine of South Grove Township. 
He died in September, 1859, aged 49 years. He be- 
came prominent in his township as a citizen and a 
I farmer and lived an honored and useful life. The 
mother, Margaret Vanderhoff, was of similar birth 
and parentage, and resides still on the homestead, 
retaining at the age of 73, Nov. 28, 1884, her activity 
of mind and body to an uncommon degree. 

Mr. Decker is next to the oldest of nine children 
in order of birth, and he passed the years of his 
minority in the acquisition of an education and in 
farm labor. At the age of 23 years he began to 
operate as an independent farmer on 40 acres of 
land deeded to him by his father, belonging originally 
to the family homestead. He pursued the duties of 
an agriculturist thereon until the second year of the 
Civil War. Aug. 14, 1862, he enlisted in Co. C. 
105th 111. Vol. Inf. The regiment was assigned to 
Q* the Army of the Cumberland, and was in the mili- 
tary service of the United States until the close of 
the war, experiencing all the varieties, vicissitudes 
and triumphs of Sherman's campaign through Geor- 
gia and the Carolinas. Soon after taking the field, 
Mr. Decker was detailed for service in the quarter- 
master's department, and passed the entire period of 



V 



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his enlistment there, receiving an honorable dis- 
charge June, 7, 1865. 

On his return to civil life Mr. Decker resumed his 
agricultural relations, and has added So acres to his 
original ownership, making an aggregate of 120 acres. 
He is. 1 prosperous farmer, engaged in the success- 
ful culture of the crops common to this section and in 
raising cattle of valuable grades. Mr. Decker is a 
Republican of decided type and has officiated in 
v trious township offices. 

He was married Feb. 21, i86r, in South Grove 
Township, to Lizzie Shorey, and they have had five 
children, two of whom are deceased. Win. Henry 
was born Sept. 2, 1864; Elnora, Oct 27, 1866; and 
Harvey E., Aug. 5, 1869. They have also raised one 
other child, Ursula Decker, who was the daughter of 
William and Margaret Decker, a cousin of Mr. 
Decker of this sketch. Her father died in New 
Jersey when she was two years old, and her mother 
was a second time married, and she was taken by 
Mr. Decker to bring up. She was born March 22, 
1S63, in New Jersey, and died Jan. 30, 1885, in Ijwa, 
where she had gone six weeks before her death. 
Her remains were brought to South Grove for burial. 

Mts. Decker was born Sept. 7, 1844, in Oneida Co., 
N. Y.. and is the daughter of Washington and Maria 
(Vanderwalker) Shorey. The former was born in 
Vermont and was by calling a farmer until his death, 
May 30, 18S0. Her mother resides in Guthrie Co., 
Iowa. 



: -:• - • 




ichard B. Spiers, M. D., physician and 
surgeon, resident at Kirkland, was born 
May 26, 1845, in Halton Co., Ont. He is 
the son of George A. and Isabella (Spiers) 
Spiers, both of whom were born in Ireland, 
and who came soon after their marriage to 
the Dominion of Canada. The former died not long 
after he settled in Halton County, where he was a 
pioneer. The mother is still living in that county. 

Dr. Spiers, after the death of his father, became 
the charge of his uncle, Alexander Brown, whose 
wife was his maternal aunt. Mr. Brown was a 
Scotchman and lived in Halton County, engaged in 
farming. His foster-parents discharged their duty 
creditably and well, sending him to the grammar 
school, where he acquired an excellent fundamental 



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education of the type which underlies the training of 
every man who pursues a course of professional 
study in Canada, and where he was a pupil until 21 
years old. In 1866, Dr. Spiers matriculated at the 
Toronto University, where he completed the pre- 
scribed curriculum of study under the stringent regu- 
lations of that celebrated institution, noted for the 
inflexible regimen exercised in preparing its students 
for their profession. The course of medical reading 
is extended over a period of four years, and Dr. 
Spiers devoted the vacational interims to office study 
and desultory practice. 

His marriage to Sarah E. Tremain took place Oct. 
5, 1870, in Halton County. She was born April 20, 
1852, in the Province of Ontario, and is the daughter 
of James and Jane (Biggar) Tremain. Her father 
was a merchant and died in February, 1865. Her 
mother's death occurred about 185S. Mrs. Spiers 
was a child of tender years when her mother died, 
and lived with her father until his demise, then enter- 
ing the household of her maternal aunt, the wife of 
George Marlatt, a farmer and a native of Ontario. 
She was carefully educated in the grammar schools 
of her native province. Of her union with Dr. Spiers 
she has become the mother of four children. One 
child died in infancy. Susan M. died when she was 
two years and nine months old. Rebecca M. and 
Bessie G., twins, were born Aug. 12, 1879. 

After marriage, Dr. Spiers removed to VVatervliet 
Berrien Co., Mich., and there established his business 
as a medical practioner, in which he was engaged at 
that point three years. He came thence to Wheaton 
Du Page Co., 111., and after practicing there two 
years came, in June, 1875,10 Kirkland, and at once 
began his practice, in which he has met with un- 
qualified success and popularity. He is the owner 
of an elegant home at Kirkland. In political pref- 
erences he is a Republican and has officiated one 
term as Village Trustee. 



on. Miles Beach Castle, a leading and 
■ prominent citizen of Sandwich, was born 





Aug. 13, 1826, in Albany, N. Y. He is a 

member of the third generation from Gideon 

Castle, one of three brothers who came from 

England about the year 1700. The two elder 

settled respectively in Geneva, N. Y., and in l'ennsyl- 

■^v 2 — §^oo@dii&a^ — * 



vania, while the third located in Amenia, Dutchess 
Co., N. Y., where he became an extensive landholder, 
owning at one time vast tracts of land, including 
10,000 acres in New York State. His son Gideon 
became prominent in the colonial history of the 
United St3tes, and was a staff officer with General 
Washington, filling the position of Commissary with 
the rank of Captain, when the Commander-in-chief 
was in New York and vicinity, during the progress of 
the struggle for independence. He died at 98 years 
of age, after becoming the father of five sons. Elijah, 
the third in order of birth, was the father of Mr. 
Castle of this sketch. He inherited from the estate 
of his father, a farm valued at $r 0,000, located in 
Dutchess County, N. Y., which he afterward sold, 
removing to the city of Albany, N. Y., investing his 
capital in a general business. He married Deborah 
Beach, of Dutchess County, and to them five chil- 
dren were born, three of whom, with the parents, in- 
habit the mystic realms of the land of the hereafter. 
One daughter, Cynthia, widow of James W. Bishop, 
resides at Little Falls, Herkimer Co., N. Y. 

Mr. Castle passed the years of his minority in 
attendance at school, in the varied duties of the farm 
and in other avenues of labor, finally entering the 
excellent educational institution at Jonesville, in 
Northern New York, then an academy of celebrity, 
where he was graduated about the time of attaining 
his majority. He soon became a salesman in a dry- 
goods store at Glens Falls, N. Y., where lie remained 
in the capacity of clerk and afterwards as general 
manager, until the autumn of 1855, except a brief 
term when he was at Warrensburg, N. Y. He then 
fulfilled a determination to come West and proceeded 
to Chicago. He passed the ensuing winter in that 
city, and in the spring of 1856 opened a lumber yard 
at Sandwich, 111. During the same year he organized 
the Sandwich Bank, and lie has retained his interest 
in and connection with botli enterprises without in- 
termission. In the latter lie is associated with his 
nephew, Capt. F. S. Mosher. About 1S70 Mr. Castle 
founded the Kendall County Bank, at Yorkville, 
Kendall County, and is still its chief official, his as- 
sociate and the cashier of the institution being Mr. 
M. E. Cornell. In 1S78, in connection with his son, 
J. B. Castle, he established the Sandwich Argus, a 
journalistic enterprise which lias met with unquali- 
fied success. In the various business ventures in 
which Mr. Castle has embarked, he lias met with 






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unvarying prosperity, and his success in his under- 
takings has come to l>c considered phenomenal in 

results, a condition which has arisen from the exer- 
cise of judgment and forethought, and the effort at 
the outset to embark only in such undertakings as 

promised to meet universal need. As a banker Mr. 
Castle has operated nearly 30 years, and is one of 
the oldest in the State in length of service in that 
business. Dining the financial crises of 1855, '57, 
'60, '6 1, '73 and later his bank has in no instance re- 
fused a check or closed its doors. 

lie is a Republican of decided type, and his sa- 
gacity, intelligence and discrimination have received 
due recognition at the hands of the, local political 
element which he has served long and well. In 1872 
he was elected to the Senate of Illinois and served 
through the short term, and in 1874 was re-elected 
to the long term, serving a period of six consecutive 
years. In 1878 he declined a proffered re-election to 
give his private business the attention demanded by 
his interests. While a member of the Legislature' 
he was conspicuous in his exertions lor and advocacy 
of what is designated " radical legislation," and the 
passage of "the Married Woman's Bill," which pro- 
vided for the protection of the property rights of 
women, was mainly due lo his instrumentality. He 
officiated as Chairman of the Committee on Public 
Buildings and Grounds, having charge, on the pail •>! 
the Senate, of the Executive Mansion and the new 
State House at Springfield. Among many other 
measures for the public: interests, tVBP. Castle intro- 
duced and effected the passage of the first bill for 
protecting fish interests in the State of Illinois. He 
has been a member of the Republican State Central 
Committee, and a member of the two last Republican 
State Conventions, in each of which he acted on the 
Platform Committees and proved an efficient factor 
in the specific business oi those bodies. He has 
been for several years :uu ] s bH j s Chairman of the 
Executive Committee of the Illinois State Equal 
Suffrage Association, lie belongs to the State Press 
Association and the Press Club of Chicago. Mr. 
Castle is a Royal Arch Mason, In-longing to the 
Chapter at Sandwich. His literary abilities are of a 
versatile and acceptable character, and he gained 
wide-spread and appreciative commendation through 
the merits of a poem he delivered at Springfield on 
the occasion of the laying ol the corner-stone of the 
new State House in t868. The private library of 

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marriage to Freelove 
ch, III., by Rev. L. I'. 
She was a daughter of VL- 



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Mr. Castle comprises a large and valuable selection 
of publications of the best quality 

Mi. Castle was united in marriage to Freelove 
Kinney Hubbard, at Sandwic 

Crawford, in January, 1859. Sh 

Hon. Asa Kinney, formerly State Senator in Califor- 
nia, and an adopted daughter of her uncle, John 
Hubbard. Mrs. Castle was a descendant of the 
branch of the same family of Grinells as those of 
New York city, her ancestors being English Knights. 
She was educated at Knox College, Galesburg, 111., 
and is a woman of rare mental powers, — one of those 
whose judgments is rarely at fault upon any question. 
Three children have been born to them, as follows: 
John B., Aug. 13, 1859; Louisa R., Jan. 21, [861 . 
Grace Frederika, July, 1868. John B. is assistant 
cashier in the bank and owns one-half of the busi- 
ness of the Argus, of which he is local editor. 

v|3/sa/>« 

f$ %\ illiam B. McDowell, attorney-at-law, res- 
ident at Kirkland, Franklin Township, was 
bom Oct. 15, 1842,011 section 1 in the 1= 

township where he has since lived. He is V 

1 4 

the son of John and Martha (Riddle) Mc- 

\* Dowell, of whom a detailed account is given on 
another page. Mr. McDowell was brought up on the 
farm of his father and attended the common school 
in the vicinity of his parents' home. When he was 
15 years of age he entered the college at Wheaton, 
Du Page Co., III., where he pursued a course of study 
three years. He has all his life possessed extraordi- 
nary skill in penmanship and drawing, and while at 
Wheaton was engaged in teaching both branches. 
At 19 years of age he became the arbitrator of his 
own fortunes, and after leaving school worked on a 
farm summers and taught penmanship winters. He 
met with much success in the latter occupation, and 
passed several years in alternate teaching and farm 
labor. Afterward he devoted his time wholly to farm /p^ 
labor for a few years, and finally became general 
agent for the sale of the machines manufactured bj 
McCormick & Co. He operated in their interests 
one year and then entered the law office of J. L. 
Pratt, of Sycamore. In 1879 he was admitted to the 
Kir of Illinois, and practiced in company with Mr. 
Pratt for a short time. Subsequently he went tc 



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Leadville, Col., where he entered into an association 
with Hon. Mr. Hemmingway, and continued the 
practice of his profession nearly two years. The 
death of his brother caused his return to his native 
Siate, and lie located for a brief season at Sycamore, 
hut eventually fixed his residence and business at 
Kirkland. One of the earliest pieces of work which 
he was called on to perform was the drafting of the 
ordinances of Kirkland, which was a superb speci- 
men of chirography and elicited much admiration. 
The law business of Mr. McDowell has continued 
to increase until he is now in the enjoyment of a 
solid reputation as an attorney in the various Courts 
in which he is called to practice. 

On the admission of the ordinances of Kirkland 
in 1883 he was made President of the village. He 
has always been interested in fine and valuable 
horses, and has made exhibits of fine animals at the 
county fairs. He is the owner of an interest in four 
mining claims at Leadville, Col. 

Mr. McDowell is a decided Democrat in political 
opinion, and has officiated as Township Clerk. He 
is present Village Attorney (1885). In addition to 
his extensive legal business he represents several 
home and foreign insurance companies. In 1872 he 
was made a member of the Masonic Order, and be- 
longs to Dement Lodge, No. 515, at Kirkland. 



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r V'C<j; on. Stephen R Stinson, attorney at Sand- 
T ih^A; with, was liuin (let. ?, iSjc, in I'.oston, 
( \.>.'~" " Mass., and he is the youngest of four children 
m of his parents, Maj. Andrew H. and Mary Stin- 
i son. The death of the father when he was but 
I four years old, followed by that of his mother 
seven years later, brought into activity the traits of 
character which have distinguished his progenitors, 
the Scotch-Irish, from whom he descended in both 
lines. 

In the lapse of years and in the conversions of 
terms which arise in succeeding generations, there is 
danger of the race style of " Scotch-Irish " losing its 
distinctive signification, and it is not even now 
clearly understood that the combination only indi- 
cates the fact that the people referred to were es- 
sentially Scotch, and Ireland had been but a 




temporary abiding place, as the assimilation was so 
slight as to be but nominal. In 1619 an emigration 
of people from Scotland to the North of Ireland took 
place for the purpose of escape from the persecution 
of the Scottish " kirk " under King James, only to V£. : 
find themselves subjected to regulations more bur- 
densome, which they endured with growing discon- 
tent for an exact century. In 17 19, a colony of 16 
families emigrated to New Hampshire and formed 
the nucleus of Londonderry, who were followed by 
others of the same ancestral origin. To the intoler- 
ance of the ruling religious element of Scotland and 
the North of Ireland in the 17th and 1 8th centuries, I 
is our own nationality indebted for one of its most 
inflexible and unswerving elements of probity and 
uprightness, enhanced beyond estimate in value to a 
composite nationality like ours, by sturdy, physical 
strength and hardihood, and inborn and inbred fru- 
gality, thrift and industry ; and though the natural (p 
limitation of family continuance is a trait of the K y 
Scotch-Irish, in their characteristics they are still the /7s 
types of their indomitable ancestors. The men pre- i=i 
serve their splendid physique, their courage and per- x^. 
severance, and the women their piety, native wit and c= 
strength of character, which, transmitted to their 
sons, has re-appeared in radiant luster, polished and ^ 
refined under the influences and privileges afforded 
by our form of government. To the colonization of 
Londonderry the United States is indebted for the in- 
troduction of the cultivation of flax and the use of 
the linen spinning wheel, and also the cultivation of 
the Irish potato, which Sir Walter Raleigh had taken 
from South America to Europe 150 years before. 
Archibald Stark, from whom Starkstown was named 
and the father of " Molly Stark's" husband, General 
John Stark, the hero of Bennington, and the grand- 
parents of Horace Greeley, were members of the same 
company. General Stark was the cousin of Man 
Stinson, the mother of Judge Stinson. 

Ten years after the first settlement at London- 
derry, John Stinson and his wife Mary, and a consid- 
erable number of his friends and relatives, emigrated^ 
to that place from Londonderry, Ireland. From two 
of their sons — William and Samuel — descended the 
line represented by Judge Stinson, the latter being 
his great-grandfather in the paternal line of descent. 
William Stinson was his grandfather in his mothers 
line. The brothers removed, cm attaining independ- 
ent manhood, to a point farther north known as th 

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DE KALB COUNTY. 



"Masonian Grant of the Province of New Hamp- 
shire." To fulfill the provisions of the " grant," it was 
necessary to occupy the allotments of land, and Will- 
iam Stinson was, in 1751-2, one of the three found- 
ers of Starkstown, now Dumbarton, N. H., where he 
lived for a time alone in a log cabin while making 
his "clearing.'' While living thus he had a clergyman 
for a guest, and in lieu of a table set forth the hospi- 
talities of his house on an inverted basket. The cler- 
ical visitor solicited the divine interposition in behalf 
of the " basket " and store of his host. The petition 
was amply fulfilled, as Mr. S. reached competency. 
He was born in Ireland March 15, 1725, and died 
Aug. 21, 1803. His wife, Agnes, nee Caldwell, was 
born in June, 1734, and their marriage took place 
March 26, 1754. Mary, wife of Andrew H. Stinson, 
wis the youngest of their 12 children, and was born 
Jan. 25, 1782. Captain William Stinson was a de- 
cided character. He became an extensive land- 
holder and the annual productions of his estate 
comprised large crops of corn, wheat and rye. His 
observation had led him to a discovery of the fact 
that the average prices of these grains were about 50 
cents for corn, 75 cents for rye and a dollar for wheat, 
and in accordance with his idea of equity, which he 
accorded with the same rigidity with which he en- 
forced his own claims, he held his crops whenever 
ruling rates fell below his average, building addi- 
tional storehouses if necessary. When the prices 
went above his standard he would accept no more 
than the rate he himself fixed, and he would only 
sell to the poor for their own use. He came to be 
styled in all the region where he lived as the " poor 
man's friend."* Samuel Stinson, son of Samuel Stin • 
son above mentioned, removed in early manhood to 
Nova Scotia, where he was married, and where his 
son Andrew H. was born, Dec. 25, 1789. During the 
boyhood of the latter the family removed to Dun- 
barton, where Samuel Stinson died. After his mar- 
riage, Maj. A. H. Stinson resided for a time at Hop- 
kinton, N. H., and than went to Boston, Mass., 
where he was extensively engaged in the manufac- 
ture of carriages for several years, and later he be- 
came interested in the manufacture of lumber in the 
State of Maine. He died March 22, 1829, at Hop- 
kinton, N. H. Mary Stinson, his wife, died May 21, 
'8 3 7- 

* For many of tic lars in reference to Capt. Win. Stinson 

wcareindt-l ) Dunbarton, N. H." 




Stephen B. Stinson inherited from his parents only 
opportunity and a disposition to struggle to place 
himself at least above mediocrity. The necessities 
which he found upon him were twofold. His appe- 
tite for knowledge was as insatiate and impelling as 
the needs of his physical nature. Between the ages 
of 1 1 and 16 years he had only the advantages of 
the public schools of the winter seasons, and he 
passed the remainders of those years in farm labor. 
Hut he mastered the entire curriculum of English 
study in those studious winter terms of common 
school, ami was fitted for teaching. He entered 
upon the duties of a pedagogue as a stepping stone 
to a collegiate course, and his earnings, coupled with 
temporary assistance (afterward fully repaid), enabled 
him to pursue a classical course of two years at the 
academy at Hopkinton, N. H. In 1844 he matricu- 
lated at Dartmouth College, Hanover, N. H., where 
several members of his family of the generation which 
preceded him had been educated, and was graduated 
with honor in July, 1848, in a class of 50 members, 
among whom were Hon. J. W. Patterson, afterward 
United States Senator from New Hampshire, and 
Rev. James C. Beecher, the youngest son of Dr. 
Lyman Beecher. 

Judge Stinson was hardly 22 years of age when he 
finished his educational career, and he availed him- 
self of the first opportunity which presented for 
activity and became a teacher in an academy at 
Thetford, Vt., whence he went alter a brief time to 
the office of Hon. J. 1). Willard, of Troy, N. Y with 
whom as a preceptor and in whose office relations he 
enjoyed exceptional advantages. He was admitted 
to the Bar at Albany, N. Y., in December, 1850. 

In 1851 he came to Kendall Co., 111., where he 
operated about five years as a farmer, removing in 
1856 to Sandwich, in l)e Kalb County, where he has 
since practiced his profession. 

His marriage to Mary C. Bull took place June 7, 
1852, in the city of New York, and they are the par- 
ents of one son and three daughters. Mary A., born 
July 26, 1855, is the wife of Charles H. Adams, M . 
D., of Marseilles, 111.; Hester B., born April 14, 1857, 
and Frances J., born Oct. 8, 1S60, are next in order 
of birth. Charles I,., born Aug. 22, 1862, married 
Mary E. Jones and is in business at Marseilles. 
Lizzie, bom March 2r, 1853, died April 19, TS58. 
Mrs. Stinson was born at Baston, Washington Co., 



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N. Y., Feb. 17, r833, and is the daughter of Isaac 
and Hester (Kittell) Hull. She is of mixed descent, 
« being of English lineage on the father's side, and 
Holland Dutch in the maternal line. 

In his profession Judge Stinson is a judicious and 
J safe counselor, is thoroughly read in jurisprudence, 
and since his establishment of his business in De 
Kalb County his prosperous practice is sufficient 
evidence of the general estimate in which he is held. 
As a citizen he is favorably known in the interest and 
consideration he never fails to bestow on matters per- 
taining to the well-being of the people of whom he is 
one, and he has discharged all his obligations in local 
official, educational and religious matters in the 
method which has characterized his career. He has 
officiated several years as President of the Board of 
Education, and as City Attorney of Sandwich, and in 
1861 represented Kane and De Kalb Counties in the 
State Constitutional Convention at Springfield, in 
) which capacity he performed efficient service. He 
> served about three years as Assistant United States 
*^ Revenue Assessor for the same counties. In July, 
" 1882, he was appointed by the Governor to fill the 
j-ijft residue of an unexpired term as County Judge of 
^E De Kalb County, a vacancy having occurred by the 
£u resignation of Hon. G. S. Robinson. In November 
!* following he was elected to the same office for a full 
(c -\ term of four years. He was compelled by ill health 
to resign the Judgeship in February, 1883, to the 
great regret of the people who had an abiding belief 
in his fitness and competency for the position. He 
has acted undeviatingly with the Republican party 
from the outset of his political career, and is an 
earnest adherent of the principles and issues of that 
party. Judge Stinson is one of the original mem- 
bers of the Congregational Church at Sandwich, and 
has been for many years a Deacon and Trustee in 
the Society. He has cherished his interest in edu- 
cational matters from the days of his early strug- 
gles to obtain what he considered a degree of 
knowledge sufficient to enable him to undertake his 
share of the world's work understandingly. The 
cost and effort necessary to the accomplishment of 
his collegiate course, with the gratification conse- 
quent upon a comprehensive, classical and scientific 
education, has kept alive his tastes in those direc- 
tions, and he has maintained his reading of Greek 
and Latin far beyond the custom of busy profes- 
sional men who have not passed their lives in 



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teaching. He has also acquired a considerable ac- 
quaintance with several modern languages. In 
addition, he has kept pace with the world of lit- 
erature, and, from his powers of criticism and as- 
similation, has a fund of useful and profitable 
information, which renders him a valuable accessory 
to social circles. 

The portrait of Judge Stinson is given on a pre- 
ceding page. His inflexibility in the conduct of his 
professional business, his spotless private life, the 
character of the services he has rendered in his 
several official capacities, will secure for the picture 
a hearty welcome from the entire patronage of the 
De Kalb County Ai.fi um, which would be signally 
incomplete without it. The photograph from which 
it was copied was taken in 1882. 



ohn M. Schoonmaker, resident at Field- 
ing, is a farmer by vocation and an extens- 
31 ive buyer and shipper of stock. He was 




born in Hannibal Township, Oswego Co., N. 
Y., Aug. 16, 1827. John Schoonmaker, his 
father, was born in Flatbush, Kings Co., on 
Long Island. He went thence to Oswego County, 
where he was married to Julia Farnham, and was a 
resident of that county until his removal to De Kalb 
County in 1845. He then located at Hicks Mills in 
the township of Franklin, where he resided principally 
until his death, which took place in October, 1874, 
when he was 77 years of age. He was a blacksmith 
by occupation. The mother was a native of Shafts- 
bury, Bennington Co., Vt., and was of pure English 
extraction, tracing her lineage to the earliest settle- 
ment of the colonies. She was born about 1797 and 
died about 1849, in Franklin Township. The chil- 
dren were four in number and included three daugh- 
ters and a son. 

Mr. Schoonmaker came to Illinois with his parents 
when he was iS years of age. He was married 
Sept. 6, 1848, in Monroe Township, Ogle Co., 111., to 
Nancy, daughter of John and Mary (Crill) Miller. 
They became the parents of five children. Alice is 
the wife of C. F. Meyer, a farmer of Franklin Town- 
ship. Elnofa married B. A. Patten and resides at 
Silver Lake, Kan. George married Florence Ellis 
and lives on the Schoonmaker homestead, section 32, 



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Franklin Township. Dora was born May 14, 1868, 
and is completing .1 course ol study at Aurora, [11. 
Sylvester was born Sept. 27, 1859, and died March 
10, iSiu. Mrs. Schoonmaker was born Jan. 23, 
1828, in Steuben Township, Oneida Co., N. Y., and 
when t8 years ol Lge - arae with her parents to Ogle 
( 'o , 111. She is the ninth of twelve 1 hildren. 

After their marriage Mr. and Mrs. Schoonmakei 
settled mi a farm of 160 acnes located On section 32, 
which they purchased from the Government. They 
were re note from the other settlers of the township, 
and the broad a< res ol their latin had never known 
the plow. The homestead now contains 250 acres, 
is in the best possible condition lor successful farm- 
ing and is increased in value and appearance by 
in. ist e* ellenl farm buildings and a splendid resi- 
dence. 

In [879, Mr. Schoonmaker purchased a pleasant 
home in Fielding, whither he removed and has since 

s. 

'engaged in the business stated 

He entered the army of the United States during 
-V. the Rebellion, enlisting Aug. 7, 1862, in the 105th 
is Reg. 111. Vol. Inf., and went to the field under the 
S3? command of Col. Dustin, of Sycamore. He was in 
=3 action in the engagements at Resaca, Ringgold, 
O Renesaw Mountain, Marietta and in many others of 
^ greater or less importance. Thirty days after his 
) enrollment he was made Sergeant of his Company, 
and acted in thai capacity until his transfer at Ma- 
rietta, (ia., to an official position in the 109th U. S. 
Regiment of colored troops. He brought the organ- 
ization to Louisville, Ky., where he was commis- 
sioned First Lieutenant, and the command was con- 
nected with the Army of the James. In October, 
1864, Lieutenant Schoonmaker received orders from 
General Sheridan to put his men in line of battle, as 
the rebel General Early was threatening to occupy 
Martinsburg, which movement was succeeded Oct. 
10 by "Sheridan's Ride" from Westchester to Cedar 
Creek, resulting in the destruction of the army of 
General Early. He was also in the engagements at 
: burg, which terminated in the surrender of 
General Lee, his troops doing effective service in the 
the skirmish line. After the collapse of the Rebellion 
his regiment was sent to Texas in the corps of Geb- 
^peral Sheridan, where it was in service until the 
^following. Mr. Schoonmaker was discharged March 
\J 12, 1866, at Louisville, Ky. During his absence 







from home his efficient wife conducted the affairs ol 
the farm, to which she gave her personal oversight 
and aid. They are zealous and effective membi 1 
of the Methodist Episcopal Church, in which Mr S 
has been Steward and Class-leader eight yen . 

lie is a Republican and has been Trustee of his 
township several years and Assessor two terms. 



garrison Mackcy, farmer, section 11, M,i\ 
field Township, is a native of the Empire 
State. His parents, Levi and Rebecca 
(S(,,n) Mackcy, natives also of that State, 
passed their entire lives there. He was of 
German ancestry, and died about [858, and 
she, of American parentage, died in June, [838. 
They had eight children, — John, Julia A., Griffin, 
Oilman, Harriet, Harrison, Thorn M. and Mary J. 

The subject of this sketch was born in Ulster Co., 
N. Y., April 22, 1813, and when 15 years of age he 
left home and proceeded to Orange Co., N. Y., for 
the purpose of learning the blacksmith trade, in 
which he was apprenticed for nearly four years. 
Next he followed his trade nearly a year in New 
fersey, then, in succession, he spent several months 
in his native county, in business for himself in 
Orange County again for six years, and in the spring 
of 1839 he emigrated to this county and settled in 
Mayfield Township, where he has ever since resided, 
spending portions of three years, however, in Orange 
County. Heis now the possessor of more than 500 
acres of land in Mayfield and Sycamore Townships. 
He is now occupying part of his land, keeping 30 to 
40 head of cattle, 12 head of horses, and fattens 
yearly 25 to 50 head of hogs. 

Mr. Mackey has held many local offices and is one 
of the leading pioneers of De Kalb County, coming 
here before the land was surveyed. About the year 
1855 an effort was made to establish in Mayfield 
Township a postoffice to be known as "Mayfield," 
with Mr. M. .is Postmaster; but within a year the 
office was discontinued, as the circumstances were 
found not to justify its establishment. Politically, 
Mr. Mackey is identified with the Democratic party. 
He was first married in Orange Co., N. Y., about 
1834, to Mary Hall, a native of Sullivan Co., N. Y. 
By this marriage there were three children, — Mary 




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R., Eliza J. and Julia A. The last mentioned died 
April 8, 1869. Mrs. M. died in May field Township, 
Jan. 22, 1856, and Mr. Mackey was again married, 
in York State, June 18, 1857,10 Mrs. Eliza (Bond) 
Westlake, widow of Benjamin Westlake, who died 
in Orange Co., N. Y., Nov. 18, 1853. By her former 
marriage there have been seven children, — David B., 
Milton G., Hannah E., Mary A., Charlotte W., John 
O. and Morris H. Milton G. died when nearly 21 
years of age. Mrs. Mackey was born in Orange Co., 
N. Y., Dec. 1, 181 1. By the present marriage there 
are no children. 

organ Losee, retired farmer, resident on 
ustSk' section 20, Franklin Township, was born 
' Dec. 14, 181 1, m the township of Ghent, 
Columbia Co., N. Y. His father, David 
I.osee, was born in Dutchess Co., N. Y., was a 
farmer in Columbia Co., N. Y., for a time, and 
married Mariam Griffin, who was born in Dutchess 
County. They settled in Saratoga County in 1820, 
locating about seven miles from the celebrated min- 
eral springs. There the mother died when she was 
80 years of age. David Losee came later in life to 
reside with his son, but returned to Saratoga County 
and died there at 88 years of age. 

Morgan was about eight years of age when he ac- 
companied his parents to Saratoga County, and he was 
there educated in the elementary English branches. 
He was also married there to Hannah E. Forbes, 
who was born Oct. 15, 181 1, and died in Niagara 
County Dec. 22, 1837, leaving an infant daughter, 
Hannah E., who is now the wife of Nelson Dela- 
vergne. (See sketch.) Mr. Losee was a second time 
married in Warsaw, Wyoming Co., N. Y., July 4, 
1841, to Phebe A. Buck. She was born Oct. 10, 
1X20, and is the daughter of Ransom D. and Betsey 
(Baker) Buck, who were natives of Vermont. The 
former was born May 15, 1795, and died Jan. 16, 
1830. The latter was born Nov. 22, 1800, and died 
Nov. 22, 1845. They settled in Oxford, Out., after 
their marriage. Later they went to Allegany Co., 
N. Y., where the father died when the daughter was 
10 years old, and on that event transpiring she went 
to Vermont and was cared for by her maternal grand- 
parents until the second marriage of her mother to 





J. 1;. Noble, with whom she resided until her own/ 
marriage. The mother died in Wyoming Co., N. V.,. 
in 1845. Mr. and Mrs. Losee came West in 1842,* 
and first located in Rockford, remaining there but a 1 
few months and removing thence to sections 19 and*y 
20 in the township of Franklin, De Kalb County. 
They secured 1 60 acres of land, half of which was 
located on each of the sections named, and the fam- 
ily residence was erected on section 20. At the time 
Mr. Losee made the claim the land was all in an 
unimproved condition. It has all been placed under 
the best improvements, and is a valuable and desira-( 
ble place. Mr. Losee and his wife have retired from 
active life, and are enjoying the fruits of years of ex- 
ertion and frugality in the society of their daughter 
and her family. Mr. L. is a Republican, and holds 
to decided religious sentiments, although not a mem- 
ber of any denominational body. He and his wife 
are the parents of three children. Ransom B., born ( r 
June 14, 1842, is an engineer on the Illinois Central 
Railroad and resides in Amboy, Lee County. Lyons /N 
E. was born July 1, 1845. He is a farmer in Doug- c 
lass Township, Bremer Co., Iowa. Ophelia E. mar- £ 
ried Frank Sharp, a farmer in Gove Co., Kan. She *= 
was born Nov. 18, 1849. 



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' ,. f(\ °hn Lloyd, farmer, section -'7, South Grove 

• '£^3i Township, was born May 9, 1827, in Pem- 

' brokeshire, South Wales, and is the son of 
'iffy . 

%% J°hn Lloyd. His father was superintendent 

]C in a colliery, and died in his native country, 

I about 1868. His mother, Theodocia (Davis) 

Lloyd, died in Wales, leaving two children. Thomas, 

the elder son, was a farmer and died in his native 

land in 1876. 

Mr. Lloyd is the only living representative of his 
family, and remained in Wales until 1852. He ob- 
tained a good education, and at the age of 17 years 
he began to work as a carpenter under a manager, 
spending three years in his apprenticeship, and work- 
ing as a builder at home until his emigration to the 
United States. He landed at the port of New York, 
and soon after came West, making his first stop in 
Kane Co., 111., where he followed his trade six years. 
In 1858 he came to De Kalb County and purchased 
80 acres of land on section 22, in the same townshi 



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344 



DE KALB COUNTY. 



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where he has since been a resident. He sold his 
first purchase, and bought 330 acres on which he has 
since resided. His farm is of great value, supplied 
with buildings of superior character, and well stocked. 
Mr. Lloyd is a Republican in political opinion, and 
has held the minor offices of the township. 

He was married July 24, 1850, in Wales, to Cath- 
erine Jones, a native of that country. Her father 
was a man of ability and integrity, and held a re- 
sponsible position as cashier in a colliery. Of the 
union of Mr. and Mrs. Lloyd, ten children have been 
born, six of whom are living. Anna was married 
Sept. 20, 1872, to Stephen Worden, a farmer of South 
Grove. Henrietta was married in 18S1, to William 
Adee, also a farmer in South Grove Township. 
Bertha is the wife of Benjamin Worden. Edith 
Phina and Myrta are the names of the younger chil- 
dren. Mr. and Mrs. Lloyd are communicants in the 
Established Church of England. 




ipple A. Harrington, member of the mer- 

jIl^^lL cantile firm of Gardner & Harrington, 

^"»KJ " doing business at Kirkland, was born 

Nov. 7, 1844, in Franklin Township, and is 



s the son of Sidney P. and Polly (Hicks) Har- 
rington, whose sketch appears elsewhere in this 
volume. Mr. Harrington obtained his primary edu- 
cation in the district schools and studied afterwards 
at Beloit College, Wis. Later on he went to Rock- 
ford, where lie was graduated in the commercial de- 
partment of the schools of that city. 

On completing his education, associated with his 
brother-in-law, E. Gardner, now of Rochelle, III., he 
established a trade in agricultural implements at 
Cherry Valley, Boone Co., 111. After operating one 
year they exchanged their relations in that enterprise 
for wild land in Chickasaw Co., Iowa. 

Mr. Harrington was married Jan 20, 187 1, in Rel- 
videre, Boone Co., 111., to Lucy L. Griggs. She was 
born March 22, 1852, in the township of Flora, Boone 
County, and is the daughter of Calvin and Hannah 
I rriggs. Her parents were farmers in New England 
and removed thence to Boone County, where they 
were among the earliest of the pioneer settlers, lo- 
cating there in 1836. The father died in Flora 
Township, Dec. 21, 1883, aged 68 years. The 




mother resides with her daughter in Floyd Co., Iowa. 
Mr. and Mrs. Harrington have had four children, — 
Emery E., May W., Clarence E. and George. The 
latter died in infancy. 

Soon after the event of his marriage, Mr. Harring- 
ton removed to his farm in Iowa and devoted him- 
self to its improvement, placing 240 acres under 
cultivation, and remaining thereon resident until 
1881. In the fall of that year he returned to Illinois 
and again embarked in business at Kirkland, with E. 
H. Gardner. In 1883 he sold one-half his farm in 
Iowa, and purchased property in the village of Kirk- 
land. With his wife, he belongs to the Methodist 
Episcopal Church, of which he is Steward. Politic- 
ally he is a Republican. 



! r?||; illiam T. Adee, general farmer, section 15, 

L ^atSI:' L , South Grow Township, was bom July 27, 
PgpiH-) '824, in Delaware Co., N. Y. His par- 
ents, Jonathan and Jane (Thompson) Adee, 
were fanners all their lives and trained their 
children to the same ( ailing. Their son was 
reared at home until he was iS years of age, and ac- 
quired a good education at the common schools. His 
parents removed to the State of Illinois in the fall of 
1843, and his father bought a 1 laim of 160 acres of 
land on section 14 of tin township ol De Kalb. The 
death of the father o< 1 urred on the homestead in the 
fall of 1873, when he was 75 years of age. The 
mother's demise took place seven weeks later. She 
was 71 years old. Mr. Adee, senior, was one of the 
most respected and honorable citizens of the county 
where he was a pioneer citizen and resided more 
than 30 years. Of their 12 children, eight are now 
living. All were residents of De Kalb County until 
recently, when one of them removed to Winnebago 
County, same State 

Mr. Adee of this sketch is the oldest child, and 
when he was 22 years of age purchased 40 acres in 
an unbroken portion of the township, with the inten- 
tion of carving out an independent career. He soon 
mi nased his possessions on section 15 to 184 acres, 
and also owns 160 acres on section 16, besides 10 
acres of timber land belonging originally to the 
homestead place. His entire acreage is under the 
best type of modem improvements, his buildings are 



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DE KALB COUNTY. 



349 



of excellent and suitable character and the proprietor 
is justly ranked among the leading and solid farmers 
of this section of the State. He conducts general 
farming and ships a considerable number of fatted 
stock annually. 

He was married Jan. 5, 1854, to Margaret, daugh- 
ter of Richard and Hannah (Cronk) Becker. Their 
children were born in the following order: William 
R. (a farmer in South Grove Township), John, George 
and Frank. They are well educated and promising 
young men. Mrs. Adee was born Aug. 7, 1835, in 
Delaware Co., N. Y., and was for a time a teacher in 
her native State. She came with her parents, who 
were pioneers of Illinois, when she was 17 years of 
age, to De Kalb County, where she again engaged in 
teaching until her marriage. Her father died in 1881, 
leaving a good record as an upright citizen and hon- 
orable man. The mother resides with her son, John 
T. Becker. 

Mr. Adee is a Republican of the most decided and 
reliable character. He has been and still is Town- 
ship Treasurer, and has also been Supervisor and 
Collector, and officiated in other local official posi- 
tions. Mr. and Mrs. Adee are both professors of 
religion. 



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[Sfeamuel H. Stiles, retired farmer, resident at 
121s Genoa, was born Jan. 5, 1829, in Ontario 
v? Co., N. Y., and is the son of Epaphroditus 
^ and Roxanna (Lincoln) Stiles. After their 
marriage his parents settled in Onondaga Co., 
N. Y., removing thence to Ontario County in 
the same State, where the father died about 1834. 
The mother became a resident of De Kalb County, 
and died in Michigan while on a visit to her daugh- 
ter in that State. They had seven children, — Har- 
riet, John \V., Maria, Eliza, Mary J., Emmeline and 
Samuel H. 

Mr. Stiles obtained a common-school education, 
and continued under the authority of his parents 
until he was of age. On arriving at the period of 
his independent manhood he went to California, via 
Cuba, New Orleans and Texas, through New Mexi- 
co, and across the Rocky Mountains, reaching San 
Francisco after ten months and five days' travel. He 




arrived in the "City of the Golden Gate" Feb. 14, 
1 85 1, and had spent 40 days on the ocean on board 
an old Italian brig. His first meal in California 
consisted of a loaf of bread, for which he gave one 
dollar, and it was the most acceptable food he ever 
ate. He returned to the State of New York after an 
experience of six months' duration in the mines of 
California, making his journey back via the isthmus 
of Panama. On finding himself once more on his 
native soil, he engaged in farming in Ontario County, 
and continued in that occupation there until his re- 
moval to Illinois, when he located in Kingston, De 
Kalb County. In the spring following he obtained 
possession of four yoke of oxen and went to Iowa 
for the purpose of taking up land and establishing a 
permanent home. He and his wife made their 
journey all the way in a " prairie schooner," camping 
out nights and sleeping in their wagon. Mr. Stiles 
located a claim of about 300 acres of Jand in Wright 
Co., Iowa. In the summer following he returned to 
the State of New York, and while passing through 
Grundy Co., Iowa, on his return eastward, he bought 
another tract of choice land, containing 300 acres. 
In the next autumn he went back to Iowa, traveling 
to Chicago on the lakes. He exchanged the prop- 
erty he had purchased in Grundy County for a farm 
in Ontario Co., N. Y., and through the succeeding 
winter resided in Delaware County in the Hawk-Eye 
State, passing the time in hunting, and making there- 
by five dollars a day. During the spring ensuing he 
decided to return to the State of his birth, but was 
there only a few months when he was summoned to 
Belvidere, Boone Co., 111., by the death of his brother. 
He determined to settle in De Kalb Co., and became 
by purchase the proprietor of 275 acres of land in 
the township of Kingston. He was its occupant 15 
years, when he sold the property and bought another 
in the same township, comprising half a section of 
land. On this he settled and resided until Decem- 
ber, 1884, at which time he removed to the village of 
Genoa, where he had erected a fine house for a resi- 
dence for his years of retirement from active life. 
He is the proprietor of 340 acres of finely improved 
land. 

The marriage of Mr. Stiles to Charlotte Sherratt 
occurred Nov. 19, 1849, in Ontario Co., N. Y. Mrs. 
Stiles is the daughter of James and Elizabeth (Scanl- 
ling) Sherratt, and was bom Dec. 2, 1822, in Yates 
Co., N. Y. Her parents were natives respectively of 

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England and America, and died in Yates County. 
They had five children, — Mary A., S.ir.ih E., Joel F., 
Charlotte and William R. Mr. and Mrs. Stiles have 
? no children. 

Mr. Stiles is a Republican in political views and 
connections, and he has held numerous offi< ial posi- 
tions, and enjoys largely" the esteem and respect of 
the generation and community of which he has been 
a part. He and his estimable wife are very appro- 
priately selected as representatives of the highest 
class of citizens whose portraits should appear in this 
volume; and they are accordingly given, accompany- 
ng the above sketch. 



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l( <i) : tophen G. Rowen, retired farmer, resident 
pit at Kirkland, Franklin Township, was born 
Sept., 24, 1820, in Batavia, Genesee Co., 
N. Y. He is the son of William H. and Betsy 
(Gorham) Rowen, and the biographical notice 
of their lives appears elsewhere in this volume. 
' He was the oldest of their children, nine in number, 
=x comprising eight sons and a daughter. He was 
£v brought up at home to the age of 17 years, attending 
y school and working on his father's farm. At that age 
he was apprenticed to his uncle, James Rowen, to 
learn the trade of blacksmith. He remained under 
his charge a year, and during the year following 
worked with another uncle, John Rowen, after which 
he spent a year in receiving instructions from a third 
uncle, Robert Rowen, all three being in the same 
line of business. After acquiring a thorough knowl- 
edge of the trade he purchased a stand in his native 
township and did an extensive business for some time. 
In 1842 he came West with his father, the family 
coming through the entire distance with teams. His 
father located at Janesville, while he settled at Ra- 
cine, Wis., where he worked a year at his trade and 
came then to De Kalb Co., 111., whither his father 
had preceded him a few months earlier, and had 
^ made a purchase of land in Franklin Township. 

Mr. Rowen found employment as a blacksmith and 

tlso became a farmer. He continued his joint oper- 

. ations until 1S57, when he exchanged his property 

^ for his father's homestead, which he still retains. He 

''§) has engaged to a considerable extent in traffic in real 

^» estate, and now owns 310 acres of land, all under 



good improvement, which is managed by his son. 
About the date of the transfer of his property, he re- 
linquished his business as a blacksmith and devoted 
his attention to fanning exclusively. 

M 1. Rowen lias taken a sincere interest in political 
affairs, local as well as general. He cast his first 
Presidential vote for Harrison, and except in 1844, 
when he voted for Folk, he has supported a straight 
Republican ticket. He has officiated two years as 
Supervisor, two as Road Commissioner, and the ex- 
tent of his services as Assessor covers a period of 20 
years, the longest term served by any man in that 
position in De Kalb County. He has discharged the 
obligations of other minor offices, and has been Fost- 
master at Kirkland to years. 

Mr. Rowen was married July 1 1, 1847, ' n Alabama 
Township, Genesee Co., N. Y., to Kmmeline Baker. 
She was born Jan. 21, 1821, in Pompey Township, 
Onondaga Co., N. Y., and was the daughter of 
Nathan and Mahala (Shattuck) Baker. The mother 
died a few years after her marriage, and the father, 
after this second matrimonial alliance, came to Mich- 
igan and settled near Battle Creek, where he died in 
advanced age. Mrs. Rowen was brought up and edu- 
cated in the State of which she was a native and 
she was a teacher for some time previous to her mar- 
riage. She died June n, 1883, leaving five children. 
Frank S. is a resident of Van Horn, Iowa, where he 
is conducting a hotel in the interests of the St. Paul 
Railroad Company. Fred B. is a resident on section 
36, of Franklin Township. Fremont resides on his 
father's homestead. Harley is a general merchant 
in Kirkland. Emma is officiating as her father's 
housekeeper. 

* — ^BH — * 



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Ts^p.Jisha A. Kirk, Supervisor of Franklin Town- 
Ill b ship (1885), is a resident at Kirkland and 
1 engaged in the sale of drugs. He is the 
*j$*l son of W. T. and Loisa (Riddle) Kirk (see 
sketch), and was born in Franklin Township, 
Feb. 3, 1845. He passed the years of his 
minority on his father's farm, and obtained a fair 
common-school education, completing his course of 
study at Wheaton College in Du Page Count), in 
t866. Returning from school, he engaged in farm- 
ing in Franklin Township, in which he was occupied 



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until the fall of 1876, the date of his removal to 
Kirkland, and of his embarking in his present busi- 
ness enterprise. He retains the ownership of his 
farm in Franklin Township, which is under excellent 
improvements and supplied with a fair type of farm 
buildings. 

He was married Dec. 22, 1873, in Wheaton, Du 
Page County, to Lovina M. Howard, and three chil- 
dren have been born to them. Gracie M., Alten H. 
and William C. Mrs. Kirk was born March 5, 1849, 
in Du Page Co., 111., and is the daughter of C. K. 
W. and Mary (Stowe) Howard. Her father was born 
in the State of Vermont and came thence to Du Page 
County, where he is yet a resident. The mother 
died some years ago in Wheaton. Mrs. Kirk was 
educated at the collegiate institute in her native 
place. Mr. Kirk is a radical Republican, and is a 
member of the Board of Trustees of Kirkland. 




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eorge H. Hill, farmer, section 21, Kingston 
Township, was born May 20, 1810, in 
Rensselaer Co, N. Y. He received a fair 
English education in the place of his nativity 
and obtained a thorough knowledge of saddlery 
and harness-making. He worked with his 
father until he was 21 years old, and subsequently 
was employed in various places in the same business 
until 1835, passing the last two years in Oneida Co., 
N. Y. In the early spring of the year named he 
came to Illinois and located a claim in what is now 
/ Kingston Township, De Kalb County, which included 
160 acres of land. Mr. Hill is one of the earliest 
settlers of the county, coming prior to the survey, 
completed in 1837. Mr. Hill came from Chicago to 
Du Page County with a team, and, leaving his horses 
and family there, lie walked to the point where he 
located his claim, and erected a shanty for shelter 
for his family and household appurtenances. Hav- 
ing made ready, he went with an ox team to Chicago, 
where he had left his effects, and on his return 
through Du Page County stopped for his family. In- 
dians were abundant but seldom troublesome, al- 
r though they were addicted to petty thieving, and on 
*ji\ one occasion stole Mrs. Hill's thimble. 

Mr. Hill's land included both prairie and timber, 
^^ and Mr. Hill, whose pioneer life was brightened by 




the society of his wife and one child, began the task 
of constructing a home, placing his house on the 
edge of the timber tract. Within the first year the 
little house was destroyed by fire, and the inmates 
lost everything but the clothing they wore at the 
time. The cabin was rebuilt upon the former site, 
and the family resided there three years. The home 
was removed at the end of that period to the site 
now occupied by the modern residence, which re- 
placed the pioneer log cabin in 1848. The latter 
house is entirely the work of his own hands, as his 
means and opportunities precluded his hiring assist- 
ance at that time. 

He has been one of the foremost in the official 
affairs of De Kalb County since he has been one of 
its citizens. He was appointed in 1835 one of a 
committee of five to settle disputed titles to claims, 
De Kalb County being at that date a part of La Salle 
County. He was made Justice of the Peace at an 
early date and held the office many years. He was 
first Treasurer and Assessor of De Kalb County after 
its separation from Kane County, and he held the 
position of County Commissioner four years. In 
1848 he was a member of the Second Constitutional 
Convention, which assembled at Springfield that 
year. At that time the office of County Commissioner 
was abolished and a township organization adopted. 
Mr. Hill was appointed one of the Associate County 
Judges and discharged the responsibilities of the 
office four years. In 1854 he was elected County 
Judge to succeed Hon. E. L. Mayo, of Sycamore, and 
was the incumbent of the position eight years, being 
succeeded therein by Daniel B. James, of Sycamore. 
He has officiated five years as Supervisor of Kings- 
ton and as Treasurer of that municipality exactly 30 
years. He has been and still is one of the promi- 
nent and leading citizens of the county, and has 
always been an important factor in its general devel- 
opment and well-being. 

Joseph and Mercy (Mortimer) Hill, the parents of 
Mr. Hill, were natives of Connecticut and were pio- 
neer settlers of Rensselaer Co., N. Y., where they 
passed most of their lives, and where the mother 
died. The father came late in life to Kingston, and 
died at the home of his son. 

Mr. Hill was married Sept 15, 1S33, in Columbia 
Co., N. Y., to Sarah B. Wallace. The record of the 
children born of this union is as follows : Ophelia 
was born Oct. 18, 1834, in Oneida Co., N. Y., and is 

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the wile ni W. I'. I.. Russell, of Lee Co., 111. Will- 
iam \V. was born Oct. 23, 1836, in De Kalb County, 
and lives on tin' lniniotc.nl where he was bom. 
Anna Iv, wile of I.. J. Bliss, of K;insas, was bom 
1 Aug. 22, 1838. Mar) A., horn Nov, r.8, 1X40. mar- 
ried John I li -i km. mi. oi Kansas. Sarah J., born Aug. 
22, [842, is the wife ol A. II. Clark, of Kingston 
Township. James J. »as born March 14, 1844, and 
died June 1, r86i. Geo. II.. Jr., was horn Dec 25, 
1846, and died March 12, 185,5. Mrs. Hill is the 
fifth child of James and Be,tse) B. (Stacey) Wallace, 
and was born April 13, 1S12, in New Lebanon, Co- 
lumbia Co., N. Y. Her parents wen natives 61 Con- 

ut and located alter marriage in the last 

mentioned place, where the death Of her father in- 
curred in 1.S34. Several years subsequent to thai 
event his widow came to De Kalb County with her 
children and died in Gem 'i 



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r® Pibraham D. Graves, farmer and stockman, 
\£) ; V~Tvil $ section 30, Franklin Township, was born in 
) the town of Guilford, Piscataquis Co., Maine, 
vJ. ^l£r April 25, 1826. His father, Nathaniel Graves, 
> 'r was born in 1801, near Scituate, Mass., and is 
still living, in Green Co., Iowa. He is of 
mixed Scotch and English extraction, and of New 
England parentage. He was a farmer and came 
West in 1845, making a location in De Kalb County, 
before its township organization. About 1874 he be- 
came a resident of Iowa. Anna J. (Young) Graves, 
the mother, was born Dec. 1, 1803, in Lewislon, 
Maine. She was the child of a clergyman, who fol- 
lowed that calling during the last 20 years of his life 
in his native State. The mother of Mr. Graves died 
at Wall Lake, Iowa, Aug. 10, 1882, being nearly 79 
years of age. She was the mother of four sons and 
five daughters. One of the former and two of the 
latter are deceased (1885). Mr. Graves is the oldest 
child; Andrew died at Guilford, Me.; Julia L. lives 
in Green Co., Iowa; J. H. resides at Wall Lake, 
Iowa; Augusta A. is a resident at Marysville, Kan.; 
Elvira J. died in infancy, at Parkman, Me.; Vesta 
A. lives at Creston, Ogle Co., 111.; Hannah died at 
Wall Lake, Iowa; N. Frank is a resident at West- 
moreland, Kan. 

Mr. Graves was under the supervision of his par- 




ents in his native State, where he attended the public 
schools until 18 years of age, when he entered the 
village academy at Foxcroft, Me. The next year his 
lather came West and settled in a section now in- 
cluded in ( >gle County, and situated contiguous to 
De Kalb County, before the organization of the latter 
into townships. He became a teacher during the 
winter seasons, having charge of schools in De Kalb 
Mm] lioom ( 'minties 1 ; ,:n 1 essi\ e winters. I taring 
the summers intervening he engaged vigorously in 
breaking up prairie, several hundred acres lying 
within Ogle and De Kalb Counties being first placed 
in tillable condition by him. 

Mr. Graves was married April r3, 1850, in Frank- 
lin Township to Salina L. Churchill. The parents 
of Mrs. Graves, Oliver and I'antha L. (Andrews) 
Churchill, were natives of Vermont and of New 
England ancestry. They removed to Gattaraugus 
County in the State of New York, where the daughter 
was born, May 3, 1831. She was 12 years of age 
when, in 1844, she accompanied her parents to De 
Kalb County, where they were among the earliest of 
the pioneer settlers in Franklin Township. Her 
father became an extensive land-holder, and re- 
mained a resident of the township during the re- 
mainder of his life, a period of nearly 40 years, and 
died in September, 1882. Her mother was killed 
July 4, 1850, by a stroke of lightning. Mr. and Mrs. 
Graves have been the parents of eight children. Eva 
S. was born Jan. 7, 1852, and was married April 6, 
1870, to Milton I). Patten, a farmer of South Grove 
Township. Pantha L. was born Oct. 12, 1854, and 
died Sept. 6, 1855. Fred was born July 7, 1856, and 
was married Feb. 21, 1883, to Jennie Wallace. He 
is a practicing physician at Rockford, 111. He was 
graduated at Bennett Medical College in Chicago, in 
1 88 1. Charles S. was born Jan. iS, 1862, and is a 
student at Evanston College, where he is pursuing a 
course of classical study preparatory to the study of 
law. He was a graduate of Ihe High School at 
Sycamore in 1882. Nathaniel A., born July 5, 1864, 
is a student at Bennett Medical College. Amos 
('. was born Feb. 10, 1867 : Bertie E. was born Aug. 
27, 1872; John, born Jan. 12, 1875, died March 13, 

•875- 

Mr. and Mrs. Graves have been residents of 
Franklin Township during their entire married lives 
with the exception of a single year. The homestead 
includes 160 acres of excellent land in a high state 






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DE KALB COUNTY. 



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of cultivation. Mr. Graves is a Republican of a de- 
cided type, and has officiated in the several local 
positions of importance in his township. He has 
been Assessor, and has served seven years as Town- 
ship Clerk, and has discharged the duties of Treas- 
urer 15 years. He is a Steward of the Methodist 
Church society, of which lie and his wife have long 
been members. 



+##«- 




fames R. Graham, farmer, residing on sec- 

H tion 11, Mayfield Township, is a son of 

Robert and Louisa (Parker) Graham, the 



former a native of Pennsylvania and the latter 
%F of New York. They were married and settled 

1 in Kentucky, whence they moved to this State 
in 1835. They remained at Ottawa, La Salle Coun- 
ty, this State, during the winter of that year, and in 
the spring of 1836 came to this county and settled 
in Mayfield Township. His father followed farming 
as a vocation in the township mentioned until his 
death, which event occurred March 7, i860. Two 
children were born of their union, namely, Sarah 
Elizabeth and James R. The former died in i860, 
aged 30 years. 

James R. Graham is the only surviving child of 
his father's family, and was born in Campbell Co., 
Ky., Dec. 1, 1832. He was but three years of age 
when his parents came to this county, and resided 
with them in Mayfield Township until his father's 
death. His years of minority were passed on the 
I. inn and attending the common schools. On the 
death of his father he became owner of the old 
homestead by inheritance. It consists of 200 acres 
of land on sections 11 and 14, Mayfield Township, 
most of which is in a good tillable condition. Mr. 
Graham is considered one of the progressive farmers 
of his township. He keeps about 45 head of cattle 
and six horses, and fattens from 30 to 50 head of 
hogs yearly. 

Politically he is a Republican, and has held the 
office of Highway Commissioner and School Di- 
re tor. 

Mr. Graham has been twice married. His first 
wife was a Miss Mary E. Loossey, and their union 
occurred in Campbell Co., Ky., Jan. 24, 1856. She 
was a daughter of Stephen and Sarah (Richardson) 




Loossey, parents of six children, namely : Mary E., 
Lucinda, Nam y, William, James and Lydia. Mary 
E., wife of Mr. Graham, was born in Kentucky in 
1839, and was the mother of one child, Mary E., 
only issue of their union. She is now the wife of 
Winfield Divine, resident of Sycamore. Mrs. Gra- 
ham died in Mayfield Township, Feb. 28, 1857, and 
Mr. Graham was again married, in Kingston Town- 
ship, Jan. 12, 1858, to Miss Nancy Stilwell. She 
was a daughter of Joseph and Martha (Barrackman) 
Stilwell, natives of Kentucky, in which State they 
resided until their death. They were the parents of 
eight children, namely : Mary A., John W., William, 
Eliza, Catherine J., Nancy, Robert and James. 

Nancy Graham was born in Campbell Co., Ky., 
Nov. 23, 1830, and is the mother of six children by 
Mr. G. They were born as follows : Lorenzo, Rob- 
ert, Charles W., Carrie B., Jennie A. and William H., 
and are all living except Lorenzo, who died in in- 
fancy. 



I 
A 





Lugh McQueen, farmer, section 29, South 
H' Grove Township, was born July 29, 1829, 
in the Scottish Lowlands, at a place about 
[2 miles from Ayr, where Robert Burns was 
bom. His father died when he was between 
three and four years old, and when 10 years old 
he was thrown upon his own resources for self-main- 
tenance. He received a fair education through the 
aid of his friends and the energetic application of his 
own energies, and he operated as a farm laborer in 
his own country, being thus engaged until his mar- 
riage. 

He was married June 7. 1847, in Ayrshire, to Jane 
McKenzie. She was born June 25. 1827, and is the 
daughter of John and Ellen (Key) McKenzie. Mr. 
and Mrs. McQueen have had 10 children, three of 
whom arc deceased. Those who are living are John, 
Hugh, Jr., Mary, Ellen (2d), Frank, Jane and Will- 
iam A. Ellen is the wife of Fred Vodden, a farmer 
of South Grove Township. Jane, Elizabeth md 
Ellen are the names of those who are not living. 

After his marriage Mr. McQueen engaged in the 
brick and tile trade in his native country, and was 
interested in that business about 20 years. In 
August, 1867, he came to America with his family 
and landed at the port of New York. After a very 



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brief delay they proi eeded to I >e Kalb ( !ountj . « here 
the parents oi Mrs. M< Queen had Milled some \ ens 
before. 

In 1871 Mr. McQueen purchased ifio acri 0! 
land, and he has increased his estate bj later addi- 
tions until he is now the proprietor of 4 So acres ol 
land, situated at three different points. He is spei i.i 1 1 \ 

engaged in raising Short-Horn and Durham cattle, 

and is ranked among the leading operators in that 
line in the county. Formerly he bred the Berkshire 
swine to a considerable extent, but is now giving his 

attention to raising swine of the Poland variety. 

Mr. Mi Queen is an ardent Republican in polities, 
and with his wife is a member of the Scotch Presby- 
terian Church. The parents of Mrs. McQueen are 
dec eased. 



. ohn N. McDowell, farmer, section 25, 

Franklin Township, was born in the same 

• township in De Kalb County, on section 

Wg 12, Oct. 18, 1S40. His parents, John and 

K. Martha (Biddle) McDowell, were born respect- 

\ ively in Pennsylvania and Tennessee. Both 
came to De Kalb County in early life and were mar- 
ried here. They have since resided on a farm in 
Franklin Township, where the son was born. Both 
are still living, at the ages of 72 and 66 years. 

Mr. McDowell was brought up at home, attended 
the common schools in boyhood and in youth went 
to the seminary at Whealon, Du P:ge Co., 111. At 
the age of 21 years he began his independent ex- 
istence as a farmer on a piece of land deeded to him 
by his father. This he afterwards sold, and in 1864 
purchased 90 acres in another part of the same 
township, on which he had a brief residence, and 
went thence to South Grove Township, settling on 
160 acres of land on section 1 1, on which he resided 
eight years. He returned afterward to his native 
township, and later proceeded to Missottri, whence he 
came back two years afterward to his former home. 
He has since resided on 180 acres of land situated 
near Kirkland village, owned by his mother and aunt. 
He is a Democrat in political principles. 

He was married in Flora Township, Boone Co., 
111., to Evaline Newton, who became his wife March 
28, 1861. She was born June 20, 1844, in the State 






of New York, and is the daughter of William and 
Margaret (Tuttle) Newton. Her parents were fann- 
ers and natives of New York. She came with her 
parents to Boone Co., 111., when a child of four years, 
and there acquired a district-school education. Mr. 
and Mrs. McDowell have had* nine children,— Adel- 
bert, William, Clayton, Fred, Porter, Paul, Edgar 
and Ivan (twins) and John. 



heodore D. Driscoll, farmer, section 11, 
South Grove Township, was born April 5, 
1838, on the farm on which he now resides. 
His parents, William and Margaret (Losier) 
Driscoll, were the first settlers in South Grove 
Township. They were bom respei tively in 
Ohio and Pennsylvania. They made a homestead 
claim of 150 acres of land in 1836, previous to the 
Government survey, and it was the first claim made 
in the township by permanent settlers. Their expe- 
riences were the same as those so often repeated, — 
no neighbors, supplies obtainable only from remote 
points, the nearest mill being at Ottawa, 50 miles 
distant, where they were obliged to make their way 
with an ox team. The family included eight chil- 
dren. 

Mr. Driscoll was the seventh child, and was only 
three years of age when the death of his father oc- 
curred. He continued to live with his mother until 
he was of age, and obtained a practical common- 
school education. In 1859 he became the proprietor 
of the homestead, and has had charge of the com- 
fort and welfare of his mother since he was qualified 
by age and circumstances for the duty. He is the 
owner at present of 430 acres, all under cultivation, 
supplied with a good residene e and one of the larg- 
est and most convenient barns in De Kalb County. 
Mr. Di'iscoll is skilled in the rearing of stock and 
annual!) fattens a large number of cattle and hogs 
for market. He is a loyal and zealous Republican, 
anj has held various local township offices. 

He was married Jan. 6, [876, to Harriet A. Tin- 
dall, and they have lour children, — Jesse, Elizabeth 
J., Harriet L. and Arthur. Jesse and Mary (Barber) 
Tindall, the parents of Mrs. Driscoll, were natives of 
New Jersey and New York, and came to this <ount\ 
about 1842. She was Lorn in South Grove Town- 



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ship Jan. 21, 1843. She was reared in this county 
and was well educated, becoming a teacher and fol- 
lowing that profession until her marriage. 

Mr. Driscoll was the first white 1 hild burn in the 
township; his wile was l«)in at an early period in its 
history. 

ill nun Carpenter, farmer, section 16, May- 
held Township, is a son of John and 
fcv^ Joanna Carpenter, natives of New York 
j^2y and Massachusetts. They were the parents 
of 11 children, namely: John, Elizabeth, 
Delinda, Harriet, Ira, Mary, William, Elias, 
Charles, Joanna and Alexander. 

William Carpenter, subject of this biographical 
notice, was born in Schoharie Co., N. Y., March 26, 
181 3. His father was a blacksmith, which trade 
William learned and followed, contributing his earn- 
<* ings toward the support of the family until 23 years 
$} of age. On account of his father's limited means and 
° large family to support, William was unable to take 
;gj advantage of the opportunities afforded by the com- 
\ mon schools, and received only such education as a 
i£u determined mind could acquire from home study and 

parental assistance. 
< ~\ He worked at his trade, after leaving home, for 
about a year and a half in his native State, and then 
went to Portage Co., Ohio, where he continued to 
follow his trade until 1848. 

In the fall of the latter year, Mr. C. came to this 
county, traveling the entire distance with a team of 
( horses and occupying 17 days. He was accom- 
* panied by his wife and two children, and on his ar- 
! rival here purchased 80 acres of school lands on 
section 16, May field Township, on which he settled 
and at present resides. He now has 86 acres, all of 
which is in a good tillable condition. 

Mr. Carpenter was united in marriage, Feb. 12, 
1835, in Delaware Co., N. Y., to Miss Clarissa C. 
YVhitely. Four years later, in 1839, his wife died, 
and Jan. 12, 1840, in Portage Co., Ohio, he was a 
second time married to Miss Mary S. Frost. She is 
a daughter of Levi and Elizabeth (Slocum) Frost, 
natives of Massachusetts and Connecticut respect- 
ively. They came to this county in 185 1, and after 
{^J residing here about three years removed to Iowa, 
'_ where, in Floyd County, July 21, 1865, her father 



died. Her mother then returned to this county and 
died in May field Township, Feb. 23, 1870. They 
were the parents of 10 children, namely, John S., 
Eliza W., Mary S., Levi, Jr., Laura G., Amos B., Delia 
P., Oliver D., James M. and Edmond E. 

Mrs. Carpenter was born in St. Lawrence Co., N. 
Y., March 26, 18 14. She was the mother of two 
children by Mr. Carpenter, namely, Mary C, born 
Nov. 2, 1840, and William D., born Nov. 3, 1843. 
Mrs. C. died in Portage Co., Ohio, Nov. 3, 1843, and 
Mr. Carpenter was a third time married Jan. r, 1844, 
in Portage County. The lady of his choice was Miss 
Laura G. Frost, a sister of his former wife. She was 
born in St. Lawrence Co., N. Y., April 12, 1818. 

Politically, Mr. Carpenter is a Republican. He 
has held the office of School Director and Commis- 
sioner of Highways. 



-S3- 



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dnJKohn Hatch, farmer, section 21, De Kalb 
WMM-r Township, was born May 15, 1817, in Ot- 
sego Co., N. Y., and is the son of Sylvanus 
and Edith (Gardner) Hatch, who were also 
born in the Empire State. They removed to 
Jefferson County when their son was two years 
of age, and he passed his life in that county, chiefly 
engaged in teaming, until his removal to Aurora, 111., 
in 1855. He continued to reside in Aurora and in 
that vicinity until 1862, where he was engaged in 
farming, when he purchased 90 acres of land in De 
Kalb County, where he has since resided and con- 
ducted his agricultural projects. He keeps 20 milch 
cows and raises a very fine grade of horses. His 
entire acreage is under advanced cultivation. 

Mr. Hatch is a Republican in political preference 
and has held several local official positions. His 
marriage to Irena Willey took place in Jefferson Co., 
N. Y., Dec. 17, 1838; and one child, Mary P., was 
born to them Sept. 17, 1850. He has also raised five 
children, which he has taken from various poor farms. 
Mrs. Hatch was born Aug. 24, 1815, in Jefferson 
County, and she is the daughter of Eleazer and 
Wealthy (Marsh) Willey, who were both natives of 
Oneida Co., N. Y. 

Among the numerous portraits given in this Ai B 1 u 
way be found that of Mr. Hatch. This portrait was 
marie from a photograph taken in 1SS5. 



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eneral Everell Fletcher Dutton, Presi- 
dent of the Sycamore National Bank, was 
"W&T K born Jan. 4, 1838, in Charlestown, N. H., 
^" and is the second child of William P. and 
Lucinda J. (Blood) Dutton. The former was 
born Oct. 1, 18 17, and was reared under the 
New England regime for the training of farmers' 
sons, — common-school education and agricultural 
labor. He was married in 1835 and was a farmerin 
the Granite State until 1844, the date of his removal 
with his family to St. Charles, Kane Co., 111., whence 
he went to Dupage County, and subsequently, in 
1S46, to Sycamore, De Kalb County, where he was 
a resident until the spring of 1857. He conducted 
the affairs of the Sycamore House several years, after 
which he was appointed Deputy Sheriff under Morris 
Walrod, and succeeded to the same incumbency 
under E. P. Young and Joseph F. Glidden, during 
which periods he was practically chief official. In 
\ 1854 he established a commercial business at Syca- 

§5 more, and later admitted E. H. Barnes as a partner. 
Political events and national affairs generally at 

£u the time when he reached manhood were of acharac- 
> ter which tended to awaken every latent principle of 
) patriotism and sense of justice and right that might 
be slumbering within a man's consciousness. He was 
a born and bred Democrat of the Jackson school, 
and, true to the element with which he had drifted 
up to 1856, he had accepted the issues of the party 
without question. Always fearless in the expression 
of his sentiments, his ardor was rewarded by his 
appointment as Postmaster at Sycamore. Early in 
1856 he went to Kansas, rooted and grounded in the 
belief that the free-State element was the very head 
and front of anarchy and treason, and confidently 
anticipating that the results of his investigation of 
existing conditions would redound materially to the 
prestige of the Democratic party. To a man of his 
temperament, the outrages he witnessed could bear 
but one significance, and he returned to Sycamore a 
declared free-State man. His intrepid denunciations 
of the operations of the border ruffians cost him his 
political head, and in consonance with his instincts he 
removed his interests to Kansas, in February, 1857. 
II<' located at Stanton (then Lykins) County, and 
engaged in farming. Within a year he was elected 



the first Treasurer of his county, and served two 
years. In T859 he was a member of the Constitu- 
tional Convention at Wyandotte, and was a factor in 
framing the Constitution of the State. In 1861 he 
was elected Sheriff of the county, the name of which 
had been changed to Miami, and he removed to 
Paola, where he resided until 1873. He was re- 
elected Sheriff in 1863. He was conspicuous in 
Kansas history during the war, was the leader of 
the citizens whose determined attitude averted the 
fate of Lawrence from Paola in 1863, and he acted 
as aid to the Governor. 

In 1S73 he returned to Illinois and again engaged 
in farming. He moved again to Paola in 1876, 
where he operated for a time as a business man and 
is now retired from active life. The mother of Gen. 
Dutton was born Jan. 18, r8r8, and died at Syca- 
more June 15, 1875. Emma, the oldest child of 
William P. Dutton and his wife, married Aaron K. 
Stiles, now of Chicago, President of the Van De- 
poele Electric Light Company, and who is extensively 
interested in the manufacture of barbed wire. Charles 
E. is a printer in San Francisco, Cal. Joel W. died 
at Sycamore Feb. 3, 1855, when he was n years old. 

General Dutton was a lad of eight years when his 
parents located at Sycamore, and during the r r years 
that intervened before their removal to Kansas, he 
passed the time as an assistant in his father's store 
and in the postoffice, meanwhile attending the com- 
mon school, finishing his education by a year of study 
at Mt. Morris Seminary and a similar period at Beloit 
College, Wis. He went with his parents in Febru- 
ary, 1857, to Kansas, where he passed nearly two 
years in unremitting toil on an unbroken prairie farm, 
varying his days of labor in driving four yoke of oxen 
breaking the soil, by splitting rails and other work 
requiring proportionate outlay of physical effort. In 
the fall of 1858 he returned to Sycamore to enter 
upon the duties of Deputy County Clerk, under A. 
K. Stiles, and held that incumbency until April, 
1 861. 

The seed sown in De Kalb County during the 
portentious period that preceded the tangible expres- 
sion of the culmination of Southern hate and fury in 
Charleston Harbor, yielded spontaneous harvest 
when the reverberations from the attacking guns at 
Sumter swept over the prairies, freshening under the 
vernal sun, and imparting hope to those who gloried 
in their possibilities, and to whom the beautiful acres 



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within their ken typified their country, — their whole 
country. Its threatened dismemberment roused a 
desire for immediate action in the breasts of hun- 
dreds, and in less than a week the streets of Syca- 
more were patroled by crowds of volunteers with 
but a single thought, — the Nation's danger, and the 
necessity of intelligent preparation for duty in the 
exigency that seemed imminent. It is ludicrous, but 
no less true, that these self-constituted recruits for 
the military service of the United States, organized 
for preparation, and, in the lack of regulation arma- 
ment, pressed broom-sticks and hoe-handles into ser- 
vice as auxiliary to their purpose, and with these 
harmless representatives of legitimate weapons they 
engaged in the practice of mimic warfare. Presi- 
dent Lincoln made his first call for troops April 16, 
and two days later young Dutton enrolled his name, 
constituting himself a member of one of the two 
companies of volunteers from De Kalb County, who 
anticipated the action of the Governor and held 
themselves in readiness to answer a possible sum- 
mons. While red tape was adjusting its kinks, the 
volunteers proceeded with their preparations. One 
of the chiefest honors which rests upon the members 
of the two organizations that moved heaven and 
earth to obtain an opportunity to lay their lives on 
the shrine of a united government, is the singleness 
of purpose that constituted their motive. The or- 
organization to which private Dutton belonged was 
designated " Company F," and was assigned to the 
13th Illinois Regiment, going to Dixon, 111., under 
the leadership of Capt. Z. B. Mayo. The comple- 
tion of the organization of the company resulted in 
the election of Mr. Dutton as First Lieutenant, and 
he was mustered into the service of the State as the 
incumbent of that position May 10, 1861. The reg- 
iment was mustered into the United States service 
May 24 of the same year. June 16 it was sent to 
Caseyville, 111., a town near St. Louis, Mo., where it 
was detailed for the surveillance of the rebel ele- 
ment of that city, moving forward to Rolla, Mo., 
July 6, following. 

The " 13th Illinois" was the first Union regiment 
that crossed the Mississippi River into Missouri, 
where their presence accomplished much good in 
many directions. At Rolla, Aug. 13, Captain Mayo 
resigned his position, and was succeeded by Lieuten- 
ant Dutton. The regiment remained at Rolla until 




Oct. 29, and, in addition to the routine of military 
duty, performed cavalry service, chasing guerrillas 
and bushwhackers. On the day named above the 
command joined the army of General Fremont at 
Springfield, having marched 120 miles in four days 
and doing heavy skirmish work on the way. Gen- 
eral Fremont, noting the valor and discipline dis- 
played, assigned the regiment to an honorable posi- 
tion ; but, being removed, his command was scattered 
to various points, the 13th returning to Rolla. The 
influence through which Fremont was subjected to 
such humiliation, or the purposes served thereby, 
will ever remain an unsatisfactory mystery to the 
members of his command. March 6, 1862, the reg- 
iment was ordered from Rolla to support General 
Curtis, and marched again to Springfield almost at 
the speed of " double quick," and thence to North- 
western Arkansas, joining the army of Curtis at Pea 
Ridge, averaging more than 25 miles' march daily. 
The command moved through Northern Arkansas, 
made a feint of attacking Little Rock, and accom- 
plished some lively skirmishing. It encountered the 
severer hardships of war in supplies being cut off, 
the men being compelled to live on parched corn 
and green whortleberries for several days. The 
forced march previous to and down the White River 
was one of the most terrible in the history of the 
the regiment. At first cold, insufficient food, inces- 
sant rain and dangers from the marauders who 
infested that region, made it a most dismal experi- 
ence, which became misery during the close of the 
march, the cold having changed to intense heat, and 
there being no water save in the cypress swamps, 
abounding in reptiles and filth, the wells being poi- 
soned or otherwise rendered unfit for use by the 
citizens as the troops approached. This expe- 
rience lasted more than three months ; the regi- 
ment reached Helena, Ark., July 14, with half its 
numbers sick from the effects of hardship and 
privation. Captain Dutton was sent home on sick 
leave in August, and on the second of September, 
1862, was made Major of the 105th 111. Vol. Inf., 
which was raised in De Kalb and Du Page Counties, 
under the call " for 300,000 more." He was trans- 
ferred by special order of the Secretary of War to the 
latter command Sept. 22, and, eight days after, pro- 
ceeded to Louisville, Ky. Thenceforward, until the 
regiment joined the army of General Rosecrans near 



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Bowling Green, the raw troops encountered the reali- 
ties of soldier life. Forced marches, guard and 
111 kel duty, skirmishes of greater or less importance, 
4 disease and privations made up the catalogue of pain- 
ful variety. Nov. 11, the brigade was ordered to 
Scottsville, K.y., and on the 25th of of the same 
month proceeded to Gallatin, Tenn., where it went 
into winter quarters, Dec. 10, — all but the " 105th," 
which moved on the nth to South Tunnel, where 
the main body remained until Feb. 1, 1863, and 
suffered greatly from sickness. At that date it rejoined 
the brigade, which remained at Gallatin until the 
close of spring. The services of Major Dutton dur- 
ing the six months of arduous labors performed by 
his regiment are specially mentioned. He had 
charge of the scouts from the brigade, — 250 in num- 
ber, — and spent days and nights in the saddle for 
weeks, capturing prisoners, cotton bales, horses and 
mules. June 1, 1S63, the regiment proceeded to 
Lavergne, and a month later to Murfreesboro, whence 
it returned to Lavergne, and on the 19th of August 
entered Fort Negley at Nashville, where it remained 

c until February, 1864. Many of its officers and men 
,'•". were detailed for special duty. Major Dutton was 

c made a member of the Board of Examination, consti- 
tuted by the Department at Washington for the pur- 
pose of assigning officers to the colored regiments, 
and he discharged the duties of the position until 
May, 1864. On the first day of that month the regi- 
ment received marching orders for the immediate 
front, and on the day following the command moved 
forward to become an actor in one of the most splen- 
did movements recorded in the history of modern 
warfare, and which resulted in a decisive triumph of 
the Union forces. The first time the 105th was in 
active service as a regiment, was at the battle of 
Resaca, when the conduct of its members won 
special mention from its superior officer, one of the 
most intrepid and competent in the history of the 
war; and throughout the campaign through Georgia 
and the Carolinas, their achievements were the sub- 
ject of general comment. In the subsequent history 
of his regiment, the several special mentions of Gen- 
eral Dutton particularize his " gallantry and dash." 
July 13, 1864, Colonel Dustin returned to Sycamore 
on a furlough, and Major Dutton succeeded to the 
vacancy, remaining in command till Aug. 4. During 
this time occurred the battle of Peach-Tree Creek 
(July 20), in whii h the 1 05th was heavily engaged, 

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capturing the flag of the 12th Louisana regiment. 
On return of the Colonel, the Major was mustered 
in as Lieutenant Colonel. Soon afterward Colonel 
Dustin acceded to the command of the Division, 
and that of the 105th devolved upon his junior 
officer, who discharged the duties of the position 
until the close of the war. 

From Atlanta the regiment Inarched "to the sea," 
to Savannah, thence through South Carolina and 
North Carolina to Goldsboro and Raleigh, and 
thence through Richmond to Washington, partici- 
pating in tlu- battles of Lawtonville, Feb. 2, 1865; 
Smith's Farm, March 15, and Bentonville the 19th. 
At Smith's Farm, or Averysboro, the 105th drove 
tin- enemy from his works, capturing two 1 2-poiinder 
guns, which Col. Dutton and some of his men tin mil 
and fired on the retreating enemy; and in token oi 
the regiment's gallantry at this point and in the At- 
lanta 1 ampaign, Col. Dutton, its commander, received 
from the President the appointment of Brigadier 
General by brevet, his promotion dating from March 
15, 1865, for " gallantry and meritorious service in 
the campaign in Georgia and the Carolinas, and for 
distinguished services at the battle of Smith's Farm, 
N. C." 

At Raleigh the army was made sad by hearing of 
President Lincoln's assassination, and later joyous 
by Lee's and Johnston's surrender, and then the 
homeward march to \Vashington, where the regiment 
took part in the Grand Review. General Dutton 
was mustered out at the Capital, June 7, 1865, after 
a continuous period of service of over four years and 
two months. 

On leaving the army, General Dutton returned to 
Sycamore. In 1868 he was elected Clerk of the 
Circuit Court, in which capacity he officiated eight 
years. 

In the winter of 1877, during the 30th General 
Assembly of Illinois, he served as Clerk of the House 
of Representatives. He was elected Clerk of the 
Supreme Court of the Northern Grand Division of 
Illinois in 187S, and held the position until Dec. 1, 
1884. 

In June, 1883, Gen. Dutton secured a large pro- 
portion of the stock of the Sycamore National Bank, 
and on the death of J. S. Waterman became its 
President. He is also President of the Beadle 
County (Dak.) National Bank. He is an extensive 



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operator in real estate in Iowa and Illinois, and he 
owns 400 acres of improved land near Genoa, de- 
voted to dairy purposes. With his father-in-law, 
Harmon Paine, he owns 250 acres near Cortland, 
which is also a dairy farm. In Iowa and Minnesota 
he is the proprietor of about 4,000 acres of chiefly 
wild land. 

General Dutton was married Dec. 31, 1863, at 
Sycamore, to Rosa A. Paine. She was born in 
Herkimer Co., N. Y., and is the daughter of Harmon 
and Clarinda (Van Horn) Paine. The children of 
this marriage are George E., born May 8, 1866, and 
William P., born April 25. 1872. Harmon Paine 
was bom July 25, 1822, at German Flats, Herkimer 
Co., N. Y. His wife was born in Springfield, N. Y., 
Feb. 26, 1824. Their marriage occurred Jan. 13, 
1842, and they have three children living, — Rosa A. 
Dutton, Ida D. Boynton and W. Burt Paine. The 
family removed to Sycamore in 1853, where the 
father became proprietor of the hotel property now 
known as "Ward's Hotel." It passed from Mr. 
Paine's ownership in 1869, since which date he has 
engaged in farming, associated with his son. 



3000^ 




(Main) Shannon. Her parents were natives of the 
State of New York and were of New England an- 
cestry. Her father was a farmer by birth and in- 
heritance, and came to Boone Co., 111., in 1845, where 
he was a pioneer settler in the township of Spring. 
They are now living in Flora Township in the same 
county. 

Mr. and Mrs. Woods have two children — Clarence 
H., born Aug. 26, 1876, and Bertha A., born June 
23, 1884. 

Mr. Woods is a supporter of the principles of the 
Republican element in politics. 



-£3- 



ames H. Woods, a farmer of Franklin 
& Township, located on section 29, was born 
; W r ^' in Frederick Township, Washington Co., 
Pa., May 19, 1847. William Woods, his father, 
%V was a farmer and a native of Pennsylvania, 
and was of English descent. His mother, 
Amelia C. Gapen, was a native of the same State and 
of English lineage. They had five children, of 
whom James is the third in order of birth. He was 
eight years of age when his parents became residents 
of Franklin Township. His father died there, on 
the home farm, Jan. 15, 1859. The death of his 
mother occurred Aug. 1, 1863. The home estate was 
divided among the children after the deaths of the 
parents, and James finally purchased the whole es- 
tate, which included 160 acres. He had lived at 
home without intermission until the demise of both 
father and mother. The farm is now in an advanced 
condition of improvement, with good farm buildings. 
Mr. Woods was married Jan. 1, rS68,in Belvidere, 
Boone Co., 111., to Marilla Shannon. She was born 
Dec. 4, 1847, in the township of Spring in Boone Co., 
111., and is (he daughter of Robert and Jane A. 

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I 



arcus W. Cole, of the hardware firm of 
Heckman & Cole, Kingston, was burn 
l> Feb. 8, 1836, in Lockport, Niagara Co., 
N. Y. His parents, Washington and Har- 
riet (Stiles) Cole, were natives of the State of ( ? 
New York, and located in 1858 in Kingston «; 
Township, on section 4, where they have since lived. Q 
Alma B., Maria M., John A. and Walter L. are the " 
names of the brothers and sisters of Mr. Cole, who ( 
are all younger than he. His father came with his ^ 
family to Clark Co., 111., in 1837, and he continued ^ 



o) 



a resident at home until he was 20 years old, when 
he came to Kingston Township and became a farm 
laborer, and worked two years by the month. He 
next took a farm to work on shares, and operated in 
that method one year. He came to Kingston Town- 
ship in 1858 and engaged in farming, in which he 
continued until January, 1882. In that month he 
bought the hardware interest of W. Shaub, and be- 
came an associate in business with Philip Heckman. 
The firm have since operated with success and 
profit. Mr. Cole is the owner of 180 acres of land in 
Kingston Township, of which 160 is under improve- 
ments. 

He was united in marriage Sept. 12, 1S58, at the 
residence of H. H. Little, in Kingston Township, to 
Anna Eliza Little. She was born in Erie Co., N. Y., 
July 24, 1840, and is the daughter of Henrv and Eva 
(Bingham) Little. (See sketch of H. Little.) Alice 
E., born April 21, 1861, is the only child of Mr. and 
Mrs. Cole. She was graduated at the High School 
at Genoa, June 10, 1SS1. 

Mr. Cole has been Constable five years. He has 

officiated seven years .is Tax Collector and eight 



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362 



Z>.£ KALB COUNTY. 




years as Treasurer, of which latter position he is the 
present incumbent (1885). In his political faith and 
connections he is a Republican. He is a member of 
the Free-Will Baptist Church, and has been Clerk of 
the SOcietJ to which he belongs for 20 years. He 
has acted six years in the capacity of Clerk of the 
Fox River Quarterly Meeting. He has been an in- 
fluential member of the Masonic Lodge, No. 288, at 
Gi »oa, for [9 years. Mr. Cole is a practical printer 
b\ trade, having obtained a complete and thorough 
knowledge of the details of that business while a 
resident of Marshall, Clark Co., 111., but has never 
pursued it as a vocation. He is the local corre- 
spondent of the Genoa Issue. 



#3 oyd D. Rowan, banker and real-estate 
broker, resident at Kirkland, was born 
March 9, 1824, in Genesee Co., N. Y., 
and is the third son of W. H. and Betsy 
(Gorham) Rowan. His great-grandparents 
on his father's side came from Ireland to 
[i America, and settled in the eastern part of the State 
* of New York, where they reared their family and 
^X passed their lives among the farming community, to 
v, which they belonged. The father of Mr. Rowan left 
tj n his native State and went to Racine, Wis., where his 
residence was brief, and he came to De Kalb County, 
where he pre-empted a farm, and was among the 
earliest of the pioneer settlers of Franklin Township. 
Mr. Rowan, senior, died April 4, 1880, aged 80 years 
and four months. The mother was a native of Ver- 
mont, of English ancestry, and died in Franklin 
Township, in i860, aged 54 years. After her death, 
her husband contracted a second marriage. She was 
survived by her nine children, all of whom are still 
living excepting Perry, the youngest, who was killed 
at the battle of Murfreesboro, in 1862. 

Mr. Rowan was 18 years old when his parents 
came with their nine children to Illinois. They were 
in straitened circumstances, and the children were 
early made familiar with the labors of a farm in a 
new county. Mr. Rowan assisted his father in bear- 
ing the burdens of his large family and reduced 
( means until he was 22 years of age, meanwhile pre- 
'JjL empting 160 acres of land in Franklin Township. 
& He borrowed money at 20 per cent to secure his 
^ claim, and at the end of five years, by his energies, 

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thrift and untiring industry, he was cleared from 
debt. The difficulties in the case may be understood 
from the lac t that Chicago was 65 miles distant, and 
was their nearest market for produce, a fact made 
interesting and memorable by the lack of railroad 
facilities as well as bj the beauties and attractions of 
a prairie highway, which are not yet by any means 
traditional. Mr. Rowan pressed his plans in agri- 
cultural venture and engaged extensively in traffic in 
stcic k, adding to his estate until he is the proprietor 
of 240 acres of land, all but 40 of which lies in He 
Kalb County. The remainder is situated in Ogle 
County, and the entire acreage is under cultivation. 
Mr. Rowan owns, besides, 4S0 acres in Iowa and 
160 acres in Nebraska, also several town lots in 
Kirkland. In 1882 he erected a building for the 
transaction of his business as a banker, which is 
characterized as the best for the purpose in De Kalb 
County, being entirely lire-proof. In August, 1883, 
he established the enterprise in which he became 
associated with B. N. Deane, and has been conduct- 
ing operations in that line with gratifying results. 
He has been connected with the Republican party 
since its organization. In his religious belief he is, 
in the Bible sense, an "infidel." Mr. Rowan's mar- 
riage to Mary L. Thomas took place March 4, 1847. 
She was born May 1, 1S26, in Genesee Co., N. Y., 
and is the daughter of R. B. and Eliza Thomas. 
Her parents came to Illinois when she was 12 years 
of age, first settling in Winnebago County. She was 
20 years old when they removed to De Kalb County, 
where, soon after, she was married. The father died 
in Boone Co., 111. A brother of Mrs. Rowan died in 
Kingston Township, of consumption. Henry, an- 
other brother, is married and a resident on the family 
homestead. Mrs. Rowan is the second child of her 
parents. Mr. Rowan and wife have made nine trips 
to California to spend the winter, and his wife is there 
this (the tenth) winter. 

• — ->*— 4 °<*S-<J1|H>8>0 — j » i< - ■ 




eorge J. Dettmer, farmer, section 1 9, South 
Grove Township, was born Feb. 26, 1847, 
'ia^ K in Hesse Darmstadt, Germany, and is the 
*/f ' son of William and Willmina (Alberding) Dett- 
mer. When he was between three and four 
years old his parents emigrated to America 
and settled for a time in the State of New York, 



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coming thence to De Kalb County in 1S58 and set- 
tled on section 20, South Grove Township. The 
mother died in 1872, aged about 62 years. The 
father resides with his son and is 77 years of age. 
They became the parents of six children, five of 
whom are now living, and are residents of South 
Grove Township. 

Mr. Dettmer is the fourth child in order of birth, 
and in 1870 became a land-holder by the purchase 
of 240 acres of land. He is an agriculturist of some- 
what extensive relations, all his own tract of land 
being under improvement, and being also the man- 
ager of the homestead property, still owned by his 
father. He is also dealing largely in stock. Mr. 
Dettmer is a Republican of the true ring, and has 
been active in several local offices. 

He was married March 8, 1880, in Fielding, Ogle 
Co., 111., to Amanda Koch. She was born Sept. 4, 
1855, in Ogle County, of German parentage, descen- 
dants from some of the early settlers of Pennsylvania, 
and now living in Ogle County. Mr. and Mrs. 
Dettmer have one child, — William E., born March 
n, 1883. 



y,arvey A. Jones, attorney, senior member of 
S the law firm of Jones & Bishop, at Syca- 
more, was born on Grand Prairie, near La- 
fayette, Ind., Oct. 17, 1837, where his parents 
Iliad settled among the first of the early pioneers 
of the Wabash Valley. His father, David Jones, 
who was an energetic man and prominent farmer, 
was born near Morganstown, Monongahela County, 
West Virginia, Feb. 18, 1798. His mother, Mary 
(Owens) Jones, of Welsh and Scotch-Irish extraction, 
was born July 19, 1802, near the city of Savannah, Ga. 
Amanda (Mrs. Morehouse), their first-born child, is 
now deceased. John M. C. went to California in 
1848 during the first days of the mining excitement 
in the Golden State, arriving at Yreka, where he 
made a permanent location, became Sheriff of Siski- 
you County, and died Aug. 12, 1882, aged 52 years. 
Abel is a mine operator in Oregon. James O. was 
graduated in the Law Department of the University 
of Michigan at Ann Arbor, and is a farmer of Grand 
Prairie, Ind., engaging semi-occasionally in the prac- 
tice of his profession. Deborah (Mrs. Hill) is de- 
ceased. Lewis is a farmer in the vicinity of Chilli- 





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cothe, Mo. Levi M. is a prominent citizen and at- 
torney of Fort Wayne, Ind., and is also engaged in real- 
estate brokerage, and has platted and built a valuable 
addition to the city. David C, deceased, was a 
graduate in the Law Department of the University 
of Michigan, and figured prominently in local poli- 
tics in Tippecanoe Co., Ind.; Asa F. is a popular 
physician and a resident on the family homestead on 
Grand Prairie, Ind. 

Mr. Jones of this sketch is the seventh child of 
his parents. He followed the labors of the farm dur- 
ing the summer and attended school winters until he 
was 17 years of age, when he became a student at 
Wabash College, Crawfordsville, Ind., and pursued 
his studies at that institution in 1854-5. He was 
then lame from necrosis affecting the knee. He was 
often compelled to climb to the fifth floor on one leg 
and cane. He went thence to Lombard University, 
Galesburg, 111., continuing his educational course 
there until February 1861. In the .spring following 
he went to Missouri and engaged in teaching, in 
which he was occupied through the summer and fall, 
when the contingencies of civil war necessitated a 
change of base. 

Coming North to Illinois, he became a student of 
law in the office of Hon. A. M. Harrington, of Ge- 
neva, under whose supervision he read for his pro- 
fession two years. In 1863 he entered the Law De- 
partment of the University of Michigan, where he was 
graduated in the spring of 1865. 

Coming to Sycamore soon after, he formed a part- 
nership with Hon. Daniel B. James, County Judge. 
Their business relations terminated in 1869. Mr. 
Jones conducted the affairs of his office singly until 
1880, when he entered into his present connection 
with Charles A. Bishop, who had prepared for his 
profession as attorney under his senior's instructions. 
They are conducting a business which places them 
in the foremost rank in the legal fraternity of De 
Kalb County, a condition which is largely the out- 
growth of the repute earned by Mr. Jones in his un- 
remitting attention to the responsibilities and func- 
tions of his profession for nearly a score of years, 
during which he has maintained his office at the 
same location in Sycamore, No. 1, George's Block, on 
State Street. Mr. Jones is a practitioner in the 
State and Federal Courts and has been and is con- 
nected with some of the most important cases asso- 
ciated with the history of the section of which De 



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Kalb County forms a part, and it can be truly said 
that lie is equally at home in the office and as an 
advocate at the Bar. In political affiliation lie lias 
been an ardent and active Republican, and aided 
materially in the formation and organization of the 
parts in Indiana and Iowa, where he operated as a 
stump speaker, and did valiant service, although 
laboring under the disadvantage of youth, being but 
18 years of age. He has been prominent in the 
ranks of temperance and has striven to accomplish 
all possible things in that direction by connecting 
himself with and laboring in the furtherance of the 
Order of Good Templars, and latterly has favored 
the advancement of the prohibition element. He 
has also aided as he might by occasional contribu- 
tions to the press. He is a student as well as a law- 
yer, and his studies have by no means been confined 
to the narrow limits of the law, but have taken a 
comparatively wide range in theology and general 
literature, in which last he has been greatly assisted 
and encouraged by his wife, whose natural love for 
literature has made her home a place of study. 

The family patronymic is of Welsh origin, and the 
lineage is distinct from three brothers, James, David 
and Enoch Jones, who came to this country just pre- 
vious to the War of the Revolution. James was a phy- 
sician and surgeon in the Colonial Army during the 
si niggle for independence. The second was a Cal- 
vinistic Methodist clergyman, a graduate of theTra- 
vena College, founded by Lady Huntingdon. It 
is supposed that the third was a farmer. They 
located on the Welsh tract near Wilmington, 
Del. Daniel Jones, the grandfather of Mr. Jones of 
this sketch, was born on that tract April 10, 1754, 
and married Mary Alston, who was born Nov. n, 
1770, in Philadelphia. Her parents were Joseph and 
Mary (Berry) Alston, and her father was a merchant 
in Philadelphia. He conducted extensive com- 
mercial interests and was the owner of several mer- 
chantmen in the trade between the Continental 
ports and those of this country. He was English 
by birth, and had brothers in the British Army; yet, 
sympathizing with the colonies and still being loyal to 
his native land, he determined to take no part in the 
then impending conflict, and accordingly sought a 
residence in the West Indies, where he died. Daniel 
and Mary Jones became the parents of 13 children, 
Enoch, Susan, James A., John, Lewis, David, James 
(2d), Abel, Levi, Mary, Alston, Margaret and Isaiah. 

£<g8$— ' — ^^ — ^< ; n D 





David Jones died Nov. 11, 1849, near Lafayette, 
Ind. I lis wife, a most estimable wife and mother, 
died June 28, 1865. 

Harvey A. Jones was married Feb. 28, 1861, to 
Sarah Dudley Perkins, who was born Oct. 14, 1838, in 
Charleston, now St. Charles, Kane Co., 111., and is 
the daughter of Otho W. and Nancy K. Perkins. Her 
father was born June 16, 1807, in Grafton Co., N. 
II, and died in Kane Co., III., Sept. 13, 1870. He 
was a settler in that county in 1835, in its early 
period of development, and became prominently 
identified with its progress. His wife, Nancy (Kelley) 
Perkins, was born July 3, 1S08, in Belknap Co., N. 
H., and died June 30, 1863. Two sons were bom to 
them, — Jonathan D., May 21, 1840, and Otho W., 
Jr., April 21, 1842: both are deceased. Mrs. Jones 
is the oldest and only surviving child. She was edu- 
cated at the convent of St. Agatha of the Lake, in 
Chicago, and completed her studies at Lombard 
University at Galesburg, 111., where she was a student 
four years. She is a lady of superior attainments, is 
well versed in current and classical literature, and 
has written considerably for the press. 

Of seven children born to Mr. and Mrs. Jones, but 
two survive. Dudley Kelley, born May 5, 1862, died 
on the day of birth. Mary Fuller was bom May 10, 
1863; Owen Dudley, born Nov 21, 1865, died Jan. 
22, 1867 ; Anna K. was born Feb. to, 1869 ; Harvey 
Alston, Jr., born October 28, 187 1, died April ir, 
1880. Sarah Dudley, born June 24, 1873, died July 
15 following. David Dudley, born July 24, 1874, died 
April 5, 1880. The deaths of two promising and 
beautiful sons occurred within the same week, of 
malignant diphtheria. The oldest surviving daugh- 
ter, Mary Fuller, was married on Thanksgiving Day, 
Nov. 28, 1884, to Elmer Jerome Baker, of the pub- 
lishing house of Baker, Collings & Co., Chicago, and 
editor and publisher of the Farm Implement. She 
is a graduate of the High School at Sycamore, was 
a pupil one year at the Musical Conservatory at Fort 
Wayne, Ind., and was a student two years at Vassar 
College, Poughkeepsie, N. V. 

Since Mr. Jones came to Sycamore and identified 
himself with its Bar and with its society, he has been 
a prominent factor in both. When sonic of the traits 
of his mind are studied, and notice is taken of the 
persistence, energy and care with which he prose- 
cutes his profession, coupled with the added power 



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given by his well-stored mind, both of legal and 
general knowledge, and his ability to present his 
arguments in a forcible manner, we have the solution 
of his unusual success at the Bar. Unlike most col- 
lege graduates, he has continued his studies, with 
even a growing interest, since he left the college hall. 
The hour of midnight often finds him poring over 
some valuable book, more with the desire to inform 
his mind than for entertainment. As a gentleman, 
worthy as a representative of his profession, as well 
as a citizen of De Kalb County, we place Mr. Jones 
portrait in this volume. It is engraved from a pho- 
tograph taken in 1884. 



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illiam H. Townsend, a farmer on section 
11, of May field Township, is a native of 
the same township. His father, Stephen 
■5w Townsend, was born in Sullivan Co., N. Y., 
June 30, 1807, and his mother, Ann (Den- 
man) Townsend, was born in the same county 
Aug. 15, 1809. They came to this county in 1840, 
settling in Mayfield Township, where he died March 
25, 1883. She is still living on the old homestead. 
They had six children, — Amos W., Nancy D., Ellen, 
Kate A., William H. and Hattie E. 

Mr. Townsend, of this sketch, was born March 16, 
1S47, and was married in Mayfield Township Oct. 
12, 1871, to Lorena Sherwood. Her father, C. W. 
Sherwood, was born Feb. 9, 1830, in the State of 
New York, whence he moved to Whiteside Co., 111., 
when he was 15 years of age. He was married to 
Mary Landis, Nov. n, 1849, who was a native of 
Union Co., Ind., and was born Jan. 9, 1828. They 
moved to De Kalb County from Carroll County, 
where they had been residents for about two years. 
He was a minister of the Christian Church, which 
calling he followed for 22 years. He died in Cerro 
Gordo Co., Iowa, July 7, 1878, where he had been 
living about one week. They were the parents of 
seven children. — Lorena, Henry M., Fanny E., Sarah 
J., William F., Emma and Edward. Mrs. Townsend 
was born in Whiteside Co., 111., Aug. 10, 1850. The 
children in her family now are Hattie B., born July 
17, 1872; R. Clyde, born Aug. 10, 1873, a "d died 
when three months old ; Winnifred, born March 12, 
1875 ; Floyd S., born July 28, 1882, and an infant. 




Mr. Townsend has held the office of Township 
Treasurer ten years, and is the present incumbent of 
that office. He has also been Township Clerk eight 
years, Road Commissioner, School Director, etc. He 
is a Republican in political matters, and in religion 
both himself and wife belong to the Christian Church. 

— <*^m&*» — 




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State. In 1842 they came and settled in 
Mayfield Township, this county, where they spent 
the remainder of their days. She died Sept. 16, 
1863, and he Dec. 30, 1866. They had nine chil- 
dren, — Alta, Andrew, Cyrus S., Osgood C, Corinna, 
Henry J., Daniel P., Floretta and Hudson H. 

The subject of this sketch was born in Wolcott, 
Wayne Co., N. Y., Oct. 5, 1813, and when 16 
years old he went to Pike, Allegany Co., N. Y. In 
1837 he came to De Kalb Co., 111., with his wife, 
and settled where he still lives, one of the oldest 
pioneers in the county. His landed estate he has 
increased from 107 to 147 acres, 130 of which is in 
good cultivation. In politics he is a Republican, 
and has held the office of Road Commissioner. 

Mr. Joiner was married in Chautauqua Co., N. Y., 
April 24, 1836, to Miss Elrnina, daughterof Jonathan 
and Lois (Battles) Lyon, who were natives of Ver- 
mont and came to De Kalb County in 1837, settling 
in De Kalb Township, where they resided until their 
death ; she died in February, 1839, and he in April, 
i860. Their children were Elrnina, George W. and 
Alta. Mrs. J. was born in Naples, Ontario Co., N. 
Y., Oct. 3, 1814. Mr. and Mrs. Joiner are the par- 
ents of six children, — Oscar F., Francisco H., Helen 
L., Orlando A., Flora M. and Alta E. Oscar F. was 
born in De Kalb Township, April 2, 1838, and mar- 
ried Sylvia Patridge. She was born in Allegany Co., 
N. Y. They are the parents of two children, — Carrie 
E. and Burt, who now reside at Independence, Kan. 
Francisco H. was born Jan. 23, 1840, and died Sept. 
16, 1847. Helen L. was born Oct. 27, 1843, and 
died Feb. S, 1848. Orlando A. was born July 27, 
1849, in Mayfield Township. He married Miss 
Laura Esther Camp. She is the daughter of Frank- 






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l'&,yrus S. Joiner is a farmer on section 26, 

^pfy§| Mayfield Township. His parents, Syl- 

§j;l^ "" vanus and Beulah (Smith) Joiner, natives 

ft of Vermont, first settled in Wolcott, Wayne 

A Co., N. Y., then in Pike, Allegany Co., same 



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lin and Eliza B. (Dow) Camp, natives of Now Hamp- 
shire. She was born June 4, 185 1, in Mayfield 
Township, They are the parents of three children, 
— Arthur D., born Oct. 22, 1S73 ; Leon A., born 
June 24, 1S76; and Elmer F., born June 29, 1881. 
They are residing on the homestead with the parents 
of Mr. J. Flora M. was born Feb. 27, 1849, and is 
the wife of E. P. Smith. She was married Jan. 6, 
1870. They have one child, — Albert P.,— and re- 
side in Mayfield Township. Aha E. was born 
Much 19, 1852, and died May 30, 1858. 



dward Barringer, farmer, section 25, 

|E Franklin Township, was born March 30, 

1828, six miles from the city of Troy, N. 





V., in Rensselaer County, and is the son of 
Martin and Mary A. (Ives) Barringer, born and 
bred farmers in the Empire State. When the 
son was six years old his parents removed to Genesee 
County, in the State of New York, coming thence in 
1844 to Franklin Township, where they resumed 
their accustomed vocation, becoming landholders. 
The mother died at Belvidere June 27, 1877; th-; 
father died in Florida, in November, 1880. 

Mr. Barringer was married at Belvidere, June 5. 
1856, to Maryette Rote. She was born Jan. 12, 
1831,111 Lycoming Co., Pa. Her father, Rev. Daniel 
Rote (see sketch of Francis Rote on another page of 
this woik), descended from Holland ancestry, was a 
minister in the Keystone State for many years and 
followed the same calling after his removal to De 
Kalb County in 1846. He died in Franklin Town- 
ship in 1864. The mother, Mary (Kitchen) Rote, 
was born in Vermont and died in 1865, aged 77 
years. The father was 73 years old when his de- 
mise occurred. Mrs. Barringer was 15 years of age 
when she accompanied her parents to the State of 
Illinois. Her children are three in number. Carrie 
is a medical practitioner at Alden, McHenry Co., 
111.; Emma is the wife of S. P. Crosby, who is manag- 
ing the Barringer homestead ; and Carrie A., who 
died when 18 years old. 

After their marriage, Mr. and Mrs. Barringer set- 
tled on 80 acres located on section 25 of Franklin 
Township. The homestead property includes 240 
acres, all under good cultivation, with fine farm 

*§©*■ ^€^ — &<m 



buildings. The place is a good sample of the rapid 
development possible in a prairie State under the 
impetus of energy and judgment. 

Mr. Barringer is a staunch and active Republican. 
He is a member of the Baptist Church, and his wife 
belongs to the denomination known as "Christians." 



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j^enry M. Thomas, farmer, section 30, Kings- 
ton Township, was born Sept. 8, 1830,111 
Chautauqua Co., N. Y., and is the son of 
R. B. and Eliza C. (Tuttle) Thomas, the former 
a native of New York, the latter of Massachu- 
setts. They had three children, of whom Mr. 
Thomas is the youngest. He was about nine years 
of age when his parents removed their family to 
Ogle Co., 111., and they removed thence to De Kalb 
County six years later, settling in Kingston Town- 
ship. Mr. Thomas engaged in farming, which he- 
has since pursued, and he is the owner of 200 acres 
of land, nearly all of which is improved. During 
the course of the Civil War he was drafted, but sup- 
plied a substitute, to whom he paid $808. 

Mr. Thomas was married Dec:. 23, 1855, in Chi- 
sago Co., Minn., to Mary Ring, and their four chil- 
dren were born as follows: R. B., Aug. 7, 1864; 
Eliza B., Aug. 23, 1866; Cornelius T., born May 2, 
1858, died Sept. 5 of the same year; and Minnie L., 
born April 21, 1863, died May 26, 1879. Mrs. 
Thomas is the daughter of Cornelius and Ellen 
Ring, and was born March 22, 1S37, in Erie Co., 
Pa. Her parents were born in Ireland. They re- 
moved in her childhood to Peru, 111., where her 
father died, and later her widowed mother went to 
Minnesota. Mr. Thomas is an uncompromising Re- 
publican. 



9! 

H;|f§ IMILartin L. Ives, resident of Kirkland, was 

born in Troy, N. Y., Nov. iS, 1834. His 
parents, Jacob and Louisa (Quackm- 
i, N bush) Ives, belonged to the farming com- 
munity in the State of New York, and were 
residents of Genesee County, where the mother 
died in 1838. In 1848, the father came to Franklin 
Township with two young children, — Martin and a 
daughter. They settled on 40 acres of land pur 




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chased by the father. His death in March, 1849, 
deprived the little ones of a father's care and left 
them wholly orphaned. They were therefore placed 
in charge of a sister, who had removed to the same 
township two years previous. Mr. Ives remained 
with her some time and obtained a fair degree of 
schooling. When he was old enough he became a 
farm laborer, and was employed at various points 
until his marriage, Dec. 1, i86r, to Eliza C, daugh- 
ter of Leonard and Margaret W. (Dibble) Aurner. 
Her parents were natives respectively of Pennsylva- 
nia and New York, and were of German and Scotch 
descent. Their marriage took place in Michigan, 
and they settled in Illinois in 1837. Mrs. Ives was 
born July 12, 1839,011 her father's homestead, and 
was reared and educated in the same township. 
When she was 17 years of age she became a teach- 
er, and pursued that calling as a vocation until her 
marriage. She is the mother of two children. Ada 
M. was married Feb. 7, 1882, to John G. MeKee, a 
native of Pennsylvania. They have one child, — 
Roy I. The second child of Mr. and Mrs. Ives is 
named William G. 

Mr. Ives purchased 120 acres of land in Kingston 
Township, situated on section 30, on which the fam- 
ily lived and were engaged in the pursuits common 
to agriculture until 1884. In that year they removed 
to Kirkland and purchased village property, on 
which they established their home for their declining 
years. Mr. Ives is the proprietor of a valuable farm, 
comprising 280 acres in Kingston Township. In his 
political faith he is an uncompromising Republican, 
and has held the position of School Director 21 
years, besides occupying the incumbency of nearly 
every other township office. Mrs. Ives has been an 
active and useful member of the Methodist Episco- 
pal Church since she was 14 years of age, and has 
officiated as Superintendent of the Sunday-school in 
the village of Kirkland for the last three years. 



ames L. Clark, clergyman and farmer, sec- 

> tion 10, May field Township, is a son of 

Nathaniel and Mary A. (Flemming) Clark, 

natives of the North of Ireland. They were 

married and resided in that country until the 




spring of 1838, when they emigrated to the 
United States, locating at Pittsburg, Pa. In the fall 

:2 ^^ ^^11 OS [10^9 ^^^ 





of 1842 they came to this State and for 21 years, 
until 1863, they were residents of La Salle County. 
In the spring of the latter year they removed to 
Somonauk, this county, and after a residence there 
of 14 years, until 1877, they removed to Mayfield 
Township, where they are at present residing. Their 
family comprised seven children, three of whom are 
yet living, namely : James I., William and John D.; 
Margaret and Eva died at the age of 10 years each; 
two died in infancy. 

James L., the eldest son, and subject of this no- 
tice, was born in Ireland, Jan. 1, 1837. The follow- 
ing spring his parents emigrated to the United 
States, and James remained under the parental roof- 
tree, assisting his father and attending the com- 
mon schools until he had attained the age of 16 
years. On arriving at that age he entered Wheaton 
College, at Wheaton, Du Page County, this State, 
and was there engaged in prosecuting his studies, 
a portion of five years, assisting his father during 
the summer seasons on the farm. 

After leaving Wheaton College, Mr. Clark engaged 
in teaching, which profession he followed for a period 
of nine years, meeting with unqualified success. 

Abandoning the profession of a teacher, he assist- 
ed an Elder of the Wesleyan Methodist Church 
on his circuit, and in the fall of 1867 came to May- 
field Township, this county, and engaged in preach- 
ing the faith of that Church, being ordained in 
the fall of 1868. He was attached to the Rock 
River Circuit, of the Illinois Conference, and for 
three years followed his profession on that circuit. 
He was President of the Conference six years, and 
Secretary three years. From there he went to Boone 
County, this State, at which place he was engaged 
in the ministry for another three years, converting 
many to the faith he preached. 

From Boone County he returned to Sycamore, 
this county, and was in charge of the Wesleyan 
Methodist Church of that city for three years. He 
then moved on his farm of 160 acres, on section 10, 
Mayfield Township, where he is at present residing. 
Rev. Clark has not abandoned the ministry, although 
he follows the vocation of a farmer, and preaches in 
the Wesleyan Methodist Church at Mayfield and 
also at Sycamore. His farm of 160 acres has about 
100 acres under cultivation. 

Rev. Clark was united in marriage to Miss Martha 



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Henderson, in Harding, La Salic Co., this State, April 
5. i860. She is a daughter of John 11. and Elizabeth 
E. (Powell) Henderson, natives of Kentucky and 
North Carolina respectively. They were married 
and settled in Brownsville, Haywood Co., Tenn. 

Her lather was so strongly an advocate and Lecturer 
on anti-slavery that he concluded the (lunate ol 

Tennessee was "unhealthy" for one entertaining those 
views, and especially one who had the courage to 
proclaim them, and concluded to move North. lie 
accordingly came to La Salle County, this State, with 
his family and located on Indian Creek, that countyi 
in June, 1829. They were driven from that county 
on account of Indian troubles, and for three years 
Mr. Henderson taught school in Sangamon County," 
this State, whence he had moved his family. He 
then returned to his home in La Salle County, where 
he resided until his death, which event occurred in 
1848. They were the parents of seven children, 
namely: Mary, George W., Francis, Erastus F.> 
Martha, Sarah and Annetta. 

Mrs. Clark was born in Freedom, La Salle Co., 
this State, Sept. 17, 1841. She is the mother of 
seven children by Mr. Clark. Five of them are 
living, namely: Victor I., born March 22, 1862! 
James M., born Dec. 20, 1866; John, born July 16' 
1869; Mary E., born Dec. 28, 1871; and Arthur J. 
1\, born June 30, 1880. Evangeline, born Dec. 28, 
1864, died March 4, 1S75 ; and one died in infancy. 

Politically, Mr. Clark affiliates with the Republican 
partj ,but is a strong temperance man, and last Novem- 
ber voted with the Prohibition party. He has held 
the office of Town Trustee for about two terms, and 
is a respected and esteemed citizen of the county. 



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ainuel H. Harrington, farmer, section 32, 
Franklin Township, is the son of S. P. and 




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Polly (Hicks) Harrington, and was born on 
section 20, April 24, r849. He passed the 
years of his minority in alternate labor on his 
father's farm and in attendance at the public 
school. When he became of age he assumed the 
management of the homestead estate. He was mar- 
ried Jan. 1, 1873, in Belvidere, Boone Co., 111., to 
Sarah B. Blanchard. She was born in Flora Town- 
ship, Boone Co., 111., and is the oldest of four chil- 

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dren. Her parents, Roswell and Elizabeth (Whiting) 
Blanchard, were natives respectively of New York 
and Maine, and came in early life to Boone County, 
where they met and were married. They became 
farmers in that county, and a few years later sold 
their property in Flora Township, removing thence to 
Genoa Township in De Kalb County, purchasing a 
large farm, which they continued to conduct until 
1880, the date of their settlement in the village of 
Genoa. They are still resident there and aged 63 
and 58 years. Mr. and Mrs. Harrington have three 
children, — Ina E , Ralph E. and Oldis I. 

Mr. Harrington became proprietor of his father's 
farm by purchase after his marriage. The homestead 
included 160 acres, which he has increased by later 
purchase to 200 acres, and the entire acreage is under 
improvement. He has recently become interested in 
raising Durham cattle. Politically he is a Repub- 
lican, and is active and influential in the local ranks r n 
of that element. 

if 

rii'P^j,, iram G. Vandeburgh, farmer, section 32, ~ 
' iiifJs Kingston Township, has been a resilient of 1^ 
~".jv "** De Kalb County since 1847. His parents, < 
fy Cornelius and Nancy (Svvartvvood) Vandeburgh, r, 
f were born respectively in New Jersey and New- 
York. After their marriage they located in the 
latter State and subsequently removed to Pennsylva- 
nia, going thence to Ohio. The mother died in that 
State, and the senior Vandeburgh came with his 
family to De Kalb County, dying in Kingston Town- 
ship, Jan. 15, 1870. 

Mr. Vandeburgh is the youngest of 10 children, 
and was born Aug. 4, 1827. He obtained the limited 
common-school education possible at the time when 
his parents resided in Ohio, whither they removed 
when he was two years of age, and he lived with 
them in the Buckeye State during their residence 
there, and came in 1847 with the father to De Kalb 
County. He has lived since continuously in Kings- V 
ton Township, with the exception of four years which 
he spent at Kalamazoo, Mich., engaged in carpen- p*-' 
tering. In 1849 he became the proprietor of 80 c -y 
acres, and now owns 180^ acres of land, which in- <>> 
eludes 2o l /i acres in timber. ®j 

Mr. Vandeburgh was married Oct. 1, 1854, in the "> 



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township of Mayfield, to Caroline E. Fairclo, a native 

of Illinois. She died in Kingston, May 5, 1861, leav- 
ing two children : Isaiah, born Aug. 28,1855; al11 ' 
Orilla, Sept. 14, i860. The daughter is the wife of 
C. W. Parker, of Kingston Township. Mr. V. was 
again married March 4, 1865, in Mayfield Town- 
ship, to Mary E., daughter of Samuel and Mary 
(Tower) Knight. Her parents were born respect- 
ively in the Stales of Maryland and Vermont. After 
their marriage they settled in Illinois, and in 1845 
located in De Kalb County, where they are among 
the useful and substantial citizens, and among the 
first settlers. They have had 10 children, and Mrs. 
V. is the second in order of birth. She was born in 
Columbus, Adams Co., 111., May 24, 1842. She is 
the mother of one child, — Lydia A., born in Kings- 
ton, July 6, 1868. 

Mr. V. is a Republican in political belief and con- 
nections. 



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\ 



ohn M. Severy, stockman and farmer, sec- 
tion 27, Somonauk Township, was born 
Nov. 4, 1829, in Oxford Co., Maine, in the 
His father, Jacob Severy, 



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.v» town of Dixfield 





was born Feb. 3, 1795, in Sutton, Mass., which 
was also the birthplace of John's mother, Re- 
becca (Stevens) Severy. She was born Feb. 1 1, 1787, 
and died in Dixfield, on her birthday in 1832. Jacob 
Severy was born Feb. 3, 1795, and died in Jay, 
Maine, Aug. 15, 1877. They were members of the 
agricultural class and had four children. One is de- 
ceased. Dexter is a breeder of and dealer in Hol- 
stein stock in Victor Township. Satira is not living. 
Hiram is a Holstein stock-raiser in Adams Town- 
ship, La Salle Co., 111. 

Mr. Severy is the youngest child and is a farmer 
by training and inheritance, having been brought up 
to that calling. He also learned the details and art 
of house and sign painting, which he pursued seven 
years. In 1853 he bought 80 acres of land in Som- 
onauk Township, on which he has since resided and 
prosecuted his business. He has 132 acres in his 
present estate. For more than a score of years he 
was extensively interested in raising fine Poland- 
China swine, and in 1882 he inaugurated his busi- 
ness in Holstein cattle by the purchase of six thor- 
oughbreds. His herd includes 14 thoroughbreds 



(fifteen-sixteenths) and 1 8 high grades (seven-eighths). 
He has one fine registered animal, Prince of Keno- 
sha, numbered 1,728 in the H. H. B. His drove ot 
swine contains commonly about 125 head, and his 
place has all the modern facilities for cattle breeding. 
Mr. Severy was united in marriage Jan. 17, 1855, 
in Lowell, Mass., by Rev. A. Brewster, to Sarah 
Hubbard, and they have two children, — Francis E., 
born Feb. 9, 1859, wife of Edward Martin, and resi- 
dent on her father's farm; John M. was born Oct. 1, 
1867; two children — Sarah J. and John M. (1st) — 
are deceased. Mrs. Severy is the daughter of Jeremiah 
and Jemima (Stewart) Hubbard, and was born Oct. 
23, 1829, in Wells, Maine. 



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isClf" ames Richards, farmer, section- 19, South 
Grove Township, was born Sept. 3, 1818, 
at Saratoga Springs, N. Y. Jacob Rich- 
ards, his father, was of Welsh lineage and 
New England parentage, his ancestors having 
removed from that section of the United States 
to the neighboring State of New York, in its pioneer 
period. He married Nancy wood, who was born in 
Greenfield, Saratoga County, and was a resident of 
that county throughout her entire life. Her death 
occurred in 1859, when she was 73 years old. The 
father died in May, 1842. Their family included 10 
children, of whom two are deceased. 

Mr. Richards was the seventh child of his parents, 
and continued under the parental roof until of age. 
He was educated at the academy at Stillwater, N. Y., 
and in the year following that in which he attained 
his majority he began teaching in Saratoga County, 
which he made his vocation until his marriage, Sept. 
20, 1849, to Lucretia Ward. The ancestral stock 
from which Mrs. Richards descended was originally 
Scotch. Six generations of Wards who preceded her 
father were descended from three families bearing 
the family name who came to this country from 
Scotland, and from them the name is diffused through- 
out the New World. William and Harriet (Ross) 
Ward, the parents of Mrs. Richards, trace their im- 
mediate descent from New England branches, some 
of whose members were soldiers of the war for inde- 
pendence. The father died in Worcester Co., Mass.; 
the mother died in Saratoga County, in 1S84, at the 
age of 86 years. Mrs. Richards was born April 10, 



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1820, in Petersham, Worcester Co., Mass. Her 
father died when she was five years of age, and she 

remained under the control of her mother until she 
was [3 years old; when she began to fit herself for a 

teacher. She commenced her labors in that line 
when 16 years old, passing alternate seasons between 
school and teaching, and afterwards in study at the 
State Normal School at Albany, where she was 
graduated in 1S45, in the first class that graduated 
at that school. Of her marriage, four children have 
been born, and three are living. Harriet W. mar- 
ried Harry Wadey, a farmer of Lynnville Township, 
Ogle Co., 111. Their marriage occurred in 1S70. 
Martha A. is the wife of George Tindall, of South 
Grove Township. Jessie L. married Solomon M. 
Hollis, of Kane County, who is engaged in the wind- 
mill business. The deceased child was a daughter 
and was named Carrie C. 

Immediately after their marriage, Mr. and Mrs. 
Richards settled in Winnebago Co., 111., and soon 
afterward bought a farm in Creston, which he sold 
later and became, in 1868, by purchase, the pro- 
prietor of 93 acres, on which he has since resided, in 
De Kalb County. The tract is all under cultivation, 
and has excellent farm buildings. 

Mr. Richards is an enthusiast in politics and has 
contributed for a number of years to the local press, 
being a candid and forcible writer. He has been 
Postmaster of Deerfield Prairie since 1S68, and has 
other important local positions, among which are 
those of Assessor and Trustee. 

Among the prominent and representative citizens 
of the county whose portraits we present in this book, 
we take pleasure in giving that of Mr. Richards, 
whii h was engraved from a photograph taken in 1884. 



-~D- 



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enry T. Merrill, farmer, section 25, Frank- 
lin Township, is an apiarist and manufac- 
.^ turer of cider and butter. He was born 

V i)j Sept. 26, 1814, in Delaware Co., N. Y. His 
1 father, William Merrill, was born in Connecti- 
cut, and was a shoemaker by trade, and also a 
tanner and currier. His marriage to Catherine Wil- 
ber took place in Delaware County, where she was 
born and passed her entire life, dying July 8, 1850, 
at the age of 62 years. She became the mother of 

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11 children. In 1838 the father came West and 
died Oct. 7, of the same year, at the residence of his 
daughter, Mrs. Mary Olmstead. He was 53 years 
of age. 

Mr. Merrill was the sixth child of his parents, and 
was one of the four who survived their earliest 
youth. He was brought up and educated in his native 
county, obtaining a good common-school education, 
which he supplemented by a course of commercial 
study at the business college at Albany, N. Y. 

He was married Feb. 1 1, 1839, in Oswego Co., N. 
Y., to Mrs. Catherine Merrill, daughter of John I. 
and Sarah (Lucky) Hurst. Her parents were mem- 
bers of the agricultural class of the State of New 
York, and in the maternal line were descendants 
from the French Huguenots. They passed the clos- 
ing years of their lives with their children at Frank- 
linville, McHenry Co., 111. Mrs. Merrill was born 
Oct. 9, 1815, in Schoharie Co., N. Y. She was a 
pupil at school in her native county, where she lived 
until her marriage to her first husband, John W. 
Merrill, by whom she had two children. Sarah is 
the wife of David Johnson, of Marengo, McHenry 
Co., 111. She died April 6, 1867. Lewis is a farmer 
and resides in Kingston Township. Of her second 
marriage, five children have been born : John, Jan. 
29, 1849; Sanford, Jan. 13, 1852; Maria E., March 
4, 1855; Mary was born Dec. 6, 1842, and married 
March 4, 1874, to Hiram Burchfield, and resides in 
Kingston Township; Clara was born Aug. 14, 1856, 
and was married Nov. 26, 1881, to Byron G. Bur- 
bank, an attorney and now a professional teacher, 
which is also the vocation of his wife. They are 
perfecting their knowledge of the German language 
at Hamburg. 

In 1851 Mr. and Mrs. Merrill located in Franklin 
Township, where the former established himself in 
the business of a merchant, in which he had been 
engaged in the State of his nativity. He erected the 
first building for the exclusive purpose of mercantile 
business in the township, and he was the means of 
the establishment of one of the first postoffices in 
the county, which was designated Lacy. He con- 
tinued its official for a period of nearly 20 years, and 
is the senior Postmaster in the county, as well as the 
longest in office. He is the owner of ior acres of 
land, ami attends to the several varieties of business 
specified at the beginning of this sketch. In politi- 



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cal faith and connections he is a Republican, and 
has discharged the duties of nearly every local posi- 
tion in his township. The family attend the Method- 
ist Episcopal Church, of which the mother is an 
earnest and active member. 



w hilander Murdock Alden, cashier of the 

Sycamore National Bank, was born Jan. 27, 

U^aS 1 835, in Lyme, Grafton Co., N. H. He is a 




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^J lineal descendant of the historic pair at Plym- 
■'/'&• outh, John Alden and Priscilla Molines or 
Mullens, who discussed the claims of Miles 
Standish to the lady's favor, which resulted in her 
question, "Why don't you speak for yourself, John?" 
Joseph Alden, the second son of John and Priscilla, 
was born in 1624 and became the father of six chil- 
dren. His son John was born about 1669. David, 
oldest son of the latter, was born in 1702, and by his 
marriage eight children were born. David, second 
son, was born in 1730, and became the father 
of four sons and two daughters. Andrew, young- 
est son, was born about 1765, and his second 
son, Philander, was born in 1799, — on the 10th 
day of November. Of the marriage of the latter 
to Polly L. Murdock, six sons and a daughter were 
born. P. M. AltJen, of this sketch, who is the young- 
est of the sons, represents the present generation, and 
is the sixth in direct line of descent from his illustri- 
ous ancestor, who was the last male survivor of the 
Mayflower emigrants, and who signed the compact 
in her cabin before landing at Plymouth Rock. We 
have no record of his ancestry in England previous to 
the emigration. Philander Alden died March 8, 
1835, at Lyme. His wife was born Aug. 20, 1801, 
and is still living at Sycamore, at the advanced age 
of 83 years. Calvin Murdock, maternal grandsire of 
P. M. Alden, was born Oct. 10, 1775, and died Oct. 
9, 1S07. His wife, Polly {nee Leonard) Murdock, 
was born in 1780 and died in 1859. They were 
Scotch by descent. Of the family of Philander and 
Polly Alden, four children survive; George L., mer- 
chant at Middleboro, Mass.; Thomas J., freight agent 
at Campello, Mass; Mary L., wife of Hon. Samuel 
Alden, of Sycamore ; and Philander M., the subject 
of this sketch. Martha Jane, wife of A. W. Sawyer, 
of Sycamore, is a half sister. 

Mr. Alden obtained a good common-school educa- 




tion, and completed his studies at the High School in 
his native place, coming West at the age of 20 years. 
During the first year of his stay in De Kalb County, 
he was occupied as a farm assistant in the township 
of Mayfield. He taught school the following winter, 
and in 1856 came to Sycamore, w'here he followed 
the bent of inclination and acquired a complete 
knowledge of the art of making daguerreotypes and 
ambrotypes. He made a success of that line of busi- 
ness until the crisis of 1857, when the stringencies of 
the times wrought such a change in the faces of his 
patrons as precluded their reproduction on plates or 
in ordinary cameras (unless in sections) from in- 
ordinate length (!), and Mr. Alden disposed of his 
business. Within the same year he obtained the 
position of Clerk in the Recorder's office at Sycamore, 
under James H. Beveridge, where he officiated until 
1859. In that year he entered the banking house of 
the late J. S. Waterman. He discharged the duties 
of cashier and confidential clerk in that institution 
until 1864, with no intermission save a period of 
three months in 1861, which he passed in the mili- 
tary service of the United States, as leader of the 
1 3th Illinois regimental band (recruited and organized 
by his efforts), with the rank of Lieutenant. In 1864 
he accepted an appointment in the State Savings 
Bank of Chicago, where he was employed two years. 
In 1866 he became a traveling agent in the interests 
of various fire insurance companies, as a general ad- 
juster of losses and supervisor of agencies. In 1870 he 
became assistant and acting secretary of the Lamar 
Insurance Company of Chicago, a corporation of 
which the Hon. Leonard Swett was President. His 
connection with that body was terminated by the 
great fire of October, 1871. At the earnest solicita- 
tion of J. S. Waterman and others, he returned to 
Sycamore and was elected to the responsible position 
which he has since held in the National Bank, and 
in which he is now a heavy stock-holder. Since 
the death of James S. Waterman in July, 1883, Mr. 
Alden, having been named in the will as one of the 
executors of the estate, has borne the chief responsi- 
bility in the settlement of the extensive connections 
of the property, which is estimated at a value of more 
than half a million dollars. He is also executor and 
administrator of the estates of John S. Hunt and 
John C. Waterman, deceased. The manner in which 
Mr. Alden has executed the responsibilities of the 
trusts devolving upon him, proves the genuineness of 



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his integrity and the justice of the reputation he has 
earned for energy and executive ability, as well as 
probity and unswerving rectitude. 

Mr. Alden's general relations with the interests of 
^A Sycamore are as extensive as those of any of its citi- 
zens, and he gives considerate attention and substan- 
tial aid to all schemes, religious, educational, or in 
any sense conducive to the general welfare. He has 
been identified with many of the manufacturing en- 
terprises established at various periods at Sycamore. 

On the organization of the Board of Education he 
was elected a member thereof and made its Secre- 
tary. He officiated in that office six years, taking a 
special interest in and giving much personal attention 
to matters pertaining to educational affairs. He is at 
present (1885) Township Treasurer of Sycamore, 
having been appointed his own successor in that re- 
sjwnsible office. As a member of the Board of Mana- 
gers, and as Secretary and Treasurer of the Elmwood 
Cemetery Company, in which positions he has offici- 
** ated a number of years; he has accomplished much in 
. y! the way of improving and beautifying the grounds 
connected according to the purpose for which they 
are set apart. Together with other business interests 
at Sycamore, he established an insurance agency, 
and has since conducted extensive and successful 
relations in that avenue, being at the date of this 
writing assisted by his son, Fred H. Alden. He rep- 
resents pleading home and foreign fire insurance 
companies, with an aggregate capital of nearly 
$100,000,000. 

Mr. Alden is a member of the Congregational 
Church, an officerof the society, and an active worker 
in the Sunday-school. He has been Superintendent 
for several years, also a prominent member of the choir, 
and characteristically interested and alert in discern- 
ing and promoting the welfare of the Church. The 
entire family of Mr. Alden are members of the same 
Church; a fact worthy of note. 

The marriage of Mr. Alden to Laura J. Sawyer, of 
Sycamore, took place Feb. 29, i860. She is the 
daughter of Alfred and Margaret Sawyer, and was 
born in Massachusetts, March 13, 1843. The union 
of Mr. and Mrs. Alden has been blessed by the birth 
of four children. The first — Henry L. — died in in- 
fancy. The others — Susie E., Abbie W. and Fr;d 
<?}y H. — are still joyous members of a model household ) 
and bless and brighten the home circle. The family 
residence is on Somonauk Street. It is known as the 



) 



1 






highest of earth's treasures, a happy home enshrin- 
ing happy parents and happy children. 

Mr. Alden, in his character and daily walk, is a fine 
representative of the stock from which he springs. 
He inherits all the traits of the best elements of 
New England, which has supplied the material for 
men who have constructed the West. Like his an- 
cestors, he is a self-made man. He is not only tem- 
perate in his habits, but he also is and has always 
been a total abstainer from the use of tobacco or 
liquor in any form. 



\i orton McKeague, farmer, section 32, King- 
ston Township, was burn July 15, 1830, in 
the county of Durham, Out., and is the 
son of William and Charlotte (McDonald) 
Mi Kx-ague, both of whom were born in Canada, 
of Scotch ancestry. They continued to reside 
in Canada after their marriage, and there passed 
their entire lives, where they reared their six chil- 
dren, named Norton, Diana, William, George, Helen 
and Mary. 

Mr. McKeague was educated in the excellent 
schools of the Dominion, remaining until he was 18 
years of age, receiving a thorough course of instruc- 
tion in agricultural pursuits. At the age mentioned 
he went to the State of New York and passed three 
years in Livingston County, and subsequently re- 
turned to Canada. He remained there about 18 
months, and in October, 1853, he came to Kane Co., 
111. He operated there four years, and in 1857 re- 
moved to De Kalb County. He purchased 85 a< res 
in Kingston Township, which has since been his 
homestead. Five acres of his estate are in timber. 
He has spent six years in Grand Traverse Co., 
Mich., where he was employed between two and 
three years in a saw-mill, and at the end of that time 
he built a grist-mill, and he continued its manage- 
ment more than two years. 

In political faith and principles Mr. McKeague is 
a Republican. He has officiated two terms as 
School Director, and the same length of time as 
Overseer of Highways. 

He was married Man h 5, 1854, in Kane Co., 111., 
to Mary A., daughter of Samuel and Catherine Ault. 
Her parents were born in Pennsylvania, and came 






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to Kane County in 185 1. Two years after, they set- 
tled ill the township of Kingston. The mother died 
March 28, 1866; the father's death occurred Nov. 
17, 186S. Mrs. McKeague was born March 9, 1S26, 
in Lycoming Co., Pa. Of her marriage six children 
have been born : William B., Dec. 27, 1854; Sam- 
uel F., Aug. 24, 1856; Catherine, May 16, 1858; 
Addison A., March 19, i860; Clara, Aug. 23, 1861 ; 
Myron, Dec. 23, 1864. 



|§£ eorge W. Gurley, of Sandwich, is the 
fifth lineal descendant from William Gur- 

&f~ K ley, a younger son of a Scotch earl who 
' ^» was born in Scotland in 1665, and surrepti- 
tiously brought thence to America when he was 

* 14 years of age. He was reared at Northamp- 
ton, Mass., was married there and lost his life by 
drowning when 22 years old. He left a son, Samuel 
Gurley, who was born May 17, 1687, and died Feb. 
23, 1760. He became the father of two sons and 
eight daughters. Samuel (2d), the third child and 
youngest son, was born June 30, 17 17, married Sarah 
Ward, and after her death became the husband of 
Hannah Walker. Five children were born to him, — 
Nahum, Hannah, Lois, Zenas and Margaret. Zenas, 
the youngest son, was married to L. Dimock and 
afterward to E. Hovey, becoming by the second mar- 
riage the father of four children, — Henry, Eunice, 
Lovinia and Zenas H. The last named was born in 
1801 and married Margaret Hickey, Sept. 18, 1825. 
He died Aug. 28, 1872. To him and his wife 11 
children were born, four dying in infancy. Of those 
who attained mature age, Samuel, Louisa and Julia 
M. were married and are now deceased ; the two latter 
left families. Col. John E. Gurley is also deceased. 
Zenas is a resident at Pleasanton, Decatur Co., 
Iowa, and has a wife and five children. Mr. Gurley 
is next in order. Edwin H, a resident of Lamoni, 
Decatur Co., Iowa, has a wife and two sons, — 
Zenas and Edwin. The two brothers last named are 
ministers. John E. was a practicing attorney at 
Shullsburg, Lafayette Co., Wis., and became a 
soldier for the Union. He raised and organized a 
1 ompany of volunteers and was made its Captain. It 
went to the field as Co. E, 33d Wis. Vol. Inf., and 
was in active military service throughout the entire 

UK©*®*!- a *8 ,e — ^*<-- 






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war. He was a brave soldier and a competent 
officer, and returned to Wisconsin after the termina- 
tion of the conflict, with the rank of Colonel. His 
long and arduous service was the cause of his death, 
in April, 1868. Zenas H. Gurley, the father, was 
for a number of years a clergyman, and at the 
time of his death was a minister in the denomination 
known as the Latter-Day Saints. He died on Buffalo 
Prairie, 111. 

Mr. Gurley of this sketch was born Dec. 1, 1847, 
at Elizabeth, Jo Daviess Co., 111. His parents re- 
moved soon after to Lafayette Co., Wis., remaining 
there about ten years and locating next on a farm 
near Galesburg, 111. In 1864 they settled in Ken- 
dall County, two miles east of Sandwich. When he 
was 15 years old, Mr. Gurley entered the High 
School at Mount Carroll, 111., where he was a stu- 
dent through four successive winters, passing his 
spare time in working for his board and tuition and 
he also sawed wood to pay for his books. When he 
was 17 years of age he bought his time and engaged 
in teaching, two miles east of Sandwich, in what was 
then Tollman's district, where he engaged in that 
profession winters, at $40 dollars per month. In the 
summer of 1866 he finished his course of study at 
the High School at Mount Carroll. 

In the spring of 1867 he engaged as a salesman in 
the store of A. B. Crofoot at Sandwich, receving for 
his services $15 per month. He continued in the 
position nearly two years, when he took charge of a 
branch store at Piano, in the interest of the same 
employer, being there six months. He went to Mex- 
ico, Mo., where he was employed two years, at a 
yearly salary of $Soo, and expenses. On the ter- 
mination of that engagement he went to Wisconsin 
and entered the employment of his brother in a 
general mercantile establishment. The business asso- 
ciate of his brother died, and Mr. Gurley settled the 
estate, after which he returned to Sandwich (1S73). 
He engaged as a salesman in a store, and two years 
later formed a co-partnership in the sale of general 
merchandise, under the firm style of Pratt, Good- 
man & Gurley. After operating three years the house 
became Pratt it Gurley, the new firm prosecuting 
their affairs jointly about four years. Mr. Gurley 
sold out in 1882 and entered the employment of the 
Sandwich Manufacturing Company, operating at first 
I as an expert in the machine department and as 



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salesman, also acting as collector and in the transac- 
tion of general business. On the first day of Sep- 
tember, 1884, he was placed in the office and the 
department of collection entrusted to his charge, 
which he has since conducted, its duties requiring 
the aid of two assistants. Mr. Gurley officiated as 
City Clerk nearly two years. He is a member of the 
fraternity of Odd Fellows and belongs to Sandwich 
Lodge, No. 212. He is also a member of Meteor 
Lodge, No. 283, F. & A. M., of Sandwich Chapter, 
No. 107, and of No. 22, Aurora Commandery. 

He was united in marriage in Sheridan, La Salle 
Co., 111., June 10, 1875, to Jennie Griswold. Their 
two children were born in Sandwich, as follows : 
Mabel, Feb. 28, 1876, and died Feb. 6, 1877 ; Edna 
May, March 27, 1879. Mrs. Gurley is the daughter 
of Norman R. and Dora A. (David) Griswold, ana 
was born Aug. 28, 1856, in Honesdale, Pa. Mr. 
and Mrs. Gurley are members of the Congregational 
Church. 

Mr. Gurley has a photograph of the coat-of-arms 
which constituted the insignia of rank of his noble 
ancestors, an original being in the possession of 
other members of the family. 




.harles H. White, farmer, section 29, 
Somonauk Township, was born on the 
farm where he now resides, July 2, 1859. 
s father, Thomas White, was a shoemaker 
in early life and was a native of Washington 
Co., N. Y., where he was born Feb. 15, 1815. 
The mother, Ann E. (Tucker) White, was born in 
Washington Co., N. Y., June 2, 18 15. The family 
removed to Somonauk Township in the spring of 
1S56, and took up their residence on section 9 on 
a rented farm 160 acres in extent. Later they re- 
moved to a rented farm in Squaw Grove Township, 
where the parents lived until 1859. In that year 
the farm on section 29 was purchased, and there the 
father died, Feb. 18, 1882. The demise of the 
mother occurred on the homestead, Sept. 4, 1883. 
The family included 10 children, of whom but three 
are living. Emily A. is the wife of William J. 
Randies, a farmer of Clinton Township. 

Mr. White is the only surviving son, and his birth 
was the event that marked the year in which the 

^SS^ ^K :; 





farm was pun based, where he has always lived, 
and where he is engaged in the successful prosecu- 
tion of the business in which his father passed the 
the greater part of his life. He has a fine herd of 
15 Short-Horn Durham cows, and conducts a profit- 
able dairy business. He is a Democrat. 

Mr. White was married Jan. 3, 1883, to Cornelia 
M., daughter of James and Jeannette (Rickey) Mar- 
shall, of Henderson Co., 111., where she was born, 
Aug. 17, 1861. With her husband, she belongs to 
the United Presbyterian Church. 



p<£] : ' tacy P. Kenyon, Justice of the Peace, No- 
' '. ' tary Public and real-estate agent, at Syca- 

more, was born Nov. 7, 1826, in Washing- 
ton Co., N. Y. His father, John Kenyon, was 
born July 14, 1800, in the State of New York, 
and married Betsey Potter, who was born May 
7, 1803, in Washington Co., N. Y. The family re- 
moved in 1840 to Elgin Township, Kane Co., 111., 
where the father purchased 220 acres of land and 
made additions to his possessions until he was the 
owner of nearly 400 acres of land, all under fine im- 
provement. In 1846 he bought 240 acres of land in 
the township of Virgil, Kane Co., 111., and became a 
resident there, remaining until the fall of 1875, the 
date of his removal to Sycamore. In the spring of 
the following year he was elected to the position of 
Justice of the Peace and has been re-elected suc- 
cessively since. In 1880 he became a Notary Public. 
He is also agent for the fire insurance companies 
known as the German of Fre'eport, the Agricultural 
of Boston, the Watertown of New York, and the 
Mutual Life of New York City; he also deals in real 
estate. Mr. Kenyon is a member of the Order of 
Odd Fellows, — subordinate Lodge and Encampment. 
He was married Feb. 14, 1850, in New York, to 
Betsey Lee, and they had four children. David L. 
is a practicing physician in Worthington, Noble Co., 
Minn.; John C. is an attorney at Sycamore ; Mary 
H. married John Janes, a farmer of Dakota; Charles 
W. is a barber at Sycamore. Their mother died May 
7, 1 S60, and Mr. Kenyon was again married, Feb. 
24, [861, in Kane County, to Clara Walker. The 
issue of this union was three children. Nettie is a 
teacher in Mayfield Township. William C. is a 



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farmer in Dakota. Morris is a printer in Sycamore. 
Mr. Kenyon's second wife died in Virgil Township, 
March 26, 1868, and he contracted a third matri- 
monial alliance, in Sycamore , Nov. 18, 1868, with 
Elmira White, a native of Sycamore. They have 
four children, — Farries F., Nellie, Glenn and Lewis. 




Ivor Montgomery, attorney at Sandwich, 
whose portrait appears on the preceding 
page, was born March 13, 1847, in the 
township of Dayton, La Salle County, 111. 
John N. Montgomery, his father, was the fourth 
in the line of descent from the generation to 
which Gen. Richard Montgomery, the hero of Que- 
bec, belonged, and to whom lie bore the relation of 
nephew in the third remove, his great-grandfather 
) having been the brother of him who fell in the siege 
;» of Quebec. 
^ The lineage runs in this wise : Thomas, brother of 
° General Montgomery, was born in 1730, in Ireland, 
$& and emigrated in 1768 to the northern part of the 
\ State of New York, and during the Revolutionary 
IS^ contest was an officer in the Colonial army. Wil- 
S Ham Montgomery, son of Thomas, was born in 1770, 
{( \ in the State of New York, where he died, in 1825. 
John Harper Montgomery, son of William, was born 
in New York, in 1793, and in early life removed to 
the western part of Pennsylvania. He inherited the 
loyalty of his progenitors, became a soldier of 18 12, 
and participated in that war throughout its entire 
course. He was a Captain in Kimball's Ohio Militia 
Volunteers, and was one of 33 refugees from the mas- 
sacre of the river Raisin. He wasa personal friend and 
counselor of General Harrison. After the war he mar- 
ried Melinda Piatt, in Northeastern Ohio, where her 
relatives still reside. He located at Dayton, La 
Salle Co., 111., in 1847, where he became prominent 
in local affairs and officiated in several positions of 
trust and importance. His death occurred in 1S64, 
and his widow survived him seven years. John N. 
Montgomery, son of the latter, was born May 30, 
1825, in Crawford Co., Pa., and married Luceva 

fWard. They came in 1846 to La Salle Co., 111., set- 
tling at Dayton, where their only, child was born. 
The mother was born in Crawford Co., Pa., May 30, 
1824, and died June 7, 1850. She was the daughter 




of William Ward, whose wife was a direct descendant 
from a French Huguenot family. Their children 
were Jacob and Abram, Hannah Lewis, Eleanor 
Tracy, Eliza Phillips, and Polly Goldfinch, of Craw- 
ford Co., Pa. After the death of his wife, J. N. 
Montgomery married Amanda Springstead, and they 
have the following children : Luceva, Flotilla, 
Minnie, William, Lee and Annie E. The entire 
family reside at or near Iowa Falls, Iowa, whither 
the parents moved in 1867. 

Mr. Montgomery of this sketch was occupied in 
the duties incumbent on a farmer's son in his native 
county until he was 16 years of age, and in obtaining 
His preliminary education. He engaged at that age 
in teaching in La Salle County, and spent about nine 
years in that capacity. During the time he filled the 
position of Deputy School Superintendent of La 
Salle County four years, meanwhile, also, reading 
law. He was admitted to the Bar on examination 
at Ottawa, in October, 1869. On receiving his cre- 
dentials he opened an office at Leland, in his native 
county, where he practiced until 1875. In the year 
last named he located his business at Sandwich, 
where he has since prosecuted its relations. He is 
at present in the enjoyment of a popular and exten- 
sive legal practice in the State and Federal Courts, 
and is a prominent and competent member of his 
profession. He has officiated two years as City At- 
torney of Sandwich, and four years as Justice of the 
Peace. 

Mr. Montgomery is one of the most industrious, 
thoroughgoing lawyers of De Kalb County, and has 
attained a position as an attorney second to none 
in point of reliability. He is a member of the Ma- 
sonic fraternity and the Order of Odd Fellows. 

He was united in marriage, in Northville Town- 
ship, La Salle Co., 111., May 21, 1871, to Mary A. 
Lett. Three children are now members of the 
household, — Jessie, born March 30, 1872; Florian, 
Sept. 3, 1877; and Ward, Oct. 24, 1879. Mrs. 
Montgomery was born in Northville Township, Dec. 
1,1853, and is the daughter of Thomas Lett and 
Merrilla (Pease) Lett. The family to which Mrs. 
Montgomery belongs has been made prominent 
through circumstances which render it essentially the 
property of the historian. The Lett family were 
originally Hollanders who went to England with Wil- 
liam III, whence they emigrated to Wexford, Ire- 
land. Elizabeth Jacobus, t;reat-grandmother of 




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Mrs. Montgomery in the paternal line, was horn in 
Holland. Her father's mother, Elizabeth Warren 
g w.is a member of an English family named Warren, 
t and a French family named Pileaux. Elizabeth 
Warren was 1 1 years of age when, in 1798, the Irish 
Rebellion broke out, and she was imprisoned twice 
to be burned. She was saved both times by the 
British soldiery, but her only brother was murdered. 
In June, [8 r 9, Samuel Lett and his wife, Elizabeth 
Warren, came from Ireland to Chatham, Montreal 
District, with their sons Robert, Thomas and Benja- 
min, and daughters, Elizabeth and Ann. At that 
time there was but one abode of civilization between 
the Lett homestead and the North Pole. Samuel 
Lett died by accident, in September, 1824. The 
widow and her children removed nine years later to 
Darlington, Ont. In 1S37 the Patriot's Rebellion 
agitated Canada and convulsed all Britannia. The 
brothers Thomas and Benjamin Lett were among 
- the rebellious element, the latter being perhaps the 
-* most dangerous of all the individuals concerned in 
y? the attempt to overthrow the British authority in 
a Canada. He was made the object of a persecution 
;'■', which terminated only when his death had been ac- 
" complished. A price was set on his head and he 
■c/ was tracked by Canadian spies, arrested, tried, con- 
victed, sentenced and imprisoned, for a crime which, 
it was proven, had never been committed by any 
one. He was confined in the State prison at Auburn, 
N. Y., from 1840 to 1845, when he was pardoned 
through the certificate of his physician. He was 
the destroyer of Brock's monument and the instiga- 
tor of the scheme for the destruction of the locks in 
Wetland Canal, and was the main reliance of the 
rebels in the accomplishment of any special purpose 
requiring an unusual degree of courage and daring. 
His exploits were never forgotten nor forgiven; and 
although McKenzie, the chief element in the move- 
ment was pardoned, Benjamin Lett was considered 
and dealt with as an outlaw. 

The Lett family, with the exception of Benjamin, 
went from Canada to Texas, in order to put as great 
a distance as possible between themselves and the 
scenes of their difficulties. The mother died in 
Texas and the remaining members of the family 
came in 1840 to North ville, La Salle Co., 111., and 
Benjamin Lett repaired there on being released from 
prison, and engaged in agricultural pursuits. In 
October, 1858, he went to Chicago to aid in the 

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prosecution of a scheme for trading between the lake 
ports, and failed to return at the appointed time to 
his home. Preparations were making for a search 
for him, when a telegram announced his impending 
death. The message was withheld until after his 
death, which took place at Milwaukee Dec. 9, 1858. 
The post-mortem examination showed that he h-ad 
been poisoned with strychnine, the result of the per- 
secutions which pursued him relentlessly for 21 
years. Thomas Lett has erected two monuments to 
his memory in the family burial lot in Northville, La 
Salle County. The foot-stone is nine feet in height 
from its base, and the main column is 1 1 feet above 
the pedestal, which is four feet square. They are of 
marble and are covered with inscriptions commemor- 
ating the progress of the operations which at last ter- 
minated in his cowardly murder. The entire affair 
outstrips the vagaries of romance. 

Thomas Lett entered Government land in La Salle 
County in 1840, and is still its owner. In 1842 he 
broke the prairie sod of 20 acres where Sandwich 
now stands, and he is now (1S85) a resident of the 
place. He is a man of superior intellectual attain- 
ments, and is surpassed by none in his knowledge of 
ancient and modern history. 

* — ^e^ — * 



TjFa! H 1 illiam Converse Phelps, Assistant Secre- 

am 

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His father, Alonzo E. 



JlS^"'~ r I )anv > was born June 16, 1849, in Kirkland, 
•#S)P Oneida Co., N. Y. 

Phelps, was born Jan. 17, 1804, in Caze- 
novia, N. Y., and married Juliet Bradley, who 
was born in Cayuga Co., N. Y. Dr. Phelps removed 
to Sandwich in October, 1869, and after practicing 
his profession a short time, he retired. He died at 
Sandwich, Nov. 14, 1882. The mother of Wm. C. 
died at Sandwich, only a short time subsequent to 
removal hither, her demise occurring Dec. 25, 1869. 
They had seven children : Mary B. and Juliet B. 
were twins. The former is the wife of J. P. Adams, 
of Sandwich, and the latter married William Barnes, 
a farmer in Kirkland, Oneida Co., N. Y. Francis B. 
is a machinist in the employment of the Sandwich 
manufacturing Company. 

The subject of this sketch is the youngest of the 
four surviving children. When he was 15 years of 

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age he entered a variety store in Clinton, N. Y., 
where he was employed two years, after which he 
became assistant book-keeper in Clark's cotton mills 
in New York State, and operated in that capacity two 
yens. He next obtained a situation in the office of 
a wholesale hardware manufacturing company in the 
city of New York, where he remained four years, dis- 
charging the duties of order clerk and managing the 
entire routine of affairs pertaining to that department. 
He entered upon the work of book-keeper of the 
corporation in whose interests he is now engaged, in 
February, 187 1. Two years subsequently he was 
elected to the position he now fills and operated in 
the local office until the fall of 1880. At that date 
he went to Lincoln, Neb., in order to conduct a 
branch house of the company and continued in that 
avenue of business until November, 1881, and dur- 
ing that time opened up a large business for his 
company in that particular field. On his return to 
Sandwich he was again elected to his former position, 
in which he has since officiated. Mr. Phelps is the 
present City Treasurer of Sandwich. He is a mem- 
ber of the Masonic fraternity, and also belongs to the 
order of Mutual Aid of Illinois. 

His marriage to Frances J. Root occurred Nov. 8, 
187 r, at Sandwich. Three children have been born 
to them as follows; Clara A., Aug. 19, 1872; Mary 
B., Aug. 26, 1875; Ethel J., Oct. 18, 1877. Mrs. 
Phelps was born Sept. 26, 1850, in Utica, N. Y., and 
is the daughter of George W. and Salina A. Root. 




illiam Patten, farmer, section 13, Somo- 



nauk Township, was born Jan. 2r, 1817, 
in Greenwich, Washington Co., N. Y. 



^gll His father, James Patten, was a native of 
Ireland and was brought to the United States 
by his parents when an infant 11 months old, 
in June, 1794. He learned the trade and busi- 
ness of harness-making, and later in life engaged in 
farming. He died at Salem, N. Y., Dec. 21, 1827. 
The mother, Mary (Robertson) Patten, was born in 
Argyle, N. Y., and is still living, in her 92d year. 

Mr. Patten is the only survivor of five children. 
He received the training of a farmer and a common- 
school education. When he reached the age of 14 
years, lie entered the store of his uncle, Moses 




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Robertson, where he operated as a salesman four 
years, resuming his occupation of farmer at the end 
of that time in his native place. May 17, 1843, he 
came to I)e Kalb County and entered the employ- 
ment of George Beveridge, of Somonauk Township, 
as a farm assistant and continued in that situation 
through one summer. In the fall he went back to 
the county where he was born, and was married Oct. 
1 1, to Elizabeth Pratt. Immediately after that event 
he returned to De Kalb County and entered a claim 
of 80 acres of land, which has since been his home- 
stead, — a period of more than 40 years. He con- 
ducted his farming operations with success and 
profit, and added to his estate until he owned 440 
acres of land. He managed his agricultural affairs 
with judgment and wisdom, and greatly added to the 
value and appearance of the place by his method of 
conducting his farm and by the excellent class of 
buildings which he erected. In March, 1884, he 
sold his place to his son Charles, who, in addition to 
his general farming operations, is making a specialty 
of raising fine grades of Durham cattle, of which he 
owns a herd numbering 165 head. He also exhibits 
some fine Norman Percheron and English draft 
horses. 

In usefulness to his generation and as a factor in 
the permanent welfare of the general public, Mr. 
Patten is a prominent and trusted citizen, and his 
disinterested devotion to the interests of the com- 
munity to which he belongs, as well as his abilities 
and qualifications for responsible positions, have won 
a recognition creditable to himself and his suppor- 
ters. He has been an adherent of the Republican 
element in political affairs, and in the fall of 1854 
he was elected Representative to the Legislature of 
Illinois from De Kalb County, and received a re- 
election in 1858. In 1866 he was elected to the 
State Senate for the long term and served four years. 
He has discharged the duties of Supervisor of Somo- 
nauk Township six years, and been appointed a Del- 
egate numberless times to the Republican State and 
County Conventions. 

During the war of the Rebellion he was indefatig- 
able in his efforts to aid the Government in its sup- 
pression of the colossal mischief, and was one of the 
earliest to comprehend the extent of the danger that 
menaced the Union. In April, 1S61, he was instru- 
mental in raising Co. H, 10th 111. Vol. Inf., which he 
accompanied on its way to the front as far as Cairo. 




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In 1864 he raised Co. II, 156th 111. Vol. Inf., and 
went to the lield as its Captain, but was never in ac- 
tual military service. In religious matters he is 
equally zealous and efficient, and is a prominent 
membex of the United Presbyterian Church. He 
was one of the first Elders after the organization of 
the society to which he belongs, and interested him- 
self actively in the construction of the church edifice. 
lie has represented the society twice as a Delegate 
to the General Assembly held at Philadelphia. Mr. 
Patten is the owner of 500 acres of farming land in 
Story Co., Iowa, situated on the line of the Milwau- 
kee Railroad, which is managed by his son and 
where he spent the greater part of several summers. 
He has been twice married, and had live children 
by his first wife, three of whom are living. Edward 
is a farmer in Collins, Story Co., Iowa; Simon N. 
and Jennie are at home. James and Simon (1st) 
are dec eased. The mother died in Somonauk, Jan. 
8, 1856, and Mr. Patten was again married in August, 
1856, to Jane Somes, a native of Greenwich, Wash- 
ington Co., N. Y. They became the parents of five 
children, — Charles, Anna, Alexander, William and 
Fred. 




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£enry Miller, general farmer, located on 

section 31, Franklin Township, was born 

March 9, 1S30, in Oneida Co., N. Y. John 

Miller, his father, was a farmer in the State of 

New York and married Mary drill. Their 

children included six sons and six daughters. 

In 1845 they located in Monroe Township, in Ogle 

Co., 111. 

Mr. Miller is of mixed German and Yankee (so- 
e ailed) descent and is the third child of his parents. 
He was a member of the paternal household until 
he was 26 years of age, when he took steps to enter 
upon an independent career. He was married Feb. 
14, 1836, in Franklin Township, to Matilda Patten, 
^ and they have had three children. Julia C. is the 
wife of Peter Hyser, a native of Schenectady, N. Y., 
and a farmer on section 1, South drove Township. 
Holt D. married Edna Taylor, Dec. 19, 1884, who is 
the daughter of C. S. and Hannah (Reder) Taylor, 
natives of Genesee Co., N. Y. Lillie M. is a pupil 
\" at Aurora, 111., where- she- is preparing lor the profes- 
sion ol a teacher. The mother was born in Herki- 




in.i Co., N. Y., and came in youth with her parents 

to Ogle Co., 111. She- acquired a good education, 
which she made available in teaching, previous to 
her marriage. After that event she and her hus- 
band located on a farm in Lynnville Township, in 
Ogle County, where they were residents until 1870, 
the date ol their removal t" the farm in Franklin 
Township. The place comprises 160 acres of land, 
all under excellent iniprox cincnt, on which the propri- 
etor has erected farm buildings of modern style and 
a line residence. 'The estate of Mr. Miller in Ogle 
and De K.alb Counties contains 565 acres of land. 
He is a Republic an of unwavering principles, and 
with Mis. Miller attend tin- Methodist Episcopal 
Church, in whose interest both are ac tively occupied. 



red. S. Douglas, of the firm of Barnes & 
Douglas, editors and proprietors of the 
Sandwich Free Press, was born May 26, 
1859, in East Chazy, Clinton Co., N. Y., and 
is the son of John F. and Elizabeth E. (Per- 
rigo) Douglas. His parents are residents of 
Sandwich, his father having retired from business. 

Mr. Douglas is an only child, and accompanied his 
parents from his native place to Sandwich in 187 1. 
He attended school until 1873, when he entered the 
office of the Gazette to learn the printer's craft, and 
while serving a period of apprenticeship he published 
two juvenile papers, — Sandwich Boys and Rising 
Generation. In 1S77 he went to Marseilles, III, and, 
associated with Charles E. Baldwin, became inter- 
ested in the publication of the Herald, under the 
firm style of Baldwin & Douglas. Eight months later 
he returned to Sandwich and started the Evening 
Herald. 'This enterprise existed about eight months, 
when Mr. Douglas ac< epted a position on the Gazette, 
and assisted its proprietor to some extent in the 
duties of the postoffice. In the spring of 1883 he 
went to Huron, Dakota, and became city editor of the 
Huron Daily Leader, operating in that capacity until 
the fall of the same year, when he returned to Sand- 
wich, and, in company with W. B. Barnes, bought 
the Free Press printing establishment, and has since 
prosecuted all its business relations, journalistic and 
jobbing, with satisfactory results. 'The literary abil- 
ities of Mr. Douglas beyond the enterprise in which 



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he is engaged, are recognized by the Chicago Times, 
Inter-Ocean, News, and the St. Louis Globe-Dem- 
ocrat. He belongs to the Masonic fraternity, and is 
Secretary of Meteor Lodge, No. 283, at Sandwich, 
and is a member of the Illinois Press Association 
and of the Presbyterian Church. 

He was united in marriage Jan. 2, 1884, in Sand- 
wich, to Ella J., daughter of Thomas E. and Sarah 
(Green) Culver. Mrs. Douglas was born June 9, 
1859, in Washington Co., N. Y. 





Stephen D. Wright, farmer, section 27, 
Somonauk Township, was born May 12, 
1823, in Genesee Co., N. Y. His father, 
Levi Wright, was born in New Hampshire 
and was a farmer there and in Northville 
Township, Lasalle Co., 111., whither he removed 
in 1843, and where he died Nov. 2, 1865. The 
mother, Arathusa (Brigham) Wright, was born in 
Worcester, Mass., and died when her son was a child 
of tender years. 

Mr. Wright is the second of six children born to 
his parents, and he was reared to the calling of a 
farmer. He was 20 years of age when his father 
transferred his family and interests to the State of 
Illinois, and he was employed for a time on the home 
estate, which at first consisted of 80 acres, and was 
extended by later purchase until it included about 
230 acres, a part of which lay in Somonauk Town- 
ship, on section 2,2,- 

In 1S50 Mr. Wright went to California, where he 
spent a year prospecting for gold. On his return to 
Illinois in 1854 he bought a farm of 98 acres, on 
which he has since resided. He now owns 240 
acres, all under the best cultivation and devoted 
largely to dairy purposes. His cattle are fine graded 
Holsteins, and his herd includes about 30 head. 

Mr. Wright was married in Webster, Monroe Co., 
N. Y., Dec. 23, 1855, to Ruby M. Johnston, and they 
have one son — Edgar O. — who was born Sept. 7, 
856. Mrs. Wright was born May n, 1833, in Au- 
burn, Cayuga Co., N. Y., and is the daughter of 
James and Mehitable (Olcott) Johnston. 




~o2SO~ 



Kl^rastus B. Little, farmer, section r 1, Kings- 

@E| ; ton Township, was born Jan. 20, 1845, in 

(|J!ip^* Er ; e Qj ^ N y., and is the son of Henry 

and Amy (Bingham) Little. (A biographical 
+ account of his parents may be found in con- 
i nection with that of Henry H. Little.) He was 
still in early childhood when his parents located in 
De Kalb County, and his home has since been in the 
township of Kingston. He entered the army of the 
United States in the last part of the Civil War, en- 
listing Jan. 5, 1864, in the Ninth 111. Vol. Cav. He 
was in the service during the remainder of the 
struggle, participating in the battles of Nashville, 
Franklin Pike, Hurricane Creek, Guntown, Miss., and 
Grenada, Miss. On obtaining his discharge he re- 
turned to his home. 

He is the proprietor of 370 acres of land, in a fine 
and valuable condition and favorably located in the 
townships of Kingston and Genoa, 240 acres of 
which is tillable. In his political faith and relations 
Mr. Little is a Republican and has discharged the 
obligations of several official positions. 

He was married Jan. 1, 1875, in Belvidere, 111., to 
Laura Strong. Their two children were born as fol- 
lows : William H., Sept. 2, 1882, and Frank A., Dec. 
13, 1883. Their mother was born in Genoa Township, 
Aug. 27, 1851, and is the daughter of William and 
Sabrina Strong. 



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-lliam A. Dennis, farmer, section 28, 
C fcgSl ? Somonauk Township, was born on the 
jkS^T farm where he now resides, Sept. 26, 1852. 
^> His father, Major Dennis, was born June 
N 10, 1S13, in New Bedford, Mass., and was 
married Feb. 10, 1842, to Mary A. Harmon, a 
native of North Carolina. She was born March 25, 
•18 17, and is still living, as are three of four children 
of whom she became the mother : W.iitstill O., 
born Jan. 27, 1843, is the wife of J. E. Baker, ad- 
juster for the Mutual Life Insurance Company of 
New York, resident at St. Louis, Mo.; Rebecca, 



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born June 22, 1849, married C. S. Lewis, dealer in 
agricultural implements at Annua, 111.; Shepherd, 
born Oct. 7, 1847, was the second child in ordei "I 
birth and was a business mail of Somonauk, where 
he died June 1, 1870. 

Mr. Dennis is the youngest child of his parents 
and was brought upon the home farm. His father 
was one of the pioneer settlers in Somonauk, whither 
he came in company with Capt. William Davis in 
1S34. (See sketch of Captain Davis.) He became 
a heavy land-holder, and died on his farm in Somo- 
nauk Jan. 16, 1856. Mrs. Dennis came to Somo- 
nauk in 1833, and was married there. 

In 1879 Mr. Dennis became the owner of the 
homestead by purchase from the other heirs. His 
estate includes 121 acres of valuable farm land, and 
he raises for market purposes a great number of 
swine every year, his drove sometimes numbering be- 
tween one and two hundred. He is also conducting 

J a small dairy. 

> Mr. Dennis was married at the Grand Pacific Ho- 
tel in Chicago, 111., March 29, 1882, to Maggie M. 

[ Wallace. She was born in St. Lawrence, Jefferson 
*•<§ Co., N. Y., and is the daughter of Hamilton and 

\ Mary Ann Wallace. Two children are now included 
'<£& in the family of Mr. Dennis: Millie Mabel, born 

S Dec. 25, 1882; and Carrie H., born Dec. 25, 1884. 
This is a rare coincidence, and is certainly without a 
parallel in De Kalb County. 

The farm on which Mr. Dennis resides is situated 
on sections 27, 28, 33, and 34, and he is one of the 
few who yet hold the original land patents. 



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farmer, section 32, 
born Aug. 7, 1845, 
His parents, Jere- 



eremiah W. Brown, 
Genoa Township, was 
in the same township, 
miah L. and Judith (Richardson) Brown, came 
j\* to De Kalb County, and settled in 1837, in Gen- 
' oa Township, where the former died, Jan. 5, 
882. The mother died in the same township. 
Their family included seven children, live of whom 
are yet living. The senior Brown was one of those 
worthy, determined pioneers who came here among 
the first settlers and did so much toward developing 
this now beautiful, prosperous and populous coun- 
ty. To these men the present generation is greatly 




indebted for the many comforts and luxuries it now 
enjoys. 

Mr. J. W. Brown was a pupil at school until he 
was t8 years old, and he has since been exclusively 
interested in farming. His estate includes 180 acres 
of land, of which 160 acres are in advanced cultiva- 
tion. His stock comprises about 30 head of cattle, 
So hogs and 12 horses. Mr. B. is a Republican and 
has officiated in several local township offices. 

His marriage took place in Whiteside Co., III. 
May 14, 1866, when he formed a matrimonial con- 
nection with Mary M., daughter of Ebenezer and 
Electa (Peevy) Wright, and they have had eight 
children : Millie, born Nov. 18, 1867; J. Harvey, Dec. 
28, 1 868; J. Depue, Feb. 25, 1869; Clayton L., July 
3, 1871; Dell, April 25, 1873; Edna R., May 24, 
1875; Estella A., March 22, 1878; Mary I., Sept. 
8, 1879. Millie died Dec. 29, 1868, in Genoa. 

The parents of Mrs. Brown came to De Kalb Coun- 
ty and settled at Sycamore, where the father is still 
living. Her mother died at that place, Feb. 19 
1866. 




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mos H. Rote, farmer, resident on section 
36, Franklin Township, was born June 20, 
1S29, in Lycoming Co., Pa. His father, 
Daniel Rote, was a native of the same State 
and of direct German descent, his parents 
having been bom in the old country. He 
was a farmer in early life, and at 40 years of age en- 
tered the ministry, becoming a clergyman of the 
Christian denomination. He labored in that capac- 
ity in Pennsylvania until 1847, when he settled in 
Kane Co., 111., and there followed his vocation as a 
minister two years. In 1849 he became a resident 
of De Kalb County. He died May 24, 1864, in 
Franklin Township, aged 72 years, and was an ar- 
dent and enthusiastic worker in his sacred calling 
until a short time before his demise. The mother of 
Mr. Rote, Mrs. Mary (Kitchen) Rote, was of Ger- 
man lineage. She was born in New Jersey, of 
parents of New England origin. She was in her 
girlhood when she became a resident of Pennsyl- 
vania, and she was married in Columbia County in 
that State about 1S16. She came West and died in 



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Franklin Township, Feb. 13, 1865, at Si years of 
age- 
Mr. Rote is the second youngest of nine children : 
six daughters and three sons. His brothers were 
older than he, and he was brought up at home awl 
was fairly educated in the common schools of his 
native county. He was 18 years of age when his 
parents removed West, and he was under the paren- 
tal roof until he was married, April 17, 1856, in 
Franklin Township, to Anna W. Ault. She was 
born in Muncie Township, Lycoming Co., Pa., Nov. 
14, 1832, where she was a resident until 18 years of 
age, when she came to De Kalb County with her 
parents, Samuel and Catherine (Page) Ault. They 
were natives of Pennsylvania. The father was a 
miller in his native State and followed that occupa- 
tion after his removal in 1850 to Kingston Township, 
De Kalb County. Mr. and Mrs. Ault both died in 
that township, the former Nov. 17, 1868, aged 75 ; 
the mother Feb. 27, 1865, aged 72. They were the 
parents of 14 children. Mr. and Mrs. Rote have 
had nine children, four of whom are yet living, — 
Ida J., Effie M., Harry A. and Fred B. Pearson 
Llewellyn, Alice E., Lettie and Walter did not sur- 
vive their childhood. 

Mr. Rote commenced farming independently on 
section 35 of Franklin Township, on a farm which 
he had purchased previous to his marriage. He 
owned and operated the place four years, when he 
sold it and bought 120 acres of improved land on 
which he has since prosecuted his agricultural opera- 
tions. He has a fine and valuable farm, on which 
he has erected a good class of buildings. In politi- 
cal views he is a Republican of an uncompromising 
type. 




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TLoratio N. Perkins, retired farmer at Genoa, 
, is the son of James and Deborah (Davis) 
Perkins, and was born Nov. 6, 1808, in 
Groton, Conn., the native place of his parents, 
where their marriage took place, and where 
they were resident a number of years thereafter. 
They removed thence to Rensselaer Co., N. Y., 
where their deaths occurred. Noyes, Sarah, Eliza, 





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Horatio N., Caroline, Calvin, Sylvester and Charlotte 
were the names of their children. 

The family of Mr. Perkins removed to Rensselaer 
County when he was four years old. He lived there 
until he was 15 years of age, when he went to Berk- 
shire Co., Mass., and became a farm laborer, contin- 
uing to operate in that occupation three years, when 
he returned to the Empire State. In the fall of 1837 
he came to Illinois and bought a claim, consisting of 
a half section of land, in Genoa Township, then in- 
cluded in the municipality of Orange, the township 
of Genoa not having been organized. He settled 
in what is now the village of Genoa, and built the 
hotel now known to the traveling public as the Pacific 
House, which he conducted about 20 years. Selling 
out, he devoted his time and energies to farming, 
residing on his farm on section 20, 16 consecutive 
years. In the fall of r872 he became a permanent 
resident of Genoa village. He is still the owner of 
420 acres of land in De Kalb County, under partial 
improvement. During his earlier residence at Genoa 
he received the appointment of Postmaster from 
President Van Buren, and discharged the duties of 
the position about 20 years, when he resigned. Five 
years later he was re-appointed, and held his com- 
mission until Dec. r, 1884, when he again resigned. 
He is a member of the fraternity of Masons. Mr. 
Perkins is a staunch and decided Republican, and 
although he has been a Village Trustee for two years 
he is not an aspirant for official honors. 

He was married in Columbia Co., N. Y., in the 
township of New Lebanon, Nov. 4, 1830, to Eliza 
Wallace. Her parents. James and Betsey (Stacy) 
Wallace, were natives of Townsend, Mass., and early 
in life removed to Columbia Co., N. Y., where their 
lives terminated. Their family included 12 children, 
of whom Mrs. Perkins is the third daughter. She 
was born April 23, 1808, in Columbia County. Three 
children have been born to her and her husband. 
Eliza Jane was born Aug. n, iS3r, in Columbia 
County, and married Henry C. Graves, of Sandwich, 
Nov. 20, 1856. Her health failed and she went to 
Chicago for medical treatment, where she died, July 
6, 1874. Henry N. was born Aug. 15, 1833, in Co- 
lombia County, and is a resident of Genoa. Mary 
M. was born May 2, 1840, in Genoa, where she died 
Aug. 23, 1864. Henry N. was married Feb. 28, 

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1S56, to Margaret M. Stiles, of Genoa, who died in 
March, 1880. 

The portrait of Mr. Perkins appears on a page just 
preceding, as an appropriate addition to the galaxy 
illustrating this Album. 

- t -« *»$-# £ s»" 1 ' 

alter L. Cole, fanner, section 9, Kingston 
Township, became a resident of De Kalb 
County in 1859, when he removed hither 
with his parents. He was born Oct. 18, 
850, in Clark Co., 111., and is the youngest 
ive children included in the family of Wash- 
ington and Harriet E. (Stiles) Cole. His father is 
a native of Washington County, and his mother was 
born in Ontario Co., N. Y. They have been resi- 
dents of Kingston Township continuously since their 
removal hither. 

Mr. Cole was united in marriage in Kingston 
Township, March 8, 1877, to Ella J. Crosby, and 
they have one child, Charles W., who was born Sept. 
14, 1S83. Mrs. Cole was born in the township 
where she has lived all her life, June 25, 1856, and 
is the daughter of Leonard and Rebecca (Cameron) 
Crosby, pioneer settlers of De Kalb County, where 
her father died about 1857. Her mother subse- 
quently became the wife of Charles McAllister, and 
is a resident of Kingston Township. 




.1. Phelps Adams, manufacturer and sec re- 

tary of the Sandwich Manufacturing Com- 

^' pany, was born Sept. 18, 1835, in Pine 

Valley, Chemung Co., N. V., and is the son of 

1 [en Augustus Ad. mis, of Sandwich, of whom 

a detailed account may be found elsewhere in 

this volume. 

He has been a resident of Illinois since his fifth 

year, his parents having removed in 1840 to Elgin, 

cj> 111. He received all the educational advantages 

ommon schools at Elgin and ol>- 

for business at Bell's Business 

College in Chicago, completing his course there when 

20 years of age. He obtained a situation as ai count- 

ant at Marshall, Calhoun Co., Mich., where he was 

also engaged in mercantile relations and later entered 



51 111. ne received an 
possible from the < 011111 
..*<, tained a good training 





.est 



the employment of the American Express Comj 
as messenger. He operated at that place 
January, 1861. Meanwhile his father had 
ferred his business to Sandwich, where he had 
lisjied a small manufacturing business, which W 
a prosperous condition. At the date named Mr. 
Ail. mi, 1 ame to Sandwich and assumed the position 
of office manager. The dimensions of the business 
of A. Adams & Sons took on added proportions every 
year, its products becoming widely known and meet- 
ing a popular necessity, and in 1867 the present 
company was organized and incorporated. J. Phelps 
Adams was made its secretary and treasurer and has 
since officiated in both responsible and laborious 
positions, a period of nearly 25 years of continuous 
service. The nature and character of the duties may 
be inferred from the fact that the manufactures of 
the Sandwich company are in popular use not only 
in this country but in the Black Sea region of Russia 
and all along the course of the Danube River on the 
European continent, and in all the corn-growing 
countries of the world. Within the past few years a 
large trade in their machines has been established in 
the Argentine Republic. (The merits of the business 
connections of the Sandwich Manufacturing Com- 
pany are fully treated in another part of this work.) 
Mr. Adams is a leading citizen of Sandwich, and 
has been closely identified with its religious, educa- 
tional and political interests since he has been a resi- 
dent there. He is a member of the Congregational 
Church, and previous to May, r884, had been Sun- 
day-school Superintendent 12 years. Before Sand- 
wich was organized as a city, he served several terms 
as President of the village. He has been for years a 
member of the Agricultural Society, and acted one 
year as President of the Boaid, and is President oi 
the Sandwich Literary Association. He has officiated 
nine years as a member of the School Board, and has 
filled the position of chief official of that body several 
terms. He is a Republican in political preference, 
and has been delegate on several different occasions 
to the County and Congressional Conventions. In 
September, 1884, he left Sandwich for an extended 
tour through South America in the. interests of the 
business in which he is a prominent factor. He went 
to all the coast cities of Brazil, and made an extended 
visit to Buenos Ayres, traveling through the Argentine 
Republic, making an exhaustive examination of the 



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country and its institutions. He reached his home 
Jan. 30, 1885. 

Mr. Adams was married June 26, i86i,to Mary 
B. Phelps, and of their union five children were born. 
Following is their record : Eleanor Louise was born 
March 24, 1863, and died Dec. 31 of the same year. 
Fred Augustus, born June 24, 1865, died Sept. 2, 
1866. Henry Ethelbert was born May 29, 1868, and 
is attending school at Evanston, 111. William Morse 
was born Aug. 8, 1870, and died March 22, 1884. 
Florence Bradley was born Jan. 27, 1877. Mrs. 
Adams was born Feb. 26, 1839, and is the daughter 
of Dr. A. E. and Juliet B. Phelps, of Kirkland, 
Oneida Co., N. Y. 

Darius, the oldest brother of Mr. Adams of this 
sketch, and his wife both died, leaving two daughters 
and a son wholly orphaned. The daughters, Hattie 
L. and Lue O., were brought up by their uncle, and 
are married. The former is the wife of J. F. Hun- 
toon, an employee in the office of the Sandwich 
Manufacturing Company ; the latter married Frank 
L. Waite, secretary of the Pictorial Printing Company, 
of Chicago. 



and died Feb. 8, 1842. Betsey (Fitch) Daily was 
born May 23, 1803, and died Oct. 5, 1877. They 
were married May 9, 1824. Mr. and Mrs. Daily 
had a family of 1 1 children, — Lydia, William J., 
Elmira C, Francis, Andrew J., Mary A., Mahala D., 
Joseph E., Elizabeth A., Clarissa S. and Jane R. 
Elmira C, Mary A., Joseph E., Elizabeth A., Clar- 
issa S. and Jane R. are living. Mrs. Tower was 
born in Luzerne Co., Pa., June 6, 1831. The chil- 
dren in the family of Mr. and Mrs. Tower now are: 
George W., who was born Sept. 22, 1853, and was 
married April 11, 1876, to Miss Caroline Lanan ; 
Harriet B., who was born April 2, 1856, is the 
wife of Joseph Lanan; David J., who was born Dec. 
30, 1868. 



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^avid Tower, farmer, section n, Mayfield 

h|> Township, is a son of Abel and Mary 

(Moore) Tower, natives of New England 

lllST and of English and Welsh descent, who were 

■ the parents of six children, — George, John, 
i Mark, Charles, Mary and David. The former 
was born in 1770, and died Aug. 29, 1846; the latter 
died in September, 1839. 

The subject whose name heads this sketch was 
born in Wilmington, Windham Co., Vt, Feb. 13, 
18 18, lived at home until 20 years of age, engaged in 
farming, and in 1838 came to Illinois. After spend- 
ing a year in the southern part of the State, he came 
to this county and settled in Mayfield Township, 
where he has since lived. He is now the owner of 
480 acres of land, half of which is in cultivation. 
Politically he is a Democrat, and locally he has held 
the offices of Overseer of the Poor and Highway 
Overseer. 

He was married in Beloit, Wis., June 6, 1847, to 
Miss Mary A. Daily, daughter of Jonathan and 
Betsey (Fitch) Daily, who were natives of Pennsyl- 
vania. Jonathan Daily was born April 24, 1802, 




g illiam Bennet Barnes, senior member of 
the firm of Barnes & Douglas, proprietors 




'jfei^-j of the Sandwich Free Press, was born 
ra=^ Feb. 27, 1855", in Ithaca, Tompkins Co., N. 
Y., and is the son of Gen. M. S. and Char- 
lotte A. Barnes. He entered first upon the 
duties of a journalist in 1869, in the office of the 
Dubuque Daily Times, at Dubuque, Iowa, where he 
learned the printer's trade. From Dubuque he re- 
moved to Aurora, 111., and was associated with his 
father in the publication of the Aurora Herald. He 
next went to Galesburg, 111., and published the Daily 
and Weekly Press in that city for a period of about 
10 years. Disposing of the establishment in March, 
18S3, he accepted a position on the Peoria Daily 
National Democrat, as assistant business manager, 
which he relinquished to come to Sandwich. In 
the month of October, 1883, he came to Sandwich 
and purchased a half interest in the Free Press. 
The paper is a popular and well conducted journal, 
and has attained a position of high rank among the 
local papers of De Kalb County, having a large cir- 
culation both in Sandwich and the surrounding 
country. The Free Press is also engaged in a gen- 
eral job and book printing business, for the satis- 
factory prosecution of which the office is fitted with 
steam presses and all modern appliances. 

Mr. Barnes was united in marriage, at Galesburg, 
Sept. 13, 1882, to Fannie G. Reariok. Mrs. Barnes 
was born in Beardstown, 111., Aug. 16, 1859, and is 



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the daughter of Judge Francis H. and Helen M. 
Rearick. Mr. and Mrs. Barnes have one daughter, 
Florence A., horn at Sandwich, Oct. r, 1S84. The) 
arc members of the Congregational Church. 

Mr. Barnes comes of journalists sto< k dating ba< k 
several generations. His father has been actively 
engaged in the newspaper business for the past 40 
years, but is now living in retirement at Galesburg, 
111., his health having been broken down by arduous 
literary work and the exposure ami results of being 
engaged in two wars, the Mexican War and that 
of the late Rebellion. 




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eorge A. Gillis, fanner, section 32, South 
Grove Township, was bom June 7, 1824, 
in Argyle Township, Washington Co., N. 
Y. Alexander A. Gillis, his father, is a native 
of the State of New York and was born in the 
same county, of Scotch descent. He was a 
farmer by calling and died in April, 1832, in Wash- 
ington County. The mother, Jane C. (Gilchrist) 
Gillis, was born in New York, of mixed Scotch and 
New York parentage. After the death of her hus- 
band she came to South Grove, where she died in 
1864. 

Mr. Gillis is the second child of his parents, and 
lived with his mother after the death of his father, 
which occurred when he was eight years old, remain- 
ing with her until he was of age. His first inde- 
pendent employment was in a grist-mill, where he 
labored some years, and in 185 1 came to De Kalb 
County and purchased a farm in Franklin Township, 
his mother living with him four years. Nov. 13, 
1855, he was married to Amy T. Irvin, in Washing- 
ton Co., N. Y. Her parents, David and Nancy 
(Histcox) Irvin, were born respectively in Ireland 
and New York. They were married in Washington 
Count), where they resided until the death of the 
former, Sept. 29, 1858, at the age of 58 years. The 
mother joined her daughter in Illinois after becoming 
a widow, and is still living, aged 85 years. Consid- 
ering her accumulation of years, she is in remark- 
able possession of her faculties of body and mind, 
particularly the latter, as she takes a keen interest in 
the current moral questions of the day; and from her 
reading, which is, even now, extensive and diversi- 




Red, and her rare memory, she is an agreeable com- 
panion and a zealous advocate of temperance and 
on. Mis. Gillis was born June 7, 1831, in 
Washington Co., N. Y., where she was reared anil 
educated. Previous to her marriage she was en- 
gaged some time as a teacher. She is the mother of 
si\ children, to whose mental, moral and spiritual 
interests she is wholly devoted. One child is de- 
ci 1 ed: David, the eldest child, was married Dec. 
22, 1SS0, to Maud Karr, a native of McLean Co., 
III.; Elizabeth was married April 7, 1881, to Chester 
Swan, a dentist of Walworth Co., Wis.; Jennie was 
married May 9, 1877, to Adelbert J. Cobb, a farmer 
of Sac Co., Iowa ; Am) was married Sept. 13, 1883, 
to Clarence Culver, a dentist in Lancaster, Grant 
Co., Wis.; George was bom June 30, [863; Irvin 
was bom March 31, 1870. 

Mr. and Mrs. Gillis lived on the farm in Franklin 
Township three years subsequent to their marriage. 
In 1858 Mr. Gillis bought 240 acres of land in the 
township of South Grove, and later became the 
owner of 40 acres additional situated on section 6, 
in Malta Township. The farm of Mr. Gillis is a 
model of good management, and he is rated as one 
of the progressive agriculturists of his township. He 
is a Republican in political opinion. Mrs. Gillis is 
a member of the Congregational Church. 



• eter C. McClellan, a farmer of Somonauk 

Township, is the owner of the northwest 

|te?^ quarter of section 29. He was born Oct. 




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7j 26, 1829, in the township of Hebron, Wash- 
iv. ington Co., N. Y., and is the son of Robert G. 
and Nancy (Cruikshank) McClellan. The 
former was born Sept. 17, 1799, in the same town- 
ship The latter was born in Salem, in the same 
county, Aug. 12, 1804. Mr. McClellan of this sketch 
is their first-born child. Rev. David M., third son, 
is a graduate of Jefferson College, in Pennsylvania, 
and has been for 20 years an ordained minister of 
the United Presbyterian Church, and for the past 10 
years has been a settled Pastor at Kansas City. He 
prepared for the ministry at the Theological Semina- 
ry at Xenia, Ohio. Maggie, only surviving sister, 
lives with her brother, Peter. 

The latter received a substantial education, finish- 
ing his course of study at Cambridge Academy, 



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Washington Co., N. Y. He taught nine terms of 
school in New York and Iowa, and afterwards be- 
came a farmer. He was married in his native town- 
ship Sept. 7, 1864, to Isabella Beveridge. The) 
have one child, Mary E., who was born on the farm 
in Somonauk Township, Nov. 7, 1869. Mrs. Mc- 
Clellan was born in Hebron Township, Oct. 5, 1830, 
and is the daughter of Matthew and Elizabeth Bev- 
eridge. 

In June, 1866, Mr. McClellan came to DeKalb 
County and bought the farm which he now owns, and 
of which he took possession in 1867. He has been 
Assistant Supervisor of Somonauk two years. 

Robert McClellan, from whom Mr. McClellan is a 
descendant in the fourth generation, was a citizen of 
Micklenax, in the parish of Buttle, Scotland. In 
1769 he went to Newtown in the parish of Twenho- 
len in the stewartry of Galloway, on the River Dee 
near Kirkcudbright, where the family lived five years 
on the estates of Lord Selkirk. In June, 1774, with 
his wife, Nicolas (Gordon) McClellan, and children, 
— William, John, Grise, Robert, Mary and Nancy, — 
set sail from the Mass at the mouth of the river Dee, 
for America. The ship " Golden Rule," on which 
they too'k passage, proved unseavvorthy and put into 
Dublin Bay for repairs, where she was detained three 
days. Three guineas was paid for the passage of 
each member of the family. They landed at New 
York and proceeded up the Hudson River to Albany 
and thence to Manchester, Vt. From there they 
went across the Green Mountains to Springfield on 
the Connecticut River. The route they pursued 
across the mountains had never before been trav- 
ersed by a carriage, and a part of the journey, in- 
cluding a distance of 14 miles, consumed 14 hours. 
They resided at Springfield 10 years, and on account 
of religious considerations they removed to Hebron, 
Washington Co., N. Y., then called Black Creek. 
The parents afterwards removed to Salem in the 
same county. The father died there in 1789, aged 
73 years. He was .also buried there. The mother 
died in Cambridge in 1799, at the age of 69 years, 
and was buried in the place where she died. 

Robert McClellan (2d) was born in 1766,(11 Mick- 
lenax, Scotland, and came to America with his fath- 
er's family, as stated. He was married Dec. 5, 1793, 
to Mary Thompson, who was born in 1768, in Salem. 
Their children were named Sarah, William, Robert 
Gordon, Nancy, John and Phebe. Sarah is still liv- 



ing and is over 90 years of age. She is the widow 
of Alexander Beveridge, of Hebron. Phebe is the 
widow of William Armstrong, of Somonauk. Four 
of them died on (he farm where they were born and 
reared. Robert McClellan died in Hebron Jan. 6, 
1829. His wife died there also, June 20, 1839. The 
paternal ancestors of Mr. McClellan were born, 
reared and died in the Associate Presbyterian 
(lunch and its outgrowth, the United Presbyterian 
Church. 



-3§- 




: \' C>'h enry II. Little, farmer, section to, Kingston 
Township, has been a resident of De Kalb 
County since 1845, in which year he ac- 
companied his parents hither. He was born 
May r, 1824, in Erie Co., N. Y., and is the son 
of Henry and Amy (Bingham) Little. The 
former was born in the State of New York, April 22, 
1799; the latter in Vermont, July 23, 1804. They 
were married in Erie Co., N. Y., May 1 1, 1823, which 
was their place of abode until 1845, when they set 
out for Wisconsin with the purpose of establishing a 
home; but with little delay proceeded to De Kalb 
County, and located in Kingston Township, where 
the father died, Aug. 18, 1858. The mother survives 
and has reached advanced age: 

Mr. Little is the oldest of nine children. He ac- 
quired as good an education as the common schools 
of his native county afforded, and was trained in 
farm labor. He was 21 years of age when he came 
to Illinois, and he entered a land claim of 80 acres of 
prairie, afterwards buying 40 acres of timber land, 
all situated in Kingston Township, and which has 
since been his field of operation. He has made a 
later purchase of land, which increasedhis real estate 
to 169 acres, of which 120 acres are tillable. The 
place is stocked with 41 head of cattle and 10 horses. 

Mr. Little is a member of Kishwaukee Lodge, 
No. 402, F. & A. M., and in political faith is a Re- 
publican. He was elected Supervisor of his town- 
ship in 1882, and has been successively re-elected 
since to the same position, in which he is serving his 
third term. 

He was first united in marriage in Erie Co., N. Y., 
to Elvira Boies. She was born Jan. 22, 1831, in 
Erie Co., N. Y., and was the daughter of Eber and 

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Esther (Henshaw) lioies. She died in Kingston 
Township Sept. 28, 1872. The second marriage of 
Mr. Little, to Esther Heckman, occurred Oct. 1, 1873. 
The parents of Mrs. Little, Jacob and Catherine 
(Kepple) Heckman, were natives of Westmoreland 
Co., Pa. They came thence to I)e Kall> County in 
1855, where they located and were among the agri- 
cultural class the remainder of their lives. The 
father died July 23, 1872, the mother April 17, 1884. 
Mrs. Little is the third of five children and was born 
in Morgan Co., Ohio, July 13, 183c. Mr. L. is a 
member of the Methodist Episcopal Church. 



"ohn Uplinger, a citizen of the village of 
j£ Kingston, has been for nearly a score of 
years a prominent agriculturist and busi- 
ness man of De Kalb County, whither he came 
in 1866, settling in the spring of that year in 
the township of Kingston on a fine farm of 240 
acres of land. He pursued there his agricultural 
operations until 1882, when he removed to his pres- 
ent place of abode and where he has been engaged 
some time in the grain, coal, lumber and furniture 
business, in which his relations are important and ex- 
tensive. His real estate in De Kalb County com- 
prises 245 acres, all of which is in tillable condition 
except 45 acres. 

Mr. Uplinger was born Nov. 12, 1819, in Luzerne 
Co., Pa., and he is the son of Henry and Elizabeth 
Uplinger. He lived in his native State until his re- 
moval to De Kalb County in 1866. He was married 
in the county where he was born, July 31, 1840, to 
Elizabeth, also a Pennsylvanian by birth. Their 
children are Mary, Jacob, Susan, Charles, Sarah, 
John, Elmina, Amelia, Frank, Margaret, Lizzie, 
Amanda and Martha. 



orris H. Westlake, a farmer on section 
12, May field Township, was born in Or- 
ange Co., N. Y., Nov. 8, 1845. His par- 
ents, Benjamin and Eliza (Bond) Westlake, 
were also natives of the Empire State. His 
father died in Orange County, and his mother 
afterward married Mr. H. Mackey (sec sketch), and 
now resides in Mayfield Township. 

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9. 



Morris II. lived in his native county until the fall 
of i860, when he came to De Kalb County, and at 
the age of 21 he married and settled upon his farm 
in Mayfield Township, on section [.which he car- 
ried on for eight years. He then exchanged this for 
a farm in Orange Co., N. Y., but did not return 
there. Instead, he followed railroading four years in 
Indiana, .md in the spring of 1 S 7 9 returned to May- 
field Township and settled upon section 1 2, where he 
now resides anil owns 166 acres, having 146 acres in 
cultivation. 

Officially, Mr. Westlake has served as School Di- 
rector; politically, he acts with the Republican par- 
ty; and religiously, he, as well as Mrs. W., is a mem- 
ber of the Methodist Episcopal Church. 

He was married in Sycamore, Dec. 13, 1866, to 
Emma E., daughter of Norman and Rosette (Wills) 
Beckley, natives of Vermont, who came and settled 
in Sycamore Township, this county, in 1861 ; he is a 
resident of Elkhart, End. Their three children are, 
— Emma E., Edgar II. and Edward E. Mrs. W. 
was born in Littleton, Mass., July 26, 1849. The 
children of Mr. and Mrs. Westlake are, — Lulu M., 
who was born Nov. 29, 1867, in Mayfield; Norman 
B., born May 21, 1869, in Mayfield; and Rosette, 
Nov. n, 1878,111 Elkhart, Ind. The brothers and 
sisters of Mr. Westlake — all elder than he — are 
David B., Hannah E., Milton, Charlotte and John. 

nines Henry, farmer, section 28, Somonauk 

Township, was born Jan. 22, 1812, in Wash- 

PB**i. ; n g ton rjo., ]vj y. John Henry, his father, 

M% was a nat ' ve °f Scotland and married Pamelia 
Johnson, by whom he had 12 children: seven 
of these, — four sons and three daughters, — are 
now living. The mother was a native of Vermont. 
Mr. Henry was brought up on a farm, and on at- 
taining to the estate of manhood he became a farmer 
on 140 acres of land in his native State. He was 
married in Greenwich, Washington Co., N. Y., Oct. 
26, 1837, to Jeannette, sister of ex-Governor John L. 
Beveridge, and daughter of George and Ann (Hoy) 
Beveridge. She was born May 5, 18 13, in Washing- 
ton County. Of this union 10 children were born 
and are all living with a single exception. Anna M. 
was born Dec. 20, 1838; Parmelia, July 31, 1840 

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(died May 30, 1841); Isabella B., May 10, 1842; 
John V., July 27, 1844; George B., Sept. 26, 1846; 
Sarah T. L., Sept. 15, 1848; Philomelia, Nov. 13, 
1850; Agnes R., Jan. 25, 1853; Margaret E., April 
n, 1857; Minnie J., Aug. 17, 1859. John V. Henry, 
the oldest son, enlisted in the service of the United 
States in 1862 and served in various capacities until 
the close of the war. He is a resident of Quincy, 
111., and is chief clerk in the postal service at the 
headquarters of the mail agency in that place. 

Mr. Henry removed to Somonauk Township in 
1854, where he purchased upwards of 300 acres of 
land. His farm now includes 210 acres, and he is 
the owner of a fine herd of graded- Durham cat- 
tle, and is conducting a valuable dairy business. 



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<;• rof. Andrew J. Blanchard, Principal of the 
Public Schools of Sycamore, from April, 

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1862, to July, 1867, and Superintendent 
^&j from 1877 to the current year (1885), was born 
■|f]^ Aug. 11, 1827, in Cabot, Washington Co., Vt. 
His father, James Blanchard, was born in Con- 
cord, N. H., May 9, 1793; and his mother, Abigail 
(Hoyt) Blanchard, was born in Cabot, Vt., Sept. 2, 
1799. The latter died March 5, 1837; the former, 
Nov. 24. 1869. 

Mr. Blanchard left the home farm at the age of 20 
years and entered upon a course of study preparatory 
for college. In the winter of 184S-9 lie taught his 
first school in Plainfield, Vt., "boarding round," as 
that was considered the correct thing to do at that 
time. In the spring of 1849, he resumed his studies 
at the People's Academy, Morrisville, Vt. During 
the summer of 1849, he caught the gold fever that 
was sweeping over the land and carrying all before 
it, and in September engaged passage for California 
by way of Cape Horn, on the good ship " Argonaut." 
Capt. William Knott, commander. The " Argonaut" 
sailed from Boston Harbor on the 19th of October, in 
company with two other ships, the "Henry Ware'' 
and the " Richmond." On the 89th day out, having 
successfully braved the perilous storms of Cape 
Horn, the " Argonaut " dropped anchor in the harbor 
of Valparaiso, Chili, and on the 134th day, after a 





voyage of 18,000 miles, she was safely moored in San 
Francisco Bay. In California Mr. Blanchard was 
soon stricken down by disease and brought near 
death's door; but an iron constitution carried him 
through. After long sickness, and still suffering from 
a complication of diseases, and, leaving his gold in the 
" banks " of the Yuba and Feather Rivers, he em- 
barked byway of Panama for home, which he reached 
in September, 1851, with broken health and a shat- 
tered constitution. Having partially regained his 
former health and vigor, he again assumed the 
pedagogical baton, at the same time resuming his 
studies. 

March 30, 1853, he married Abbie A. Beckley, 
daughter of Horace and Abigail (Wellington) Beck- 
ley. His wife was a fine singer and an excellent 
performer on the piano and organ, and for many 
years after her marriage, taught instrumental and 
vocal music with marked success. In March, 1855, 
Mr. Blanchard became Assistant Principal of the 
People's Academy, which institution he, as a student, 
had attended years before. He was invited to take 
charge of ( the school in 1858, and did so, his wife 
having charge of the musical department, which she 
had assumed in 1855. He remained here till April, 
1861. 

The echoes from the assaulting guns in Charleston 
harbor reverberated among the Green Mountains and 
awoke the spirit of the " Boys of '76 " in the breasts 
of their descendants, and Mr. Blanchard, yielding to 
the influence of the hour, relinquished his position to 
take active part in the work of preparing to defend 
the standard of the Union. He raised a company of 
volunteers in Lamoille Co., Vt., which was assigned 
to the Third Vt. Inf. as Co. E, with himself as Cap- 
tain. The command was assigned to the Army of 
the Potomac. In November, 1861, Capt. Blanchard, 
on account of disability, was honorably discharged 
from the army. 

Returning to Vermont, he remained there until 
April, 1862, the date of his removal to De Kalb 
County, to take charge of the public schools of Syca- 
more. He found school matters in a desperate con- 
dition, but with a firm hand and resolute will he 
inaugurated reform. Under his vigorous manage- 
ment, educational affairs soon assumed a prosperous 
aspect. In January, 1863, the school edifice was 
burned. The fine building now devoted to the same 



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purpose was era ted the summer following. It con- 
tains eight school-rooms, a large hall and several 
recitation rooms, tn [867, Mr. Blanchard severed his 
connection with the schools of Sv< amoie, and en- 
gaged in the same capacity at Litchfield, Montgomery 
I Co., 111., where he remained one year, lie next be- 
came Principal of the Rochelle schools in Ogle Co., 
Ill , where he taught four years w it ti decided SU( < ess 
He then succeeded to the management of the Galva 
schools, Henry Co., 111., and at the end of two years 

was elected Superintendent of the schools of Lynns, 
Iowa. At the close of the year, he resigned his 
position and returned to the home of his earlier 
years, Morrisville.Vt., and again took his old place 
the head of the People's Academy. But he soon dis- 
covered that he had been West too long to be con- 
tented there. He was again invited to take charge 
of the schools of Sycamore, and in 1877 accepted, 
where he may be found, an earnest, enthusiastic 
worker. 

Prof. Blanchard is a member of Sycamore Com- 
mandery, Knights Templars, and Commander of 
Potter Post, No. 12, G. A. R., of Sycamore. Frank 
W. Blanchard, his son, was bom June 16, 1861, in 
Morrisville, Vi . and is now book-keeper in the R. 
Ellwood Manufacturing Company at Sycamore. 
Fanny M. was born Sept. 8, [863, at Sycamore. 
P Claribel was born June 14, [867, and died in Litch- 
field, 111., October 4, following. 

Prof, Blanchard takes foremost rank as a teacher 
and disciplinarian. Few men possess the power of 
1 ontrol to such a degree as he does. Sincerity is his 
characteristic. He is always guided by a sense of 
strict justice and impartiality. No sham finds the 
least favor in his eves. His long period of service, as 
well as his natural abilities, has fitted him thor- 
oughly for his place in the profession, in which he 
has few peers and no superiors. He has devoted 
many of the best years of his life to the interest of 
the schools of Sycamore. He has worked physically 
a^ well as mentally. Whatever needs doing, he does. 
He has been mainly instrumental in securing the 
best High s, hool library and the finest philosophical 
apparatus in the county. lie has presented the High 
School with a fine collection of birds and small 
^ mammals; the Senior ( Grammar School with a library 
of 100 volumes; the Middle Grammar School with a 
library of 80 volumes. His absorptiion in his work 

&&Q* =*^ ^-X: ; I1H 




is complete, He has no other interest than that of 
his school. The present high standing and pro- 
ficiency of Sycamore's schools are the best evidence 
of his faithful vvork. 

We have the pleasure of presenting portraits of 
both Mi. blanchard and his wife in this volume. 
They are engraved from photographs taken in 1882. 



♦: - 



; - 




^scar Schmoldt, farmer, section 24, May field 
^j|> Township, is a son of John and Wilhelmina 
(Sturm) Schmoldt, natives of Germany who 
emigrated to America in 1830, settling in 
Pennsylvania, where they lived until the death 
of the former, in Louisville, Kv. Mrs. S. went 
to Kane County in 1845, and came to De Kalb 
County in 1862, and made her residence in Mayfield 
Township, where she finally died, Feb. 5, 1870. 
'They had 1 1 children, seven of whom grew to years 
of maturity, namely, Augusta, Rudolph, Amandus, 
Amiel, Adolph, Wilhelmina and Oscar. 

The youngest above mentioned, who is the sub- 
ject of this biographical sketch, was born in Schuyl- 
kill Co.*, Wi-, April 13, 1833, and lived at home until 
1 9 years of age, learning the carpenter's trade. He 
then went to California, remaining six years. Next 
he came to Geneva, Kane Co., where he remained 
about a year, and in the spring of 1862 came to De 
Kalb County and settled on 100 acres of land in 
Mayfield Township, which he had purchased the 
year previous. Here he has since made his home, 
and is now the owner of 270 acres of land, 200 of 
which is in cultivation. He keeps about 40 head of 
cattle, [3 head of horses, and fattens about 75 head 
of hogs yearly. 

In his political views Mr. Schmoldt is a Repub- 
lican. He was married in Mayfield 'Township, April 
11, 1S66, to Miss Mary A. daughter of Charles and 
Phebe (Nichols) Townsend, natives of the State of 
New York. The tat her was born in Schoharie Co., 
N. Y., Oct. 10, 1808, and came to this State in 1837. 
The mothei was born in Sullivan Co., X. Y., Aug. 1 1, 
1810. The) were married Oct. 10, 1834. 'They 
lived in this county until their deaths. Mr. T. died 
in May, 1879, and Mrs. T. April 26, 1S80. They 
had 1 1 children, — Mary A., Edwin, Francis, Marinda, 
ErastUS, Harrison, Clarissa, Caroline, Orrissa, Charles 






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N. and one who died in infancy. Mrs. Schmoldt was 
born in Sullivan Co., N. Y., July 11, 1836, and the 
. hlldren now in her family are William A., who was 
born Oct. 19, 1869; May was born April 26, 1872, 
and one died when an infant. Mrs. S. is a member 
of the Advent Church. 



^OOO^ 




.captain Joseph W. Foster, real estate and 
loan agent, residing in Kingston Town- 
ship, on section 9, has lived chiefly in 
that township since the age of eight years. 
His father, Moses Foster, was born in Adams 
i Co., Ohio, and married Anna B. Robb, a na- 
tive of Allegany Co., Pa Subsequent to their mar- 
riage, they passed three years in Adams County, and 
removed theno I ntain Co., Ind. There they 
resided a similar period of time, when they made 
her transfer, to Warren County in the same 
State, and them e removed to De Kail) County, this 
State, and settled in 1836, in Kingston Township, 
where they were among the earliest of the first 
permanent settlers. The mother died in January, 
1878, at a greatly advanced age. The father went 
in 1882 to spend some time with a son in Coloi 
and is now ri here. The children included 

in their family wen- Joseph W., Thomas P., Ro 
R., Rebecca, Esther E., Harriet A. and M ■ I 
One died in infancy. 

Joseph W. was born Jan. 17, 1828, in Adams Co., 
Ohio. He was educated in the common schools, 
and remained at home until he was 22 years of age. 
In 1850 he became an independent land-holder by 
the pun base of 100 aires of land in Franklin Town- 
ship, where he prosecuted his agricultural projei ts 
two years previous to his settling thereon. Two 
years later he removed to Belvidc-re, Boone County, 
where he formed a partnership with A. F. Powers, 
and engaged in the sale of groceries and farm prod- 
under the style of Powers & Foster. At the 
end of two years the former withdrew, and the ! 

: the purchase and shipment of grain about 
one year alone. Some time afterward he engaged in 
trade in general merchandise and operated in that 
avenue of business about three year; Hi th 
turned to Franklin Township and rented his father- 
in-law's farm one year. In the fall of r86o he em- 
barked anew in the grain trade, in which lie was 



interested until the business and all other inter 

tlie people of the United States were interrupted by 

the event of civil war. 

Mr. Foster was one of the first to rally to the 
standard of union and loyalty. He enlisted in April, 
1861, and in August following, his company was as- 

ed to the 42d 111. Vol. Inf. In July pre 
he was commissioned First Lieutenant of Co. K, and 
during the month of November, 1862, he was pro- 
moted to the command of his company as a reward 
for meritorious conduct at Stone River. H> 
tinued the chief officer of his company until his cap- 
ture at the battle of Chickamauga, on the afternoon 
of Sept. 20, 1863. He had received a terrible gun- 
shot wound in his face, the trac es of which he will 
bear to his dying day; and he was held prisoner of 
war on the field 19 days after the action. He was 
taken thence to Richmond, Va., where he was in 

confinement seven months. He was removed 
thence to Danville, Va., and afterwards to Macon, 
Ga. While at the latter place, a plot was laid which 
was intended to result in a wholesale escapade of 
the Union prisoners; but, owing to the failure of 
some of the soldiers in the fulfillment of their assigned 
duties, the scheme came to naught, and soon after- 
ward they were removed to Charleston, S. C. Two 

hs later a second removal, to Columbia, S. C, 
took place, where they were held several months. 
In the spring of 1865, they were paroled at Annap- 
olis, Md., and Captain Foster returned home after 
an imprisonment of 17 months and 1 1 days. Pre- 

to that event he was in charge of the paroled 
and convalescent soldiers of Johnson'-, Division at 
Nashville, Tenn., six months. While en route to 
Charleston, subsequent to the failure of the plan to 
escape, Captain Foster and two comrades endeavored 
to effect an escape by jumping from the train. The 

;s of the venture was only thwarted by blood- 
hounds, which the Confederate villains let loose after 
their absence was discovered. At Columbia. I 
tain Foster made a second attempt to regain his 
freedom, by endeavoring to pas^ the lines as a 
paroled soldier. He passed 16 days in the swamps 
anil marshes, and at the end of that time was again 
retaken and returned to prison. He was mustered 
out .' . Mo. In 1870 he was made United 

States Census Enumerator, and performed the duties 
of his office in seven townships in De Kalb County. 
He has acted as Assessor of his township si\ 



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In the 31st General Assemblj of Illinois in 1879, he 
acted in the capacit) of Under-Policeman. In Au- 
gust, 1879, he was made door-keeper for the State 
Board of Equalization, and in 1881 he was made as- 
sistant in the same position. He acted during the 
33d Assembly as a Messenger of the Senate. 

Captain Foster was married June 19, 1.S50, in 
Sycamore, to Alidah, daughter of Martin and Marj 
A. (l\e>) Barringer. He was born July 19, 1806, 
and the latter was born in Sand Lake, N. Y., Dec. 
ii. [810, and removed thence to Gem < Co., N. 
Y. In 1845 they came thence to Illinois and settled 
in Franklin Township, in De kall> Count)'. After a 
residence there of six years they went to Belvidere, 
Boone Co., III. The mother died June 27, 1874. 
The death of the lather occurred at Lake City, Flor- 
ida, Nov. 15, 1877, where he had gone in c|uesi of 
health. Edward, Alidah, Mary E., Fidelia and Susan 
J. are the names of their children. Mrs. Foster was 



horn Aug. 30, 182 r, in Rensselaer Co., N. Y. Three 
children have been born to her and her husband: 
J. Wesley, Charles M. and Thomas 1'. 

Captain Foster is an earnest Republican and is 
at present the Commander of Barnes Post, No. 395, 
G. A. R. He has been for four years Superintend- 
ent of the Sunday-school connected with the Meth- 
odist Episcopal Church, to which he and his wife 
belong. Since his return from the army he has en- 
gaged principally in farming, bul has combined his 
operations in that line with trade in real estate. 



I rentiss D. Worthley, farmer, section 28, 
Kingston Township, was born Nov. 20, 

n Kennebec 
His father, Conrad C. Worthley, was 
a native of the same State, as was his mother, 
Esther A. (Bradbury) Worthley. The father 
was born in October, 1801, and died Sept. 29, 1877. 
The mother was born Oct. 11, 1804, and died May 
19, 1884. They had four sons and two daughters, 
and the son who is the subject of this sketch is the 
youngest. He came with his parents when five 
years of age to Michigan City, Ind., removing thence 
two years later to Porter County, in the same State. 
The family were resident there about 12 years, and 
came thence to McHenry Co., 111. The son sought 
an independent home and career in De Kalb County 




I jj x-l$. 1850, near Bangor, Maine, 
i •■-'! County. 



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in the spring of 1870, when he located in Kingston 
Township. He is now the manager of 140 acres of 
improved land. In political faith Mr. Worthly is a 
Republican. 

His marriage to Amelia Uplinger occurred Dec. 
10, 1878, and they have one child, Ralph, born Oct. 
26, 1879. Mrs. Worthley was born April 18, 1857, 
in Luzerne Co., Pa., and is the daughter of John and 
Elizabeth (Wood) Uplinger, residents of Kingston 
Township, whither Mrs. W. came when she was nine 
years of age. 




iorace B. Johnson, mec hanic, resident at 

Fielding, Franklin Township, was born Oct. 

20, 1829, in Wilton, Kennebec Co., Maine. 

John Johnson, his father, was a ship carpenter, 

and married Mehitable Dacy. Both parents 

were natives of the Pine-Tree State, and there 

they died, the former when Horace was in youth, the 

latter in 1880. 

When Mr. Johnson was 13 years of age, he was 
apprenticed to a man named Cyrus Dunn, to acquire 
a knowledge of brick-laying, and remained under his 
instructions until he reached his majority. He be- 
gan his, independent career by the practice of his 
trade in Oxford Co., Maine, going thence to Lewiston 
in the same State. He was married while there to 
Nancy Nash, who died in 1855, leaving one child, 
Walter E., who is a resident at Lewiston. After the 
death of his wife, Mr. Johnson came to Illinois and 
settled in Franklin Township. He passed some 
years in working at his trade and in farming, remov- 
ing eventually to the village of Fielding, where, in 
1876, he purchased a sight for his home, consisting 
of two and a half village lots, on which he erected 
a pleasant residence. Since his removal hither he- 
has followed his trade. 

His marriage to Sarah J. Van Dresser occurred in 
Franklin Township, Jan. 1, 1856, and they had three 
children. I.iona R. is the single survivor. Nancy 
A. died when four years old. Charles W. died at the 
the age of four months. Mrs. Johnson is the 
daughtei o( Gilbert and Nancy Van Dresser. Her 
parents were natives of Allegany Co., N. Y., and 
came West in 1845, first locating in Erie Co., Ohio. 
After a residence there of seven years they removed 



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DE KALB COUNTY. 



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403 



to Lake County, in the same State, where the father 
died. The mother removed with her children in 
1853 to Illinois and now resides at St. Charles. 

Mr. Johnson is a Republican and as officiated 22 
years as a Constable. He has also held other local 
offices in his township. 




* -«- * 

eonard Aurner, a retired farmer and mer- 
chant, resident at Kingston, was born July 
6, 1 S 1 1, in Sugar Loaf, Armstrong Co., 
Ohio. His parents, Henry and Betsey (Billick) 
f\ Aurner, were natives of Pennsylvania, and when 
their son was in his early childhood they re- 
turned to Lycoming County, in that State, removing 
thence to De Kalb County, this State, where they 
were among the pioneer settlers. His father died 
at 90 years of age ; his mother was 88 years old 
when she died. On attaining his majority he be- 
came his "own man," and he went to Livingston 
Co., N. Y., where he spent two years as a farm as- 
sistant, working by the month. In 1832 he came to 
St. Joseph, Mich., for the purpose of enlisting to aid 
in expelling the Indians; but the difficulties there 
were at an end before his arrival. He obtained em- 
ployment on the " turnpike," which was then being 
built through that country, and he spent three 
years in that vicinity, operating a part of the 
time as a lumberman. At the end of that time 
he bought a farm in the township of Sherman, St. 
Joseph County, where he operated as a farmer two 
years. The location did not agree with his health 
and he sold his farm, coming thence to De Kalb 
County. He purchased a large tract of land of a 
man who had made a claim, and he was at one time 
the possessor of 406 acres of land in the county. 
He is the present owner of nearly 200 acres of land 
and also of quite an amount of village property. 

Mr. Aurner was first married Feb. 4, 1836, in St. 
Joseph Co., Mich., to Margaret Dibble, a native of 
Colchester, Delaware Co., N. Y. They became the 
parents of nine children, — Orlando J., Eliza C, Wil- 
liam R., Jane M., Harriet L., Charles L., Joseph F., 
Emma and Marcus D. The death of their mother 
occurred in 1864, in Kingston Township, and Mr. 
Aurner was a second time married Aug. 3, 1874, at 
De Kalb, to Ellen (Carter) Burkhardt, daughter of 



Jared and Lydia (Ames) Carter, and widow of John 
Burkhardt. Her first husband died Dec. 25, 1865, 
leaving nine children, — Caroline, Mary E., Josephine 
A., Robert O., John S., Jared H., George H., Carrie 
V. and Claude A. Four of the latter are deceased. 
Mrs. Aurner was born Nov. 16, 1827, in Vermont. 
Mr. Aurner is a Democrat, and has officiated in sev- 
eral positions of responsibility and trust in his town- 
ship. 



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it 

L Township, was born June 9, r82o, in Ly- 



irancis Rote, farmer, section 35, Franklin 



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coming Co., Pa., and is the son of Daniel 
j|p and Mary (Kitchen) Rote. His father, Daniel 
Rote, was born in Eastern Pennsylvania, May 
27, 1792, and joined the Methodist Episcopal 
Church at an early age, but for honest difference of 
views he left it, and in 1831 or '32 he joined the 
Christian Church, and was baptized by Elder John 
Casein 1832. He soon after began to exhort, and 
was ordained at Fairfield, Lycoming Co., Pa., March 
9, 1833, by Milliard Marvin and others. Within 
one year afterward he organized four Churches in his 
own neighborhood, of 143 members in the aggregate. 
He continued his labors in Pennsylvania for many 
years, and was one of the leading men in the organiza- 
tion of the Pennsylvania Christian Conference, of 
which he became a member. In 1846, he left his 
home and work in Pennsylvania, and moved to De 
Kalb County. In his new locality in the West, he 
entered heartily into the work of the ministry, and was 
very useful in the cause. About i860 disease and 
old age came upon him, so that he was not able to do 
much labor ; but his heart was in the work to the 
last. In 1862 he received a stroke of paralysis, from 
which he never entirely recovered. He died May 
24, 1864, aged 72 years, leaving an aged companion 
in a dying state with the same disease. He had 
been a successful man in his day. He married 
Mary Kitchen, Nov. 1, 1814, who was born in New 
Jersey, July 4, 1787, and died Feb. 26, 1865. Mr. 
R. was the son of David Rote, a native of Holland, 
who was born in that country April 12. 1740, and 
came to America and settled in Pennsylvania, where 
he was a successful farmer. 

Mr. Rote of this sketch is the third child of a 



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family of nine children horn to his parents ; they were 
named as follows: Henry, Sarah, Francis, Hannah, 
Rachel, Mary and Martha (twins), Amos H. and 
Margaret. 

Mr. Role was married Sept. 4, 1861, in Belvidere, 
Boone Co., III., to Catherine E. McCarty, who is the 
daughter of Edward and Mary A. (Sherman) Mc- 
Carty. Her father was born in Illinois and went in 
early life to Ontario, Can., where he married. His 
wife is a native of New Brunswick, and after their 
marriage they located in Franklin Township, and are 
still residing there, aged respectively 77 and 72 years. 
They had 14 children, of whom Mrs. Rote was born 
sixth in order. Ten of her brothers and sisters sur- 
vive. She was born in Ontario, April 28, 1843, and 
was ten years of age when she accompanied her 
parents to Boone Co., 111., where they settled in Cale- 
donia Township. She is the mother of io children, 
who were born as follows: Albert D., March 17, 
1862; Mary E., June 30, 1863, and died Sept. 
20, 1863; Sarah A., born May 26, 1865; Libbie J., 
Dec. 2, 1867; Frank, Feb. 13, 1870; Hattie, Jan. 
13, 1872; Charles, Sept. 14, 1874; Eddie, Aug. 
1, 1876: Freddie A., Jan. 8, 1878; and Jessie E., 
June 13, 1880. 

After his marriage, Mr. Rote succeeded to the pro- 
prietorship of the homestead, which comprised 80 
acres and a piece of timber land 15 acres in extent 
and located on section 35. The place is under 
excellent tillage. 

Mr. Rote is a Republican in his political views. 



-¥3- 



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1 



: uQ|; arnuel Knight, farmer, section 9, May field 
Township, is a son of Peter and Anna 
(Dell) Knight, who were natives of Mary- 
(\^, land, where they lived until their demise. 
They had eight children, — Susanna, Samuel, 
Jacob, Lydia, John N., Michael, Matilda P. 
and Lilly A. The second-born, whose name heads 
this sketch, was born in Frederick Co., Md., June 28, 
1816, and lived at home until of age, learning the 
blacksmith's trade of his father, which he followed 
for many years. In 1837 he emigrated to Adams 
County, this State, where he continued to work at 
his trade for eight years, and then, in 1845, he came 
to this county and pre-empted a quarter of section 






9, where he settled and has since resided, one of the 
oldest and most honored pioneers of the county. 
He is now the owner of 175 acres in the township, 
most of which is in cultivation. He has been Road 
Commissioner, Overseer of Highways, etc., is Demo- 
cratic in his political principles, and is a member of 
the Christian Church, as is also Mrs. Knight. 

Mr. K. was married in Columbus, Adams Co., III., 
Much 20, 1839, to Miss Mary, daughter of Abel and 
Mary (Moore) Tower, who were natives of Vermont 
and the parents of George, John, Charles, Mary 
(Mrs. K.) and David. -Mrs. K. was born in Wil- 
mington, Windham Co., Vt., Feb. 21, 1815. The 
living children of Mr. and Mrs. Knight are, — Harri- 
et, wife of Nicholas Weber, and resides in Kingston 
Township ; Mary, who married H. G. Vandeburgh, 
and resides in Kingston Township; Amanda, who 
was married to H. G. Campbell; Laura married 
Oliver Low, of Kingston; Augusta L, the wife of 
F. G. Menter, of Mayfield Township; Sarah, the 
wife of James Snell; and Charles, who married 
Martha Swanson. Alice, George W. and John H. 
are deceased. 



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yw§ J L lbert N. Freeland, farmer, located on sec- 
' lsMM 'i tion 36, I)e Kalb Township, was born Sept. 
^|3» 22, 1827,111 Tioga Co.. N. Y. Joseph and 
Lydia (Perry) Freeland, his parents, were na- 
tives of Massachusetts, and went thence to 
Tioga County, where they passed the remain- 
der of their lives. Their five children reached ma- 
ture life. They were named Melissa, Betsey, Ly- 
man, Squire and Albert N. 

Mr. Freeland obtained a good common-school ed- 
ucation and operated as a farmer in New York. In 
the fall of 1854 he came to De Kalb County and 
became a landholder of the township of Pierce. He 
continued to carry on his farming operations there 
until i860. In that year he disposed of his farm by 
sale and passed the next three years in farming and 
in other occupations in Sycamore. In 1S63 he as- 
sumed charge of the county poor farm and continued 
the management of its affairs about seven years. 
On the termination of his connection therewith he 
went to Aurora, 111., and spent three years engaged 



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in various pursuits, which required little activity, as 
he was in poor health. In the winter of 1875 he 
removed his family to Fredericksburg, Va., to pro- 
cure a change of climate for his daughter, who was 
in a precarious state of health. He remained there 
until the next October, when the family went to 
Tompkins Co., N. Y., and a few months later re- 
turned to Illinois, settling in De Kalb Township. 
His farm contains 160 acres of valuable land, all 
under improvements, and fairly stocked. Mr, Free- 
land is a Republican of decidedly zealous spirit. 

He was married Dec. 24, 1852, in Tioga Co., N. 
Y., to Jane Bunnell. One child was born to them, 
Jan. 18, 1864, — Jennie D., — who died of consump- 
tion in the township of De Kalb, May 2, 1882. 
Mrs. Freeland was born Nov. 14, 1829, in Tioga 
County, and is the daughter of Isaac and Rachel 
(Brink) Bunnell. The latter died in New York, her 
native State. The former removed thence to De 
Kalb County, where he afterwards died. 



-*-##+ 




abez W. Ward, farmer residing on the 

f northeast quarter of section 21, Afton 

Township, was born in West Rutland, 

Rutland Co., Vt., Nov. 6, 1829. The Ward 
ll family are of the old "Puritan Stock." Four 

of five brothers came to this country in the 
Mayflower, and Luke Ward, father of Jabez W., had 
directly descended from one of those brothers. The 
fifth brother came over the next year after the land- 
ing of the Mayflower at Plymouth Rock. The father 
of Jabez W. was born in 1795, and died at West 
Rutland, Rutland Co., Vt., April 23, 1876. He was 
a farmer by vocation. His mother, Fanny (Watkins) 
Ward, was born May 10, 1804, and is still living in 
West Rutland, Vt. They are the parents of five 
children, namely: Charles E., George H., Jabez W., 
Henry M. and Fanny E. 

Jabez W. Ward, subject of this notice, was raised 
on a farm in Rutland Co., Vt. He spent his early 
years in farm labor and attending the common 
schools, and remained on the home farm until lie 
attained the age of 25 years, with the exception of 
one year which he spent at Castleton, his native 
county. At that age in life he went forth upon the 
in. ul of adversity alone, with a firm determination to 

^^ — &±<m 




overcome the trials of life and procure a competency, . 
Following the promptings of his conscience, and rely- 
ing on his faith in the future development of the 
" Great West," he came to this State and located at 
loliet, Will County. He arrived there in November, 

1854, and during the winter of 1854-5 traveled for 
his brother in the marble business. In the spring of 

1855, he came to this county and purchased the 
northwest quarter of section 32, Afton Township, the 
date of his purchase being May 1. The land had a 
frame house on it and 65 acres under the plow. He 
lived on this farm for nine years, meanwhile culti- 
vating and improving it, and then, in 1864 sold it to 
John Sturtevant. Soon thereafter he purchased 152 ]£ 
acres on section 21, same township, of the "Tyler 
estate," on which he moved and has resided ever 
since. It contained a small frame house, with a 
locust grove, where his present residence now stands, 
and a fence (which was a perfect failure) of locust 
trees. He has now a good frame house, warm and 
comfortable barn, 26 x 36 feet, good fences, and the 
farm is under good cultivation. 

Mr. Ward was united in marriage Sept. 30, 1850, 
to Miss Susan, daughter of Chester and Hannah 
(Peak) Ward. Both parents are deceased. Her 
father was born in West Rutland, April 10, 1797, 
and was found dead in his bed Oct. 10, 1884. Her 
mother was born in Vermont, Jan. 2, 1800, and died 
at Highgate, Franklin County, same Stale, Oct. 2, 
1842. Mrs. Susan Ward was born Oct. 31, 1828, in 
Highgate, Franklin County, Vt., and was one of a 
family of five children, three boys and two girls, 
namely: Luther H., Erastus W., Susan, Elizabeth 
and Benjamin. There was also a half sister, Jane. 

Mr. and Mrs. Ward are the parents of four chil- 
dren : Lucy E. was born Dec. 25, 1852, married 
John Rice, April 28, 1875, and is residing in Forres- 
ton, Ogle County, this State. Fannie A. was born 
April 25, 1856, married N. H. Givens, March 14, 
1876, and resides on section 7, Afton Township, this 
county. George L. was born April 4, 1S59, and re- 
sides in Sanborn Co., Dak. Rollin W. was born 
Nov. 24, 1863, and resides on the home farm. 

Politically, Mr. Ward is a Republican. He has 
been Highway Commissioner two years, Justice of 
Peace nine years, and School Trustee 12 years, and 
is at present Township Treasurer, which latter office 
he has held for three years. 

Mr. Ward was one of the pioneer settlers of Afton 



9 

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DE JCALB COUNTY. 



Township. He moved into it before it was organized 
and was one of the prime factors in its organization. 
Prominent among those entitled to be classified as 
self-made men in this county, men who achieved a 
competency through honest, energetic effort and 
good judgment, is Mr. Ward, and while we cannot 
place the likeness of all of them in this work, we are 
pleased to be able to give that of the gentleman 
whose name heads this notice. 




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illiam R. Low, Police Magistrate at Sand- 
■-: wich, was born in Hillier, Prince Edward 
w*bjP Co., Ont., Jan. 30, 1827. He is a son of 
JKf\' Charles and Laner (Richardson) Low, who 
jl were the parents of 10 children; five of the 
latter are yet living. Tamar A., second child, is the 
wife of R. B. Warner, an attorney in Orange, Los 
Angeles Co., Cal. Charles is a farmer in Sac Co., 
Iowa. Johnson is a farmer on the family homestead 
at Shabbona Grove, where the mother is living in ad- 
vanced age. Wolfred N. is a prominent attorney in 
Chicago. The father died at Shabbona Grove, Nov. 
5- 1863. 

Mr. Low is the oldest of his parents' children. 
He is a born and bred farmer, to which vocation he 
was trained in his native county, and in which he 
was there occupied until the date of his becoming a 
citizen of the United States. He emigrated to De 
Kalb Co., III., in 1856, and became the proprietor by 
purchase of 40 acres of land at Shabbona Grove. 
In 1866 he went thence to Piano, 111., in the capacity 
of employee of the Marsh Harvester Company, then 
engaged in perfecting their machines in the shops of 
Lew Stewart. He operated there until January, 
1869, when he came to Sandwich and completed 
the invention of the machine known as the Low, 
Adams and French Harvester, whose utility has 
since acquired a wide popularity. He was interested 
in its manufacture until 1874, and in the autumn of 
that year he sold his claim in the patents and works 
to the Sandwich Manufacturing Company and T. L. 
French, for $25,000, after which he was in no active 
business until his election to the position of which 
he is now and has since been the incumbent, whose 
duties he assumed in the spring of 1882. He is still 
a landholder of De Kalb County, owning r2o acres 



of land near Shabbona Grove, also his residence with 
four lots adjoining, and four acres within the South- 
ern part of the corporation of Sandsvich. 

The marriage of Mr. Low to Lydia Christy oc- 
curred Nov. 9, 1852, at Mariposa, Victoria Co., Out., 
and to them five children have been born, all of 
whom survive but one — Charles H. Low — an ac- 
count of whose short but busy and useful life may 
be found elsewhere in this volume. Emma A. Low, 
oldest daughter, born Sept. 28, 1853, is the wife of 
Loren Brown, of Girard, Kan., where he is engaged 
in traffic in lumber. The deceased son was next in 
order of birth. He was born Oct. 4, '855, and died 
Jan. 10, 1884. Cora was born March 14, 1858. 
George J., born Jan. 31, 1862, resides at Odebolt, 
Iowa, where he is engaged in banking. He was 
married Sept. 12, 1S83, to Rachel Bateman. Wol- 
fred W. was born June 28, 1870. 

Mr. Low entered the Army of the Union during 
the Civil War, enlisting Sept. 2, rS62, at Shabbona, 
De Kalb County, in Co. E, 105th Reg. 111. Vol. Inf. 
as a private. He accompanied the command to the 
seat of war, and was discharged early in the spring 
of 1863, without having seen active service, on ac- 
count of ill health. 

As a citizen, business man, and in his domestic 
relations Mr. Low is among the most respected resi- 
dents of Sandwich. Born to a life 5 effort, reared 
in the prosecution of the duties of an agricultural 
career, and taught the value of self-respect by pre- 
cept and circumstances, his accession to affluence 
proved no disturbing element in the course of his 
tranquil, honorable career. He has devoted his 
means and interest to giving his children solid, sub- 
stantial education, and although by birth -belonging 
to another nationality, he recognizes no sovereignty 
but manhood, and acknowledges no human suprem- 
acy save that acquired by culture and education. 



glides** 



Ijfjenry N. Parker, farmer, Kingston Town- 
■Jfr ship, section 34, was born Oct. 26, 18(4, in 
xht Ontario Co., N. Y., and is the third in order 

of birth of a family of seven children included 
in the family of his parents, James and Sarah 
(Hubbs) Parker. The former was a native of 
Connecticut, the latter of New York. They removed 
about 1815 to Kentucky, where the son was brought 



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DE KALB COUNTY. 



409 



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up to manhood and followed the calling of a farmer. 
When he was 24 years of age he decided on fixing 
his residence in the North, and he bought a farm in 
Spencer Co., Ind., on which he resided 14 years. At 
the end of that time he sold out and came in 1854 to 
De Kalb County. He purchased 80 acres of land in 
Kingston Township and there commenced his career 
as an Illinois farmer. He has since doubled his 
possessions and is the proprietor of 160 acres, all 
under excellent improvement. 

The marriage of Mr. Parker to Mary A. Stillwell 
occurred July 22, 1834, in Campbell Co., Ky. She 
is a native of that county and is the daughter of 
Joseph and Martha (Barrickman) Stillwell, who were 
also born in that State. She was born Nov. 23, 1812. 
Mr. and Mrs. Parker have had eight children, — 
Martha, Sarah A., Louisa, Joseph E., John R., 
Martha J., Mary A. and Fanny B. All are living 
but the oldest. Mr. Parker is a Republican in 
political belief and relations. 



^»" 



lenjamin Scurr Estabrook, farmer, sec- 

l tion 36, De Kalb Township, was born in 

Sackville, Westmoreland Co., New Bruns- 

^llfP wick, Aug. 10, 1835. His parents, James and 

Isabella (Buhner) Estabrook, were born in 

the same province and remained there during 

their entire lives. Their family comprised nine chil- 

Mr. Estabrook is the second son born to his par- 
ents and remained a resident of his native province 
until he was 17 years of age. In 1852 he went 
thence to Lowell, Mass., and passed about two years 
in a machine shop. In the spring of 1855 he de- 
cided on trying his chances in the opening West and 
c.ime to Illinois, locating in Kane County, and con- 
tinued a resident there three years. In 1858 he 
transferred his interests to De Kalb County, and in 
1 86 1 settled on a farm of 80 acres in Pierce Town- 
ship, of which he became proprietor by purchase. 
After an ownership of 12 years he sold out and came 
to De Kalb Township, where he bought r6o acres of 
land, now constituting a model farm, such as have 
founded the lunparalleled repute of the " Sucker " 
State. He resided on the property until the fall of 
1884, when he removed to the village of De Kalb. 




Mr. Estabrook is, in political bias and connection, 
a Republican, and has been active in school and 
local matters in his township. He was married in 
Whitewater, Wis., April 5, 1865, to Orissa, daughter 
of Isaiah and Olive (Tyler) Hall. Her parents were 
born in the State of New York, of which she was 
also a native, and was born May 24, 1845. Mr. and 
Mrs. Estabrook have two children. Walter G. was 
born Oct. 24, 1866, in Pierce Township; Cora B. 
was born June 5, 1868, in De Kalb Township, De 
Kail) County. 



-l/P^sH em 'y Kingsley, deceased, was a farmer, 

; 1>1^J5 -owning 80 acres on section 29 and 80 acres 

yluf on section 30, Afton Township. He was 

?h born June 22, 1831, in Crawford Co., Pa., and 

1 was a son of Ransom and Eliza A. (Cornell) 

Kingsley. His father was born Feb. n, 1799, 

and died Sept. 23, 1877, in Du Page Co., 111. His 

mother was born at Fort Ann, Washington Co., N. Y., 

Dec. 12, 1802, and is yet living. His parents were 

both of English extraction, and his father was a 

farmer by occupation. 

Henry Kingsley was raised on his father's farm, 
alternating his labors thereon by attendance at the 
common schools. Soon after attaining his majority 
he came to this State and located with a sister in 
Du Page County. He worked "around " in Du Page 
and Kane Counties until March, r863, when he pur-, 
chased the present farm and in October following 
moved upon it. This is left to his family, and on it 
his widow at present resides. There were a small 
frame house and stra>v stable on the place, but he 
went to work with a firm determination to make a 
home for his family which would be a haven of rest 
in the days to come. He died Aug. 19, r884, from 
the effect of paralysis. He received his first paralytic 
stroke some five years ago, which, though not prov- 
ing fatal at the time, gradually worked to his brain 
and caused his death at the time stated. 

He was married March 5, 1S63, to Miss Mary, 
daughter of Rodney and Abigail (Lounsberry) Mc- 
Dole. Her father was born Jan. 31, 1809, in New 
Hampshire, is of Scotch extraction and a farmer by 
occupation. Her mother was born July 3r, 1813, 
in Chemung Co., N. Y., and died Jan. 14, 1876, while 



9 

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DE KALB COUNTY. 



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on a visit to Ikt relatives in Menard Co., 111., of heart 
disease. Mrs. Kingsley was bom Feb. 4, 1838, in 

Kane Co.. 111. 

Mr. and Mrs. Kingsley were the parents of folll 
children. Nellie was born Dec. 7, 1863, married 
Fred II. Rollins, Oct. 15, 1884, and resides in Cal 
honn Co., Iowa. Addie was born Feb. 25, 1 
Jeddie J., Nov. i, 1869. Walter D., Ma) t6, 1878. 

Mr. Kingsley, politically, was a Republican. He 
held 1I1. office of Justice of the Peace for many years, 
ami was also Supervisor and Road Commissioner. 
After his first stroke of paralysis he was unable to do 
any work, and passed from this world mourned and 
beloved by a large circle of relatives and friends 



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-on Luther Lowell, Judge of Me Kalb 
County, resident at Sycamore, was bom 
(In 14, [827, at Brookfield, Orange Co., 
Vt. Martin I,. Lowell, his father, was born 
Dec. 14, 1792, at Lempster, N. IL, and was the 
son of Peter and Ruth (Frink) Lowell, the for- 
mer of whom was a native of Massachusetts and 
was a soldier of the Colonial war for independence. 
The senior Lowell married Melinda C. Laporte, who 
was born June 6, 1798, in New Jersey. Ten of their 
children reached mature life. One daughter is de- 
1 e.ised. 

Judge Lowell is of mixed English and Irish ex- 
traction in the paternal line of descent. His mother 
was French in her paternal line, her grandfather 
having been born in France. He was reared in the 
manner common to the place and period in the train- 
ing <>t farmers' sons. This method comprised after 

earliest boyh 1 three months of school during the 

winter season and nine months of active life on the 
farm, in which routine young Lowell passed the years 
of liis hi- from eight to eighteen years of age. He 
to teat h in the winter of 1845-6, and passed 
a portion of every year in that occupation until he 
^ completed his educational course. lie prepared for 
..-.it the academies at Hinesburg and liakers- 
%&u field, entering the college at Middlcbury twoyearsin 
advance. lie graduated in [851 with the degree 
ol \ B., and in 1854 received that ol \ M. He 
(@) taught .1 s' liool in the village of Rutland, Vt., in the 
\^ wniter.it 1850 i, and during the year following pur- 



sued the same oi 1 upation at Ellicottv tile, X. Y. On 

the establishment of an a< ademy at Rutland he was 
invited to take charge of it and was its Principal 
from [852 to 1854. He went thence to Flushing 
Institute, Long Island, w here he was teacher of Rhet- 
oric and Ancient Languages. 

In 1 856 he came to Sycamore, and entered the law 
office ol Mayo & James. He w as admitted to practice 
in all the State Courts in April, 1857, and Aug. 27, 
that year, entered into partnership with his precep- 
tors. Their dissolution occurred Jan. 1, 185S, and 
each proffered to Mr. Lowell a copartnership. He 
,ic < epted the overtures of Mr. Jam^s, and in 1858 the 
firm be. .nne James, Lowell & Kllwood, for two years, 
when Mr. Kllwood withdrew. The firm of James & 
Lowell continued business until May 1, 1864 when 
it was dissolved, and Mr. Lowell associated with 
himself J. Frank Meeker, now a man of wealth and 
prominence at Marshalltown, Iowa. Mr. Meeker's 
connection with the business of Mr. Lowell ceased 
after one year's duration. In 1867 he admitted 
James II. Sedgwick to a partnership, which was 
terminated in 1869 by the election of Mr. Lowell to 
the position of County Judge, to which he was re- 
elected in 1873. His second official term expired in 
1877, and Jan. 1, 1878, he formed a partnership with 
I). J. Carnes, which existed live years and three 
months, or until April 3, 1883, when Judge Lowell 
was elected to fill a vacancy in the position he had 
formerly held, made by the resignation of Hon. S. 
B. Stinson, of Sandwich. 

fudge Lowell's marriage to Ann P. James occurred 
at Sycamore, Feb. 20, 1859. She was born May 1, 
1833, and is the daughter of Levi and C'yrene 
(Batchelder) James. Judge Lowell and his wife are 
childless, but have reared to mature years two chil- 
dren, of whom they assumed charge in their tender 
years. Lavina S. and Gilbert II. Denton, who bear 
the relation of brother and sister. The latter is a 
young gentleman of fine natural mental gifts, and 
under the care and instructions of Judge Lowell and 
Mr. Carnes he has become a lawyer of unusual 
promise, and is associated in legal practice with D. J. 
Catties at Sy< amore. 

Judge Lowell is prominent in his character and 
abilities. In his official position his natural traits 
and disciplined mind render him peculiarly fit for 
the duties incumbent upon him. Cool, sagacious, 
methodical, upright, of sound judgment, and devoid 



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of ulterior purpose and motives, to no safer hands 
could the interests with which he is intrusted by 
virtue of his office be committed. As a counselor, 
and chancery, probate and real-estate lawyer, Judge 
Lowell has no superior in De Kalb County. His 
knowledge of law is broad and comprehensive, and 
in the branches of jurisprudence to which lie has 
given especial attention lie has always controlled 
a large practice. His capacious memory and clear 
perception of the essential elements of the legal 
system, seconded by the quality of his judgment, 
make him a useful member of the legal fraternity of 
De Kalb County. 



ohn D. Jones, farmer, owning the east 
half of the southwest quarter and the 
west half of the southeast quarter of sec- 
tion 29, Aflon Township, was born in Brack- 
It nockshire, South Wales, Aug. 8, 1818, and is a 
son of John and Margaret (Davis) Jones. His 
parents are both deceased, his father dying in South 
Wales in 1850, aged 60 years, and his mother in 
Pennsylvania, in 1872, aged about 88 years. 

John D. Jones, subject of this notice, lived in his 
native country until r848, when he emigrated to the 
United States. His early years were spent in a 
machine shop and attending school. No free-school 
system existing in his native country, he was com- 
pelled to pay for every month's instruction he re- 
ceived. At r4 years he entered a machine shop to 
learn the trade, and mastered the same only after 
seven years of laborious toil. At 21 years he com- 
menced running an engine for a blast furnace, and 
continued in that work until he emigrated to this 
country. 

On arrival in the " States," he went to Carbondale, 
Lackawanna Co., Pa., and engaged in a machine 
shop. He was soon selected by the same company 
to take charge of a stationary engine engaged in pull- 
ing cars up an inclined plane, and held the position 
for 14 years. 

In 1857 Mr. Jones came to this count}', and, in 
company with another gentleman, purchased the 
land on which he at present resides. His partner 
moved on the land, which was in its natural con- 
dition, and Mr. Jones returned to Pennsylvania. In 



1859 he again returned to this county and purchased 
his partner's interest in the property, together with 
the improvements thereon, and again returned to 
Pennsylvania. In the spring of r863 he moved to 
this county with his family, and settled on his land, 
and has resided thereon ever since. 

Mr. Jones was married in November, 1850, to Miss 
Mary Ann, daughter of Samuel and Hannah (Wil- 
cox) Kenyon, natives of New York. Her father was 
a shoemaker by trade, and also owned a farm and 
followed that vocation. Both parents are deceased, 
her father dying in 1870, and her mother in 1S63. 
Mrs. Jones was born March 16, J829, in Roxbury, 
Delaware Co., N. Y. 

Mr. and Mrs. Jones are the parents of seven chil- 
dren living and two deceased. They were born as 
follows : John F., in June, 1851, died in August of 
tlie same year ; Mary E., Aug. 16, 1854, died Sept. 
8, 1877 ; George M., Aug. 15, 1856;' Anna M., Dec. 
21, 1859; Addie B., March 5, 1S63; Edward J., 
May 22, 1864; BurtD., Sept. 16, 1866; Lillie M., 
May 13, 187 1 ; and Minnie L, Dec. 31, 1872. 

Politically Mr. Jones is a Republican. He has 
served as School Director for several vears. 



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v; Sgf.fj:'. oseph M. Buckingham, farmer, section 15, 
|EpjjJBP Somonauk Township, was born on the farm 
S^ on which he is a resident, June 2, 1S42, 
and where his parents located in the autumn 
of 1841. Nathan Buckingham, his father, was 
a farmer and was born July 3, 1799, in Essex, 
Middlesex Co., Conn. He married Mary Pratt. 
Following is the record of their children : Frederick 
E., born Oct. 19, 1830, died in 1864, in Nashville, 
Tenn.; William F., twin brother, was killed in 1S57, 
in a gold mine in California; Aim us W., born May 8, 
1832, married Zelina Cheever; Mary J., born Aug. 
24, 1835, married Levi Disbrow. 

On removal to Illinois lie bought 180 acresof land 
on section 15, Somonauk Township, this county, and 
was a resident thereon 3r years, dying Jan. 23, 1873. 
The mother was a native of Connecticut and died on 
the homestead in Somonauk, Nov. 14, 1855. Nathan 
Buckingham was again married in 1856, to Ann W. 
Stevens, of Piermont X. If In the same yen net 






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the trees from the lumber of which his house was 
built, .mil which he drew to Piano to be sawed. 

On setting out independently in life, Mr. Bucking- 
ham bought go ai res adjoining his father's farm, and 
on the death of the latter he became the owner of 
the homestead where he was burn, by purchase from 
thi .'ihcr heirs, and now owns a fine tract of land 
i. So acres in extent. 

His marriage to Luella Evans occurred March 5, 
1877. 1 >ne daughter, Bertha, was born to them on 
the farm, April 4, 1 8 7 <S . Mrs. Buckingham was born 
Sept. 15, 1857, in Plainview, Wabasha Co., Minn., 
and she is the (laughter of Herford and Catherine 
Evans. 




i3fft|j.lark Glidden, deceased, formerly a l.ir- 
kS?9jr mer occupying the southwest quarter of 
& ^ section 4, Afton Township, was born in 
yfo Clarendon, Orleans Co., N. Y., Feb. 8, 1823. 
W His parents, Simeon and Lucy (Knowles) 
Glidden, were of New England stock, being 
from Vermont and New Hampshire. His father 
died in June, [865, aged Si years; and his mother 
died in 1880. 

Mr. Glidden was reared to manhood on his father's 
farm, having much of the labor and responsibility 
devolving upon him, as his father was for 25 years 
preceding his death afflicted with inflammatory rheu- 
matism. His education was received in the distrit t 
school and .11 Brockford Academy. In February, 
[854, he emigrated with his family to the West in 
search of a suitable locality for a home, determining 
finally to settle in this county, where Jos. F. Glidden 
a distant relative, had already located. He bought 
160 acres, and he increased his estate until he at one 
time owned 420 acres, in this and De Kalb Town- 
ships ; he sold 100 acres before his death. He was 
a Republican, and was honored by his fellow citizens 
with the offices of Collector, Assessor, School Direc- 
tor, Road Commissioner and Justice of the Peace. 
He died Feb. 1, 187 1, in Afton Township, this 
county. 

He was married Feb. 14, 1847, in Clarendon 
Township, Orleans Co., N. Y., to Miss Harriet, 
daughter of I. B. and Clarissa (Foley) Keeler. Her 
father was born May 18, 1799, in Saratoga Co. N. Y., 

1 



and died Jan. 16, 1851; and her mother was born 
Sept. 14, 1797, in the same county, and died Dec. 
31,1879. Mr. and Mrs. Glidden had six children, 
four of whom are now living. The record stands: 
Willis C, bom July 23, [848, in Clarendon, N. Y., 
was married June 1, c88i, to Mabel Seager, a suc- 
cessful physician in Beloit, Kin., who graduated in 
April, 1SS0, at the Homceopathie Medical ('ill... ■ . I 
Chii igo; Burtis R, bom June 24, [850, in Claren- 
don, N. Y., married Miss Emma Green, Dec. 15, 
1880, and is now living in Scottville, Kan., where, in 
company with his uncle, he is a men ham ; I1.1 B., 
born Jan. 23, 1852, in Clarendon, N. Y., married 
Allie T. Rathbun, Sept. 22, 1880, and now has two 
children, — Vernon C, bom April 15, 1882, in Afton 
Township, and Jessie P., Dec. 22, 1883, in Afton 
Township; Arthur J., born Dec. 25, .1855, ' n Afton 
Township, married Miss Elv.i Lyon, March 10,1880, 
and now resides in Altoon 1, Beadle Co., Dak. 

Neither Mr. Glidden nor any of his sons has ever 
used tobacco. 

It may be mentioned here that during the first 
summer of their residence in this county, one mile 
south of De Kalb, Mrs. Glidden was bitten by a 
rattlesnake, but, apparently with the aid of the ap- 
plication of saleratus dissolved in whisk)' and the a >- 
sistance of a physician, she fully recovered. 



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A if£39B attn * as Ault - farmer, sci lion 5. Mu\ field 
■\ 0t..O&iJ Township. w.i> bum April 26. 1S27, in 
^ Lycoming Co., Pa. His parents. Samuel 



1 



™f\ and Catherine (Page) Ault, were born, reared 
w* and marriedfin the same State and were there 

resident until 1850, when they 1 an.c to Kane 
('<>.. 111. In the spring of 1S54 they came to Kings- 
ton Township, where the mother died, March 28, 
1866, and where also the decease of the father oc- 
curred, Nov. 17, [868. The) had 14 children and 
1 3 ill them reached mature life. 

Mr. Ault is the third son and seventh child, and 
he obtained only the limited common-school educa- 
tion of the place and period. He was 23 years of 

hen he came to Kane Co., 111., and he con- 
tinued a resident of that county until 1854, coming 
with his parents to De Kalb County and operating ®J 
as his lath. tant three years longer. In 1857 J\l 



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he became a land-holder by the purchase of 40 acres 
of land in Kingston Township and 61 acres ad- 
ditional in the township of Mayfield. The latter 
has since been his homestead. He is now the pro- 
prietor of 329 acres of land in De Kalb County, 
which is chiefly under cultivation. 

Mr. Ault has acted in the capacities of School Di- 
rector and ( herseer of Highways. In political mat- 
ters he is independent. 

He was married in Rock Co., Wis., Sept. 20, 1858, 
to Sarah, daughter of George and Mary (Keithline) 
Gross, natives respectively of Lehigh Co., Pa., and 
New Jersey. Her father died in Lycoming Co., Pa., 
and the mother died after her removal to Mayfield 
Township, Feb. 15, 1880. Mrs. Ault is the oldest 
of six children, and was born Jan. 2, 1831, in Lu- 
zerne Co., Pa. Mr. and Mrs. Ault have had five 
children, — William I., Amelia M., Mary C, Frank 
S. and George W. The second child died when two 
years old. 



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acob Haish, an extensive barbed-wire raan- 
l ufacturer of Ue Kalb, was born March 9, 
1827, in Germany, and is a son of Christian 
and Christena Haish, natives of that country. 
The family emigrated to this country when the 
subject of this notice was nine years of age, and 
settled in Crawford Co., Ohio. He purchased a farm 
in the woods and entered on the task of clearing and 
improving it. On this farm the son lived, alternating 
his labors thereon by attending the common schools, 
until he attained the age of 20 years. Arriving at 
this age in life, he came West and located at Naper- 
ville, Du Page Co., this State, where he engaged as a 
farm laborer, which vocation he followed for several 
seasons. 

While living in that county, Mr. Haish was united 
in marriage (in 184S) to Miss Sophie Brown. A 
year after that event he came to this county and lo- 
cated on a firm in Pierce Township. A few years 
later, he moved into the village of De Kalb, and for 
a time followed the carpenter's trade, which he had 
previously learned. He next engaged in the lumbei 
trade, at the same time taking building contracts. 
In 1873 Mr. Haisli made his first attempt to attach a 



barb to a wire. He was successful, and in the fol- 
lowing December made application lor a patent. He 
received his patent Jan. 20, 1874. Since that time 
he has made some improvements and received other 
patents. 





ames Edmund Ellwood, Treasurer of the 

f R. Ellwood Manufacturing Company at 

^* Sycamore, was born April 25, 1831, in the 

' town of Canajoharie, Montgomery Co., N. Y. 

*W He grew to manhood under the care of his 

P parents, Abraham and Sarah (Delong) Ell- 
wood (see biography of Chauncey Ellwood, page 
241 of this book, for sketch of parents), and cele- 
brated his approaching majority by his marriage, 
Jan. 7, 1852, a little more than three months previous 
to its advent, when Lodeska H. Fellows became his 
wife. She is the daughter of Newton and Sarah Fel- 
lows, and was born in Middleville, Herkimer Co., N. 
Y. Five children were born to Mr. and Mrs. Ell- 
wood, three of whom died in infancy. A daughter, 
Sarah A. (Mrs. B. W. Paine), and a son, James B., 
survive. 

The earliest business venture of any importance 
in which Mr. Ellwood was interested was in raising 
100 acres of broom-corn in the Mohawk Valley in 
the Empire State, which occupied his attention one 
year, after which, associated with his brother Hiram, 
he engaged in the sale of groceries and provisions in 
Frankfort, Herkimer Co., N. Y., which relation and 
business was in existence one year. 

In 1855 he came to Sycamore and again entered 
upon the culture of broom-corn, in company witli his 
brother Reuben. They had about r, 000 acres planted 
with that annual, and were engaged three years in 
the various avenues of business arising from their ex- 
tensive operations. In 1858 the drug and grocery 
store of J. E. and Chauncey Ellwood was established 
at Sycamore, under the firm style of J. E. Kllwood 
& Bro. At the end of one year the former, in com- 
pany with Daniel Dustin, purchased the interest of 
Chauncey. In 1861 the firm of Ellwood & Dustin 
terminated their relations, Mr. Ddstin selling his 
interest to his partner, who prosecuted the business 
' singly about 13 years. In r 87 4 he associated with 



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DE KALB COUNTY. 



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himself his brothel AJonzo, and they erected a mag- 
nificent buildiii", comprising part of the Central 
Block, for the accommodation of their business re- 
lations, and the style of the firm name became J. E. 
Ellwood & Hro. The brothers continued their joint 
operations seven years. The single and associated 
operations of Mr. Ellwood in the sale of drugs and 
groceries covered a period of 23 years, and ceased 
altogether in 1SS1. On the 16th of March of that 
year he was succeeded l>y George M. Sivwright, the 
latter becoming a member of the present firm of Ell- 
wood & Sivwright by purchase. Mr. Ellwood be- 
came a stockholder in the R. Ellwood Manufacturing 
Company at Sycamore in r88i, and has since 
officiated as Treasurer of that corporation. He is a 
member of the Order of Masonry and belongs to the 
Lodge at Sycamore. 

The portrait of Mr. Ellwood is given on the page 
opposite this sketch, and is the fourth in order of 
presentation of the Ellwood brotherhood, all of whom 
are represented on the pages of this volume. 







ilbert H. Robertson, editor and proprie- 
tor of the Gazette at Sandwich, was born 
" K in South Argyle, Washington Co., N. Y., 
Nov. 28, 183 1 . His father's name was Archi- 
bald Robertson. His grandfather, William 
Robertson, came from Ireland, but was himself 
of Scotch descent. His mother's maiden name was 
Anna Robinson, who came from the Highlands of 
Scotland when six years old. The subject of this 
sketch was reared on a farm, attending the common 
school quite steadily, until the age of 14 years, when 
he went to the Arygle Academy. He entered Union 
College, Schenectady, N. Y., in 1848, and graduated 
in 1849. The college at this time was still under 
the presidency of the celebrated Dr. Nott. He was 
therefore several months in college with Chester A. 
Arthur, who was of the class of 1848. 

Leaving college, he remained at home a year, 
during which period his father and mother both died. 
He went South in 1850 and remained there until 
1853, when he returned and entered the Theological 
Seminary of the Associate Presbyterian Church of 
Canonsburg, Pa. He finished his course in 1855, 
and was licensed to preach at East Greenwich, 



Washington Co., N. Y., the same autumn, by the 
Presbytery of Cambridge. The Associate and Asso- 
ciate Presbyterian Churches having united a few da) S 
previously, he was ordained and installed Pastor of 
the United Presbyterian Church in North Hebron, 
in the summer of 1858, being the first minister or- 
dained in the united Church. In the spring of i860 
he accepted a call to the Park Presbyterian Church, 
Troy, N. Y., where he remained nearly five years. 
He resigned in 1864, because of failing health 
caused by a disease inclined while serving the Chris- 
tian Commission during the famous battles of the 
Wilderness and Spottsylvania. 

Resting a few months in the spring of 1865, he 
came West and accepted a call from the Presby- 
terian Church of Sandwich, 111., where he remained 
two years. In the spring of 1867 he accepted a 
unanimous call from the Second Presbyterian Church 
of Springfield, 111. Here he remained four years. 
During his pastorate the congregation built a large 
and commodious church, in which, before its entire 
completion, the State Legislature of the winter and 
spring of 1870 held its sessions. In the summer of 1870 
he received and accepted a unanimous call from the 
Chestnut Second Presbyterian Church of Louisville, 
Ky., one of the largest and wealthiest Churches in the 
State. During his pastorate in that city he received 
the honorary degree of Doctor of Divinity from 
Danville College, Danville, Ky. In the winter of 
1872-3 he became editor of the Louisville Daily and 
Weekly Commercial, the leading Republican paper 
of the State, of which Gen. John M. Harlan, now 
one of the Justices of the Supreme Court of the 
United States, was the leading owner. In the spring 
of 1874 he returned toSandw.ich .mil bought of James 
H. Furman the Sandwich Gazette, the oldest paper 
in the city, of which he has since been editor and 
proprietor. 

In the spring of 1872 he was appointed Post- 
master of Sandwich, which position he still holds. 
During his residence here he was for several years 
Pastor of the Methodist Protestant Church of Somo- 
nauk. 

In 1849, while Pastor of the Hebron Church, Mr. 
Robertson was married to Mary I,. Beveridge, of 
Xenia, Ohio. Her father, Rev. Thomas Beveridge, 
D. D., was for many years the leading Professor of 
the Theological Seminary of the Associate and after- 



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ward of the United Presbyterian Church. Her grand- 
father on her father's side, Rev. Thomas Beveridge, 
came from Scotland, and was one of the first min- 
isters in Washington Co., N. Y. and until his death 
was Pastor of the Cambridge Church. Her mother 
belonged to the McKee family, many of whom 
were prominent citizens of the same county. 

Mr. and Mrs. Robertson were given three chil- 
dren, all of whom arc still living. 

The eldest, William H. Robertson, born in Troy, 
N. Y., is in the office of the Enterprise Company of 
Sandwich. The second, Bessie, was also born in 
Troy, and is married to S. Parker Sedgwick, of the 
law firm of Sedgwick & Son, of Sandwich. The 
youngest, Hair)- K. Robertson, is clerk in the 
United States mail service on the Chicago, Milwau- 
kee & St. Paul Railroad. 

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H. Wiltberger, farmer, residing on and 
owner of the northeast quarter of section 

^o'" 33' Afton Township, was born in Mun- 
fordville, Hart Co., Ky., Dec. 8, 1835. His 
father, Joseph W. Wiltberger, was born in 

' Philadelphia, Pa., April 7, 1794 (in which State 
his father was also born), and died on the old home- 
stead in this county, Jan. 16, 1881. His mother, 
Amelia (Finley) Wiltberger, was born in Kentucky 
(native State of her father), about 1805, and died 
Sept. 12, 1S54, in Lake Township, Cook County, this 
State. > 

The parents of W. H. left Kentucky when he was 
about 1 1 years of age and came to this State, locat- 
ing in Lake Township, Cook County. His mother 
died during their residence in that township, and in 
1857 his father moved into the city of Chicago. Two 
years later (1859), W. H. came to this county, and 
lo( ated in Clinton Township. He worked land in 
Clinton and Afton Townships until 1S62, when, Sept. 
22, that year, he enlisted in Co. K, 105th 111. Vol. 
Inf., Col. Dustin and Capt. Austin. His regiment 
was assigned to the 20th Corps, 3d Division, and was 
with Gen. Sherman in his man h from Chattanooga 
to Atlanta, and from Atlanta to the sea, and wit- 
nessed the surrender of Johnston's army. Mr. W. 
participated in all the battles in which the 20th Corps 
was engaged, was in the hospital only four days, and 
was mustered out June 14, 18(15, al Chi< ago, 111. 



After receiving his discharge, he came to Afton 
Township, and soon afterward purchased the home- 
stead on which he is at present residing, from his 
father. His father had moved from Chicago in 1862, 
and settled on the farm of which he became owner 
and on which farm the son has since resided. 

Mr. Wiltberger was married Jan. 17, 1866, to 
Miss Mary Antoinette, daughter of Norman and 
Sophronia (Buck) Fuller, natives respectivelv of 
Hamilton and Wyoming Counties, N. Y. Her par- 
ents were of English extraction, and both are de- 
ceased. Her father was born April 26, 1813, and 
died Sept. 9, 1854, at Aurora, 111. Her mother was 
born May 22, 1813, and died Aug. 12, 1872, at her 
(laughter's. Mrs. Wiltberger was born April 7, 
1839, and is the mother of three children, all born in 
Afton Township, as follows: Mary A., Dec. 18, 
1867; Warren T., Jan. 4, 1870;. and Joseph F., fan. 
12, 1876. 

Mr. Wiltberger, in addition to his cereal produc- 
tions, devotes a considerable portion of his time to 
the dairy business. During the summer seasons he 
purchases cream by the inch, and manufactures but- 
ter therefrom, his daily production being about 435 
pounds. He also keeps 45 cows, and during the 
winter seasons he manufactures butter from the 
product of His own cream. His farm comprises 280 
acres, and is in good tillable condition. He has a 
good frame house on the farm and substantial out- 
buildings. 

Politically, Mr. W. is a Republican. He was Col- 
lector of his township one year, also School Director 
and Trustee some three or four years. 



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•' T(Q >H uane ■*• Carnes, senior member of the law 
: '.'-' ■'.> :. firm of ('.inns \ Denton, at Sycamore, 
3flffi|y- Q was born May 27, 1S48, in Pomfret, Wind- 
jpjft sor Co., Vt. His father, John Carnes, was 
born in Claremont, N. H., May 30, 1823, and 
belongs by lineage to the distinctive 1 lass 
known as Scotch-Irish. He became an orphan at an 
early age witli no heritage but the industry, thrift 
and frugality which characterize the race of which 
he is a member. He married Mary Paine, a lady oi 
English ancestry, and the) settled in Pomfret. where 
the father pure based a farm. His excellent charac 

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DE KALB COUNTY. 



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ter. integrity and sound judgment were recognized 
during his active life in Pomfret, and he officiated 

t, ssi\ el) in the local offices of the tow nship. The 
senior Carnes exercised his abilities to such good 
/£>. purpose that he secured a comfortable fortune on 
the hillsides and among the rocks of the eastern side 
of the Green Mount. 11ns, and in 1875 removed theme 
to Sy< amore, where he and his wife are passing the 
sunset years of their li\es in retirement. The mother 
of Mr. Carnes of this sketch was born July 4, 1825, 
in Pomfret, V't. His brother, George D., is a SUC- 
. essful medical practitioner at South Haven, Mich. 

Mr. Carnes spent his boyhood on his father's farm 
in the Green Mountain State and acquired a thor- 
ough knowledge of the elementary branches of 
English at the public schools. At the age of 16 
years he became a student in the State Normal 
School at Randolph, where he studied about four 
j years in the aggregate. He came to Illinois in 1868 
and taught school in Logan County a little less than 
four years, returning to Vermont to complete a course 
jLj of Normal study, and was graduated in 1873. Dur- 
^? ing the period of his educational course Mr. Carnes 

• * laid the sure foundation for the success he has 
1 1 

^ achieved as an advocate. Gifted by descent with 
Y fluent speech, he acquired a habit, in lyceum debate, 



1 



of speaking to a pre-arranged purpose, and also of 
v ) making thorough preparation for his efforts, a process 
which stored his mind with information and gave 
him complete sway over his memory. The qualifi- 
cations, combined with his powers of application, 
have been invaluable in the career to which he has 
devoted himself. 

In the same year in which he left the school at 
Randolph, he came to Sycamore, where he fulfilled 
a long-cherished purpose and entered the office of 
Hon. Charles Kellum as a student of law. His 
natural abilities and industry, united with the ad- 
vantages accruing through the office relations of 
Judge Kellum, whose value he was quick to perceive 
and avail himself of, advanced him rapidly in the ac- 
J* quisition of knowledge in legal affairs; and in Sep- 
tember, 1^75, lie was admitted to practice. On 
receiving his credentials as an attorney, he formed a 
business association with Judge Kellum, which was 
operative two years. On the termination of this re- 
lation, Mr. Carnes entered into a partnership with 
Hon. Luther Lowell, with whom he was associated 




between five and six years. In May, 1883, the firm 
of which he is now a member was established, the 
junior associate, Gilbert H. Denton, being the 
adopted son of Judge Lowell. The law firm of Carnes 
& Denton is one of the most promising ones in De 
Kalb County and probably in Northern Illinois, both 
its members possessing uncommon abilities and at- 
tainments. In industry and devotion to business 
they are unrivaled, and they are already in the enjoy- 
ment of a large practice in the Circuit Courts of 
DeKalb and adjoining counties, and in the Supreme 
anil Apellate Courts of the State. 

Mr. Carnes is already approaching a peerless posi- 
tion as a jurist ami advocate. He has the discrimi- 
nating judgment, the sturdy sense and the uncom- 
promising straightforwardness of his progenitors — The 
Scotch-Irish — coupled with the penetration and clev- 
er shrewdness that characterize the genus Yankee. 
As a criminal lawyer the qualifications ofMr. Carnes 
are such as to insure his distinction in that branch 
of the profession. He wins by his powers as a logi- 
cian, basing his arguments on the principle of human- 
ity, and appealing to reason and common sense in a 
manner that rarely fails to convince a jury. 

Mr. Carnes was married June 1, 1880, to Helen 
\. Mi Mollan. 1 'ne da Lighter, I Ion,', was born to 
them, at Sycamore, Oct. 15, 1882. 



hilip ' Heckman. hardware merchant at 
Kingston, has been a resident of De Kali) 
County since 1852. In that year he set- 

•1^3 t ' L * 1 ' °' 1 :l ' ,um on scct ' on IO > Kingston Town- 
-VliV- ship, purchasing at first 147 acres of land. 
which has since constituted his homestead. 
To this he has added by later pun base and now 
owns 240 acres, forming a valuable country estate. 
He also owns 160 acres in Dakota. In 187911c 
formed an association with William Straub for the 
purpose of establishing a hardware business at King- 
ston, and they operated jointly in that line of trade 
about two years, when Mr. Straub sold his claim to 
M. VV. Cole, ami the firm of Heckman & Cole has 
since transacted the affairs of the business in a satis- 
factory and profitable manner. 

Mr Heckman was born Jan. 2, 1823, in Morgan 
Co., Ohio, and is one of seven children born to his 

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parents, Jacob and Catherine (Koppel) Heckman. 
They were of German origin, and were residents of 
Pennsylvania and Morgan Co., Ohio, 32 years pre- 
vious to their removal in 1853 to the township of 
Kingston. Both are deceased. The death of the 
mother occurred April 14, 1S84. The brothers and 
sisters of Mr. Heckman are all younger than he, and 
are named Susanna, Michael, Catherine, Esther, 
fohn and Jacob. The older son lived in his native 
State until 1843, when he came to Wisconsin. He 
worked there by the month in the pineries two years. 
In 1845 he went to Ohio and there passed the inter- 
vening years until his removal to De Kalb County, 
engaged in farming. 

He was married in Morgan Co., Ohio, to Sarah A. 
Farley. She was born in Morgan Co., Ohio, and is 
the daughter of James and Ellen (Taylor) Farley, 
natives respectively of West Virginia and England. 
Of this union nine children have been born, — Will- 
iam W., Catherine E., Francis, Ann E., Alfred R., 
Jacob I., Jessie, James and Frank. The latter died 
when a year and a half old. 

In political connection Mr. Heckman is a Repub- 
lican. He has been School Director several years, 
and has served two entire terms as Supervisor. He 
was re-elected for a third time in the latter position, 
but declined to serve. He and his wife are useful 
and efficient members of the Free-Will Baptist 
Church. 



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:[vW\JlJ leholas Klomm. .1 farmer occupying the 
kfiJSn northeast quarter of section 22, and the 
K north half of the southeast quarter of sec- 
tion 22, Afton Township, was born in the 
Grand Duchy of Baden, Germany, Oct. 10, 
1839, the son of Peter and Elizabeth (Himmel- 
hahn) Klemm, both of whom emigrated to this coun- 
try and died here. They came in 1848, landing at 
Chicago, and resided upon a rented farm in Du Page 
County six years; then, coming to Pierce Township, 
this county, Mr. Klemm purchased a farm of 80 acres. 
He was finally killed, April 13, 187 1, by a railroad 
accident at Winfield Station, Du Page County, when 
he was 75 years of age. 

Nicholas lived at his parental home until he was 



of legal age, when he married and took his father's 
farm for seven years, and then he purchased his 
present farm of 160 acres, to which he has since 
added by purchase So acres, making a total of 240 
acres. When he first took possession of it in 1868, 
it was a wild prairie, but he has made of it a com- 
fortable home. He has a new frame house, a good 
stock and hay barn, etc., and a well fenced orchard. 
He fattens for the market annually 20 hogs and sev- 
eral head of cattle, and raises and sells hay and corn 
in considerable quantity. 

Mr. Klemm was married March 10, i860, to 
Sophia, daughter of Matthew and Mary A. (Kehna) 
Schemer. Her father was born in 1S03, in Germany, 
and died in his native country in 1851; and her 
mother, born March 25, 1807, also in Germany, is 
still living, now making her home with the subject of 
this sketch. She came with her family to this coun- 
try in 1859, landing at Chicago and locating at Peru, 
La Salle County, this State. Mrs. Klemm was born 
in Baden, Germany, Jan. 23, 1840. The children born 
in the family of Mr. and Mrs. Klemm are nine in 
number, one of whom is deceased. The names and 
dates of birth are: Mary E., March 15, 1862; 
Nicholas, born March 7, 1863, died Feb. 9, 1883; 
Katherine M., April 9, 1864; Peter, Feb. 18, 1866; 
Barbara A., Dec. 15, 1868; Anna S., April 5, 187 1 ; 
Frank J., July 18, 1874; Eugene P., Jan. 20, 1876 ; 
and Paul, Nov. 3, 1878. The first four were born 
Pierce Township, the rest in Afton Township. 

Mr. Klemm is a Democrat in his political princi- 
ples, and in religion both himself and Mrs. K. are 
members of the Roman Catholic Church. 






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,p^§[aron H. Clark, druggist, at Kingston, was 
j[ born Nov. 26, 1828, in Charlotte, Maine, 
re ® and he is the son of William D. O. and 




Anna (Hersey) ('lark. His father was the 
first child born on the British island of Camp- 
obello, off the east coastof Maine. His moth- 
er was born in Hingham, Mass. After their marriage 
they settled at Charlotte, Washington Co., Maine, 
where they both died after becoming the parents of 



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ii children, all of whom were living up to 1865, 
except two. 

Mi Clark is the youngest child, and he was 
brought up at home, receiving a very meager com- 
mon-school education. He went to Machias Acad- 
emy, Maine, the winter he. was 21, to t he Webster 
Academy in Salisbury, N. H., the fall and winter he 
was 24, and completed his academic studies at New 
Ipswich, N. II., the fall he was 31. He engaged in 
teaching, in which he was chiefly occupied 12 years 
after completing his educational course. He also 
taught during the period when he was obtaining his 
preliminary training for his business, and | his attend- 
ant e at New Ipswich so late in life was for the pur- 
pose of obtaining the advantage of more modern 
methods. He began his career as a pedagogue 
when 22 years of age, and after his removal to Kings- 
ton he taught nine terms of school. He has been a 
resident of that place since 1861, with the exception 
of the time he spent in the military service of the 
United States and in Iowa. He enlisted in 1864, in 
. the 30th 111. Vol. Inf., and was in Sherman's inarch 
™ to the sea and in the field nearly a year when the 
•^ war closed. In 187 1 lie went to Iowa, where he took 
=* up a soldier's claim. He removed his family there 
Y in 1872, and was resident there until 1874, when he 
returned to Kingston and resumed the business of a 
■' ) grocery and provision merchant, in which he had en- 
gaged after returning from the war. He was also 
engaged in the sale of drugs in addition, and in 1877 
converted his entire store to the latter branch of busi- 
ness, and has continued to operate in that line of 
trade in which he is the only representative at Kings- 
ton. He was the pioneer grocer and provision mer- 
chant at that place in 1866. He was appointed 
Postmaster in 1S68, and held the position until 
1872, when he removed his family to Iowa. He is a 
Republican and has held various offices ; he has offi- 
ciated two terms as Justice of the Peace, several 
years as Township Clerk, as Supervisor four years, 
and as School Director six years, and is a Notar) 
Public. He is a member of the Christian Church, 
and very liberal in his religious theology. 

The marriage of Mr. (.Mark to Sarah J. Hill took 
place Nov. 1, 1863, at Kingston, of which place she 
is a native. She is a daughter of Judge Hill, whose 
biographical sketch appears on other pages. Two 
children have been born of their union, — Nellie N., 




Aug., 17, 1S64, and Willie H. D. O., June 7, 1866. 
Mr. Clark began in life for himself at the age of 17 

without a dollar to call his own ; received his educa- 
tion by his own exertion ; saved his odd pennies 
with which to purchase books, often going hungrj 
and destitute for the purpose of obtaining a needed 
text-book when in school. He now has a larger and 
better selected family library than any other citizen 
of his town, if not in tfie county, ((insisting ot medi- 
cal, legal, theological and miscellaneous works. He 
never read a novel in his life, or continued fictitious 
newspaper stories. Never used tobacco, or dissipated 
with liquors of any kind, and at his present age, 56, 
claims to be a perfectly sound, healthy man 



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haddeus W. Cooper, farmer, residing on 
and owner of the east half of the north- 
west quarter and the west half of the north- 
^eP east quarter of section 29, Afton Township. 
was born in Cayuga Co., N. V., Man h ii, 
1834. He is a son of George and Sarah (Mc- 
Cauley) Cooper, both deceased. His father was born 
in Cambridge, Washington Co., N. Y., in 1797. At 
15 years he enlisted in the War of 181 2, did service 
in the field, came home, and in 1S46 moved to this 
State with his family, and died in La Salle County in 
187 1. His mother was a native of Washington Co., 
N. Y., lived at home until her marriage, and died in 
in La Salle Co., this State, in [868, aged about 60 
years. 

Thaddeus W. Cooper, subject of this notice, was 
raised on his father's farm and remained thereon 
until 25 years of age. At 24 years of age he pur- 
chased 80 acres of land for himself, on which he 
lived from 1865 to 1884, then sold it and purchased 
the farm on which he is at present residing. He 
moved his family from La Salle County to his pres- 
ent farm the latter part of February, 1884, and has 
since lived on the place. He has a line farm, w ith 
good frame residence and outbuildings, and all his 
land under cultivation. 

Mr. Cooper was married in 1859. His wife died, 
leaving one child, Mary J., and in 1S65 he married 
Melvina A. Covell. She died June 24, 1877, leaving 
two children, — Frank E., bom June 25, 1 S67 : and 
Charles E., born June 1, 1870. He was again mar- 

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ried June 29, 1878, to Mary A., daughter of Benja- 
min N. and Olive (Covell) Ellwood, both of whom 
are living in Sandwich, 111. Her father was born 
Jan. 6, 1827, and her mother in December, 1829. 
Mrs. Cooper was born in Northville, La Salle County, 
this State, Oct. 15, 1859, and is the mother, by Mr. 
C, of two children living, — Bertie W., born Nov. 4, 
1879, in La Salle County, and J. Ray, born Oct. 9, 
1884, in this county. Alice M. and Lillie M., twins, 
were born July 7, 1 881, in Adams Township, La 
Salle County. The former died when five months 
old, Dec. 7, 1 88 1, and the latter Aug. 26, 1884, and 
both are buried in Oak Ridge Cemetery, Sandwich, 
111. Mrs. Cooper's grandmother is living with her 
father, and is 82 years of age. 



|rpl| ahum Enon Ballou, M.D., Ph.D., F. R.M.S., 
): l%!Jj$- physician, surgeon, scientist and essayist, 
^ is a son of Nahum and Anna (Phelps) 
Ballou, and was born at Plymouth, Chenango 
[(, Co., N. Y., September 16, 1822. His father 
was born at Richmond, Cheshire Co., N. H, in 1800. 
His paternal grandfather was Daniel Ballou, who be- 
longed to the New Hampshire branch of the Ballou 
family. His mother was born at Homer, Cortland 
Co., N. Y., Sept. 16, 1 80 1, and was a daughter of 
Enon and Mehitabel (Goldsmith) Phelps. The 
maternal grandfather was at the massacre of Wyo- 
ming, which occurred July 3, 1778, when that beau- 
tiful valley was desolated by fire and sword, the story 
of which Thomas Campbell depicts in his poem en- 
titled "Gertrude of Wyoming." There were born to 
this family seven sons and five daughters. William 
W. Phelps, the oldest son, became an eminent schol- 
ar, poet and writer. He was a strong anti-Mason, 
and published at Canandaigua the Ontario P/ixnix, 
and subsequently drifted westward to Utah. On the 
opening of the University of Deseret at Salt Lake 
City, he was appointed to the chair of Latin and Greek, 
and distinguished himself as an able writer and a 
brilliant linguist. He died several years ago, at the 
age of 74 years. 

In 1830 Nahum Ballou moved with his family from 
Chenango to Orleans County, same State, and settled 
at Carlton, where our subject spent his youth. After 
the death of his father, which occurred Aug. 5, 1832, 





he went to live with an English gentleman, who was 
not only kind but a man of culture and education. 
Here our subject received his first solid instruction, 
which gave direction to his future course of life. 
Here, beneath this hospitable roof, he was treated 
with great kindness, for the family had no children. 
This gentleman taught the fatherless youth the ele- 
ments of knowledge, and gave his mind such direc- 
tion and inclination to study and reading that it 
strengthened with increasing years. About this 
time the school districts of New York were provided 
with Harper's series of " District Libraries," which 
contained most excellent works for youthful readers, 
and our youthful student devoured these with avid- 
ity and with profit. Having advanced as far as it 
was then possible in the district schools, he finished 
his literary education at Gaines and Yates Acade- 
mies, in Orleans Co., N. Y. Meanwhile he had 
picked up the shoemaker's trade at home, for his 
father was a shoemaker, and for some time alternated 
between pounding the lapstone and the brandishing 
of the pedagogue's ferule, whichever for the time 
being paid the best. He kept a stock of books in his 
shoe-bench drawer, and when his day's work was 
done his books were next in order, especially the 
study of the Latin and Greek languages, which to 
him was a delightful as well as a very profitable 
pastime. These studies later on in life were contin- 
ued under competent tutors, who were paid for their 
services. Having long before decided upon medicine 
as a profession, he entered upon the study of it at 
Albion, N. Y., with Drs. Nichoson, Paine and Huff, 
and later studied with Dr. Alfred Babcock, of Gaines, 
in the same county, and attended his first course of 
lectures at Geneva, N. Y., and his second course at 
the Berkshire Medical College at Pittsfield, Mass. 
(Dr. H. H. Childs, President), receiving the degree of 
M. D., in November, 1846. Dr. Ballou practiced 10 
years in Carlton, and while there attended a third 
course of lectures at the Buffalo Medical College, 
which proved extremely profitable. 

After several years of practice, and as soon as he 
had acquired a home, he chose a companion, Miss 
Catherine Maria Fuller, of Carlton, an acquain- 
tance of his early youth, to whom he was mar- 
ried, July 14, 1850, and who died April 14, 1 S 7 7 . 
She was a loving wife, an affectionate compan- 
ion, whose life was adorned with all ot the Chris- 
tian graces. His second marriage is dated Nov. 10, 



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1879, liis present wife having been Mrs. Calista 
(Clark) Byington, also of Carlton, another estimable 
ladj in the circle of his youthful acquaintances. Both 
of these companions have made the Doctor's home 
delightful, and both have striven to make it a hal- 
lowed resting place after care and toil, truly a fitting 
abode for the Christian graces. His first wife was an 
active Christian worker, as is also his present wife. 

In 1856, Doctor Ballou settled in Sandwich, and 
has been a successful physician and surgeon for 
nearly thirty years. He has always had a large 
business, and long ago attained a high standing in his 
profession and as a scientist. He has been a resi- 
dent from almost the beginning of the city, witness- 
ng its stable and rapid growth, and aided in every 
audable way to give an impulse to moral and edu- 
cational schemes for the general good of the citizens. 

The scientific labors of the Doctor in different fields 
of research have met with merited recognition. He 
is a member of the Ottawa (Illinois) and the,Cleve- 
land (Ohio) Academies of Science. His associates 
in the city, in the organization of the Sandwich 
Naturalists' Association, made him their President. 
He is a member of the "American Association for 
the Advancement of Science," and is a practical 
meteorologist. He has recently published the ob- 
servations of 33 years, which are especially valuable 
on account of their having been taken from the first 
by the aid of the required physical instruments. 
He has written much on the subject of meteor- 
ology, that has been published in the State Reports 
of Illinois. His specialties in natural history are 
Ichthyology and the Arachnida, he having devoted 
much time to the study of fish and the spider. 
He spent several years with his pen in promulgating 
the methods of artificial production of fish, for the 
more rapid re-stocking of barren streams, exhausted 
by over-fishing and fishing out of season. He was 
made a member of the British Association for the 
Advancement of Science at the meeting of that 
association in conjunction with the American Asso- 
ciation in August, 1884, at Montreal. In November 
of 1884 he was made a member of the National 
Public Health Association, which met at St. Louis. 
Hut the crowning recognition was the conferring upon 
the Doctor, on November rg, 1884, of a Fellowship 
in the Royal Meteorological Society of Great Britain. 
The Doctor is in correspondence with several emi- 
nent scientists in Europe, as well as in this country, 



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and is well known among the students of natural 
history on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean. His 
essays on medical science and on other subjects 
which have been published at different times, have 
elicited high commendation. Some of them have 
brought him valuable prizes, — notably those on agri- 
cultural and horticultural subjects. One on " Dairy 
Husbandry" and one on " Agriculture" received not 
only high commendation, but prizes as well. He 
has been a statistical correspondent for more than 
20 years, of the United States Department of Agri- 
culture; has managed a meteorological station at 
Sandwich for more than a quarter of a century, and 
for 18 years reported to the Smithsonian Institution, 
and for six years to the United States Signal Service. 
His station is no»v a " Voluntary Signal Service Sta- 
tion," and monthly reports are transmitted to the 
Chief Signal Officer at Washington, — the data col- 
lected by a complete equipment of physical instru- 
ments. His testimony is given that he has been 
benefited more by his connection with the Smith- 
sonian Institution by means of publications and 
reports and miscellaneous collections than from all 
other sources; that the able management of Prof. 
Henry, during his incumbency, and since his demise 
the wise direction of its affairs by Prof. Baird, have 
been the means of directing and educating more in 
the natural sciences than could have been accom- 
plished in any other direction. 

It would seem to be an act of supererogation to 
say that during all these 40 years, the Doctor had 
led a busy life. While in Western New York, dur- 
ing the administration of President Fillmore, in 
addition to his professional business, he held the re- 
sponsible position of Custom -House Officer in Niag- 
ara District, and since 1863 he has been United 
States Pension Surgeon, being now one of the oldest 
appointees in Northern Illinois holding the office. 
He is also Health Officer and Chairman of the Board 
of Health of the city. He was also the originator 
and Secretary of the Sandwich Fair, a stock com- 
pany, whose exhibitions were equal to those of any 
neighboring fairs. He held the office of Secretary 
14 years. Meanwhile, the University of Florida, the 
first educational center in that land of flowers and 
semi-tropical fruits, conferred the degree of Doctor of 
Philosophy (Ph.D.) upon our busy Doctor, pro 
merito. He desires thus publicly to acknowledge 
the great kindness of his eminent friends who fur- 



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nished the high testimonials required in such cases, 
namely : United States Senators Shelby M. Cullom, 
John A. Logan, Hon. Reuben Ellwood, ex-Congress- 
man John F. Farnsworth, Judge Isaac N. Wilson, 
Chief Judge of the Appellate Court of Illinois, Rev. 
William Goodfellow, A. M., I). D., Charles G. Faxon, 
LL.B., and O. B. Knickerbocker, Esq., of Aurora. 

Dr. Ballon has probably one of the largest medical 
and miscellaneous libraries in De Kalb County, it 
being especially rich in medical science, theology, 
biography, natural history and belles-lettres. He is 
a rigid Calvinist, and stands high socially and morally, 
as well as professionally. He believes the Bible and 
its teachings are better guides to the formation of 
character and a well ordered Christian life than those 
who are commissioned as expositors and interpreters 
of the inspired volume and the loving words of the 
Master. 

Dr. Ballou is remotely related to that eminent 
divine, the late Rev. Hosea Ballou, with whom the 
Garfields are also connected by marriage, the martyr 
President's mother being a Ballou and a cousin of 
Nahum Ballou, the Doctor's father. The Doctor's 
oldest surviving brother, Hosea M. Ballou, of Carlton, 
N. Y., is Custom-House Officer of the Rochester 
District, having served through two or more Repub- 
lican administrations, evidently honoring his trust by 
a faithful performance of its duties. His youngest 
brother, Daniel R. Ballou, came to Illinois with the 
Doctor, in 1856, and settled finally in the town of 
Fox, Kendall County, where he became a wealthy 
farmer, owning about 400 acres of land in the Fox 
River valley near Millington; but in the prime of 
manhood he lost his life by a fall from an iron 
bridge which was being constructed at Millington, 
111., on the 19th of February, 1884. He was a Cap- 
tain in the War of the Rebellion, doing patriotic ser- 
vice. He was long a station agent at Sandwich, and 
served for a long time as Supervisor of the town of 
Fox. He was also a Trustee of the Jacksonville 
Asylum and President of the Board of Trustees at 
the time of his death. 

The Doctor has found time to indulge in metrical 
composition, his elegies being tender and wholesome 
in tone and faultless in measure. His poem entitled 
" The Martyr President, Abraham Lincoln," has 
been repeated on various occasions, more especially 
on National Decoration days. 

As a specimen of the Doctor's poetical talent we 




reproduce the following magnificent tribute to his 
deceased wife. 

IN Ml.M'lKIAM. 

Lines written upon the death of his loving wife, who died suddenly, 
April 14, 1877. 



oil. let iik' strike m,\ barp ol song 

To mournful melody ! 
In sorrow's notes the theme prolong 

In tuneful harmony ! 
Monarch Supreme, thou tyrant king 

Of border realm of woe, 
Whose upas touch : l 1 1 < 1 fatal sting 

Proclaim a direful foe ! 



11. 



lie comes at morning-dawn of life 

And bears the loved away; 
Ere noon he comes when passion's rife, 

And buoyant hope holds sway; 
Be <'(iiiies al noon when manly strength 

And pride predominate; 
At day's decline be comes at length, 

And close- life's estate. 



Beneath eaeh roof-tree, anxious fear 

Pulses with each heart-beat, 
Lest some cherub or darling dear 

Be borne from Love's retreat. 
We may not know the chemistry 

That dims the lustrous eye; 
But God inspires the agency 

That heaves the lapsing sigh. 

IV. 

Beyond the stars in peerless light 

There lies the summer-land; 
Faith leads us to the sliining height 

Which bounds the golden strand. 
Here, guarded by the Father's care. 

The Savior dwells, whose hand 
Leads pilgrims up the pearly stair 

To greet each loving band. 



How tender now her words of love 

Exhaled almosl in death! 
They seem as wisdom from above, 

Breathed out by angel breath. 
Holy living, holy dying, 

( 'aring for all she knew . 
On Jesus (irmly relying, 

Thus daring to be true. 



Our kindred here and those in IIea\ en, 

Who've drifted on before, 
Where God has gathered those He's given 

Upon the other shore: 

To Jesus our loved one has gone 

To claim her promised rest ; 
Each thither by His love is drawn. 

To Hi ill a welcome guest. 



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VII. 

In iliai bright world, our home above, 

Where sorrow i- unknoM d, 
I- endless life, is joj and love. 

\\ bii her our loved has Bon n. 
There is a voire by anguish heard 

Beneath life's galling chain ; 
Thai aweetesl voice is Jesus 1 word, 

"The pure -1 1:1 1 1 meet again." 

As a representative of the highest order of learn- 
ing and mental culture, and a man in every sense 
worthy to be remembered by a grateful community, 
we place the portrait of Dr. Ballou in this volume. 



ev. John C. Schweitzer, resident in the 
village of Malta, is engaged in general 
farming on sections 2 and 3 in the same- 
township. He is the son of Jacob Schweitzer, 
who was a German by birth, and was born 
June 24, 1827, in the canton of Basel, Switzer- 
land, near the city of the same name situated on the 
river Rhine. His mother, Barabara M. (Mangold) 
Schweitzer, was also a native of Switzerland. The 
family came to America when the son who is the 
subject of this sketch was six years old. They took 
up their residence on a farm in Seneca Co., Ohio, 
where the father died within the first year. Later 
the mother married again and John was an inmate 
of the new household until he was 20 years of age. 
In 1847 he came to Kane Co., 111., to engage in farm- 
ing, and accordingly purchased a farm. He returned 
to Ohio for the members of his family and brought 
back with him his step-father and mother, and they 
were inmates of the same home several years in 
Kane County. In 1852 Mr. Schweitzer decided to 
settle in De Kalb County and bought a farm in 
Pierce Township, whither the family removed. His 
mother and step-father died there some years later. 
Mr. Schweitzer was one of the earliest settlers in 
Pierce Township, where he owned 160 acres of land, 
and he was also a pioneer of the portion of Kane 
County where he located. 

While living in Pierce Township he spent eight 
years as an itinerant minister of the Evangelical 
Association, and his circuit embraced the entire 
States of Wisconsin, Illinois and Indiana. At Kan- 
kakee, 111., he was seized with violent illness, which 
resulted in the permanent loss of his health. He 



began his career as a local preacher when he was 
26 years of age, and he has pursued his ministerial 
labors ever since, with excellent results. In political 
views he is a Republican. 

In [882 Mr. Schweitzer came to the township of 
Malta and, associated with his sons, he bought 409 
acres of land, where they have conducted joint oper- 
ations in agriculture and are also interested in rais- 
ing stock. 

He was married in De Kalb County, to Elizabeth, 
daughter of John and Mary (Blow) Lesher. She- 
was born in Lebanon Co., Pa., Sept. 23, 1832, and 
came with her parents in childhood to Ohio. In 
1846 the family removed to Illinois and settled in 
De Kalb County. Of this union 1 1 children have 
been born : Amelia, Mary E., John H., Edward F., 
Joseph A. and Nora E. S. are the survivors ; the 
others died in infancy. 




* -^- * 

fbner H. Calhoun, farmer, section 31, May- 
jf field Township, was born Feb. 19, 1827, in 
""» Pittsford, N. Y. His father, Andrew Cal- 
houn, was born in the State of New York and 
married Eleanor Roweth, who was born in 
England. About the year 1829 the family 
came to St. Joseph, Mich., and were there resident 
until 1845, in which year they fixed their abode in 
Hancock Co., 111. A year later they settled in De 
Kalb. In 1873 the father removed to Cortland, his 
present residence, the mother having died in De 
Kalb, July 9, 1S73. Their children — 1 1 in number 
— grew to adult age. 

Mr. Calhoun is the fourth child of his parents, and 
he was less than three years of age when they went 
to Michigan. He grew to manhood on a farm and 
at 19 entered upon an independent career, operating 
for some years as a farm laborer. In 1856 he rented 
a farm and continued to manage it for three years. 
In 1S59 he bought 80 acres of land where he has 
since carried on his agricultural interests, and on 
which he settled in i860. On this his farm build- 
ings are erected, and he has added to his estate until 
it includes 400 acres, all improved and in advanced 
cultivation. It is stocked with 60 head of cattle, 14 
horses and a drove of 70 hogs. 

Mr. Calhoun is identified with the Republican ele- 



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ment in politics, and is one of the leading men of his 
township. 

Mrs. Calhoun was formerly Betsey Renwick. She 
was born in Scotland Aug. 26, 1830. Her parents, 
Walter and Mary (VVeel) Renwick, were also born in 
the same country, and in 1835 emigrated thence to 
Canada, where the mother died, in 1842. Her father 
came to Illinois in r845 and settled in Kane County. 
After a stay of three years, in 1848, he came to 
Pierce Township and died there April 9, 1871. Mrs. 
Calhoun is the 12th in order of a family of 16 chil- 
dren. She was five years of age when she came to 
the American continent. Mr. and Mrs. Calhoun 
were married Sept. 20, 1852, and have had n chil- 
dren,— Maggie M., Walter R., Ida M., Nathan C, 
Jennie M., Dudley S., Lizzie F., Delia I., Orlando, 
Mary and Annabel. The three last named are not 
living. 

''''■ 'fH's awrence Farley, general farmer, section 12, 

w 




Malta Township, was born in County 
Meath, Ireland, about 1833. His parents, 
Patrick and Mary (McCan) Farley, were born 
in the same county and there passed their en- 
tire lives. The senior Farley died when his 
son was five years of age, and the mother survived 
but six years later, leaving him wholly orphaned 
when 1 1 years old. He was made by the event the 
builder of his own fortunes, and he took advantage 
of every opportunity for remunerative labor that 
offered. When he reached the age of 17 years, in 
company with his youngest sister, Catherine, now 
married and resident at Springfield, Mo., he came to 
America. They landed at the port of New York and 
proceeded thence to Newark, N. J , where a brother 
and sister who had preceded his removal to the 
United States some years earlier, were then resident. 
Mr. Farley continued to remain in Newark four 
years, when he came to Rockford, 111., and became a 
farm laborer in the vicinity of that place. He was 
married at Rockford, to Catherine Downey, who was 
a native of Ireland and is the daughter of John and 
Mary Downey, also born in Ireland. Mrs. Farley 
was born in County Louth, Ireland, Nov. 3, 1834. 
■ Her father died when she was about eight years old, 
and she was cared for by her mother as long as she 



lived. She was orphaned but a few years later and 
soon after came to the United States with acquaint- 
ances. She went to Newark, N. J., where she con- 
tinued to lived until she was 23 years of age, when 
she came to Rockford and was married. Of this 
union eight children have been bom, two of whom 
are deceased. Following is the record : John was 
born July 17, 1861 ; Mary J., Feb. 12, 1863; Law- 
rence L., April 14, 1865; James, July 28, r867; 
Katie, Aug. 21, 1870; Anna A., Sept. 27, 1872. 
Thomas, oldest child, died Jan. T2, 1883, aged 23 
years and nine months. William H, the youngest, 
died March 5, 1875, aged five months. 

Mr Farley was engaged in farming some years 
after marriage at Rockford. In January, i86r, the 
family came to the township of Malta and settled on 
a rented farm, which the father conducted after the 
method of working on shares, until the autumn of 
1865. At that date he purchased 80 acres of land, 
where he began independent farming, and he is now 
the owner of 491 acres of land, 171 acres of which is 
in De Kalb Township. Nearly the whole tract is 
under good improvement, and the farm buildings are 
of excellent type. He is also the owner of good 
graded cattle and hogs. He is a Democrat and the 
family are Roman Catholics. 



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jta.enry O. Whitmore, Supervisor of Mayfield 
Township, has been a resident of the county 
and township where he now lives since 
1845, having come hither when a child of three 
years with his parents. He was born Oct. 18, 
1843, in Pomfret, Windsor Co., Vt. The first 
18 years of his life were passed on his father's farm 
and in attendance at school. During the winter fol- 
lowing his attaining his 19th year, he engaged in 
teaching; but since that date he has operated exclu- 
sively as a farmer. He then came into possession 
of 120 acres of land, which is his homestead, and to 
which he has added 90 acres. The entire acreage is 
under excellent cultivation and forms an attractive 
and valuable home. 

In political sentiment Mr. Whitmore adopts the 
principles and issues of the Republican party. He 
has held various local offices at different times, and 



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iii the spring of 1883 was elected Supervisor. He 
was re-elected a year later to the same position. 

Feb. 26, 1862, Mr. Whitmore was married to 
Esther V. Andrews, and their two children were horn 
/§. as follows: Wallace \V., Feb. 1 r, 1863, and Cora C, 
Oct. 20, 1867. Mrs. Whitmore was born Oct. 28, 
1844, in Warren Co., N. Y., and is the daughter ot 
human and Sophronia (Collins) Andrews. Her par- 
ents were natives of Warren County, and there the 
mother died in 1850. Her father came to De Kalb 
County and settled in the township of the same 
name, going thence a few years later to Indiana, 
where he passed the remainder of his life. Mr. and 
Mrs. Whitmore are members of the Universalist 
Church. 




*S§ 



7}|3\ lanson R. Puffer, farmer and stock-raiser, 
residing on section 1, Malta Township, was 
born in Franklin Co., Mass., Sept. 30, 184T. 
His father, James Puffer, is a native of Chesh- 
ire Co., N. H., of New England ancestry, and 
is at present residing in his native county, 
aged 65 years. His mother, Harriet (Field) Puffer, 
was also a native of Cheshire Co., N. H., and died 
there in her 2 2d year. 

Mr. Puffer was only two weeks old at the time of 
his mother's death, and was the only son by his fa- 
ther's first marriage. His father married again, and 
Alanson was reared under the fostering care of his 
stepmother. He remained with the family, assisting 
on the farm and attending the common schools, until 
he attained the age of 15 years, when he engaged 
as a farm hand. 

The marriage of Mr. Puffer occurred Jan. ri, 
1872, in Rutland Co., Vt.,and the partner of his joys 
and sorrows whom he selected was Miss Emma S. 
Raniney. She was a daughter of Aretas and Cleo- 
patra (Clark) Ramney, natives of Vermont. Her 
father was of New England parentage and of Scotch 
extraction. The Clark family (maiden name of her 
mother) were of the old " Puritan " stock, and from 
authentic genealogical records in Mrs. Puffer's pos- 
session she traces her ancestry back to Thomas 
Clark, an officer on the Mayflower. Cleopatra 
(Clark) Ramney, mother of Mrs. Puffer, was a de- 
scendant of Thomas Clark of the seventh generation, 
was born Nov. io, 1810, and died Aug. 14, 1880. 




She was the second wife of Mr. Ramney, and by 
him had three children, two of whom are living and 
the oldest of whom is Mrs. Puffer, wife of the sub- 
ject of this notice. She was born March 10, 1840, 
in Rutland Co., Vt. Her maiden life was spent at 
home, assisting her mother in the hoasehold duties 
and attending the common schools, also Castleton 
Seminary, at which institution she graduated. When 
25 years of age Mrs. Puffer began teaching in the 
common schools of her native county and followed 
that vocation, in which she vigorously endeavored to 
excel, for some 16 years and until her marriage to 
Mr. Puffer. 

Shortly after marriage Mr. Puffer came to this 
county and purchased 80 acres of land in Milan 
Township. He vigorously entered on the task of 
improving it and resided on it for nine years. He 
then, in 1880, exchanged it for 80 acres in Malta 
Township, upon which he moved. He has subse- 
quently purchased 80 acres additional, and now has 
160 acres. The entire tract is under a good state of 
cultivation and well stocked. His residence and 
farm buildings are of first-class order. 

Religiously, Mr. and Mrs. Puffer are members of 
the Congregational Church, of which Mr. Puffer is 
one of the Trustees. Politically, he affiliates with 
the Democratic party, and has held the minor offices 
of his township. 



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ames Carter, farmer, owning and residing 
'- on the east half of section 3, Afton Town- 
ship, was born in Springfield, Hampden 
Co., Mass., Dec. 25, 1832. He is a son of 
James and Anna M. (Nye) Carter, deceased. 
His father was a Methodist Episcopal clergy- 
man, a native of New England and of English ex- 
traction. At his death, which occurred in 1845, 
when James was but 13 years old, he left his son a 
fortune aggregating $70,000. A guardian was ap- 
pointed, and he squandered a portion of the fortune, 
James receiving the remainder. The grandfather of 
James, both on his father's and mother's side, were 
soldiers in the Revolutionary War. 

James Carter, subject of this notice, lived under 
the parental roof-tree until the death of his father, 
rec eiving the advantages of a common-school edit- 



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cation. Four years after his father's death, in 1S49, 
having attained the age of 17 years, his desire to 
increase his worldly possessions was augmented by 
the discovery of gold in California, and he deter- 
mined to go to that State. Six of his schoolmates 
agreed to accompany him providing he would ad- 
vance sufficient to pay expenses, to which he gener- 
ously consented. Their names were Lester Conklin, 
nephew of ex-Senator Conklin, John Hosmer, John 
Munger, Obadiah Burdette, Anson Nye and Jack 
Coby. They crossed the plains and safely arrived 
in the " land of gold." Soon three of the seven 
mates became homesick, and Mr. Carter paid their 
expenses home. The other four remained and en- 
gaged in mining. 

On one occasion Mr. Carter was out prospecting 
unaccompanied, and while in a gulch a fog came up 
and he became lost. His mates commenced the 
search for him, but not until three days and three 
nights had passed did they succeed in finding him ! 
He had almost perished for want of food, but, after 
being taken to the camp and nursed a few days, re- 
covered. 

Four of the seven mates remained in California, 
mining, Lester Conklin being the only one to make a 
success. Mr. Carter remained there about 10 
months and then returned, overland, and located in 
Cayuga Co., N. Y. He had spent his fortune and 
was compelled to go to work. Accordingly, he hired 
himself to a German, and the first day's work he 
ever did was chopping wood, and then drove team 
for the same gentleman two months and two days, 
whereupon he received his discharge, accompanied 
by the magnificent sum of $150 for his services. 

Mr. Carter then came to Illinois and engaged in a 
machine-shop, where he worked for 10 months, then 
purchased a threshing-machine and engaged in 
threshing grain. He followed the business for some 
10 years, alternating it with buying horses in all 
parts of the country, and speculating wherever he 
could see a dollar to be made. 

In 1862 he went to Afton Township, worked land 
on shares for some two years, then, in 1 866, purchased 
160 acres. He has since added 447 acres to his 
original purchase, and now owns 607 acres. He- 
has on his farm one of the finest frame residences in 
the township, besides good frame out-buildings, and 
a greater portion of his land under cultivation. 

Mr. Carter was married Nov. 21, 1862, to Mrs. 



Catv S. Avery, widow of Smith D., Avery, to whom 
she was married March 27, 1858, at Aurora, Kane 
County, 111. Mr. Avery was born Aug. 27, 1836, 
and died Jan. 1, 1862, at Camp Raleigh, Mo., 
with a congestive chill, while in the service of his 
lountry in the late Civil War. He was a member of 
Co. A, 36th 111. Vol. Inf., denominated the "Aurora 
Dragoons.'' Mr. and Mrs. Avery were the parents 
of three children : Anna D., born April 5, 1S59; 
Anson A., Sept. 21, i860; and Smith D., Jan. 7, 
1862. Mrs. Carter's father, Harvey B. Densmore, 
was born Sept. 25, 1815, in Hartford, Windsor Co., 
Vt., and is at present residing with her. Her mother, 
Caty S. Densmore, was born March 25, 1817, and 
died July 21, 1841, after which her father married 
Mary J. Mather. Mrs. C. was born May 14, 1836, 
in Cortland, Cortland Co., N. Y. She was bronchi 
to this county by her parents in 1836, starting over- 
land Dec. 19, and arriving here Nov. 29, of that 
year. 

Mr. and Mrs. Carter are the parents of four chil- 
dren, namely: Charles E., born Sept. 27, 1S63; 
Jane H., Oct. 16, 1865; Caty S., June 22, 1867; 
Grace E., July 29, 1869, — all in Afton Township. 

Mr. Carter, politically, is a Republican. He has 
been Assessor for three years, and was elected to the 
position again last spring.. He has also been Road 
Commissioner three years. 





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oseph Slade, farmer, section 19, De Kalb 
- Township, was born Feb. 4, 1829, in Buck- 
jfF'9 inghamshire, England. His parents, Simon 
and Ann (Jones) Slade, were natives of Eng- 
and, and there passed their entire lives. Their 
family included 1 1 children. 
At the age of 26 years Mr. Slade came to the 
United States. He passed a few months in the 
State of New York, and in the fall of the same year — 
1855 — came to De Kalb County and to the township 
of the same name, where he passed 12 years in vari- 
ous occupations. In 1867 he bought the farm on 
which he has since resided and labored, which com- 
prised 80 acres of land. He is now the owner of 91 
acres, which is all under cultivation. 

Politically he is a Republican and has officiated 
in the capacity of School Director. 

He was married Feb. 5, 1878, in De Kalb Town- 

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DF. KALB COUNTY. 






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ship, to Jane, daughter of Henry and Harriet (Willis) 
S.irney. Her parents were of English birth and lived 
in that country all their lives. Mrs. Slade was born 
there March 22, 1843, and came to America in Jan- 
uary, 1878. Her mother was born in 18 10 and died 
in 1849; and her father, born in 1815, died in Janu- 
ary, 1884. The children born of her marriage are 
as follows: Henry H., born Dec. 15, 1878; Mabel 
A , March 1, 1881 ; Sarah I., May 2, 1883. 

Among the list of portraits of representative men 
of De Kalb County which may be found in this 
Album, we give that of Mr. Slade, which is engraved 
from a photograph taken in 1878. 



^lias Hartman was born in Northampton 
Co., Pa., Oct. 27, 1S10. He is the son of 
John and Regina (Bear) Hartman. When 
pS. eight years of age the family moved to Luzerne 
i> County, in the same State, where Elias re- 
J mained until 22 years of age, when he went to 
Medina Co., Ohio, where he remained two years. 
For the next two years he roved about seeking the 
place where he should make a permanent home. In 
1836 he visited De Kalb County and located a claim 
in Ohio Grove, Cortland Township, where he subse- 
quently built a log house. On the first day of Jan- 
uary, 1838, he was united in marriage with Almira ' 
Churchill and moved at once into his new house. 
Mr. and Mrs. Hartman are the parents of six chil- 
dren, five of whom are living — Philo De Witt, Mary 
O., Rosetta M., David W., Carrie D. Mr. Hartman 
is one of the oldest living settlers in De Kalb County 
and has lived almost a half century within five miles 
of where he located his claim in 1836. He has lived 
to see realized more than he could have dreamed of 
when, with his young bride, he lived a pioneer life in 
old De Kalb. 



oseph B. Greek, yeoman, section 13, Malta 
jj~ Township, was born Dec. 25, 1854, in 
Devonshire, England, where his parents, 
William and Mary (Judd) Greek, and their an- 
cestors were born. The father died there when 
74 years of age, and the mother's demise oc- 
curred when she was 53 years old. They had eight 





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children ; two died in England, two emigrated to New 
Zealand and three are still faithful to the home in- 
stinct, remaining in their native shire. 

Mr. Greek, of this sketch, yielded to impulse and 
came to the New World, when he was 20 years old, 
in 1874, accompanying some friends hither. He first 
located at St. Charles, Kane Co., 111., where his uncle 
had recently deceased, and where he had gone for 
the purpose of settling the estate, which was willed 
to the brother, the father of Mr. Greek. The legatee 
had arranged for the reversion of the property, which 
included 280 acres of land to the son who had crossed 
the ocean to conduct the necessary details of the 
business. The farm is situated on section 13, Malta 
Township. After adjusting matters, Mr. Greek re- 
turned to England and continued to reside there 
until 1879, when he came to America a second time 
to establish a permanent home on the farm in Malta 
Township, which is now in a finely improved condi- 
tion, and is stocked with valuable cattle and swine. 
He is a Republican in his political views. 



v arry A. Joslyn, Cortland Township, was 
born in Genesee Co., N. Y., Dec. 10, 181 6, 
and is the son of Phineas and Lorinda 
(Wood worth) Joslyn, the former a native of 
New York, and the latter of Vermont. In the 
fall of 1838 the family came to De Kalb County, 
Harry preceding them the previous spring, but re- 
turning and coming back with his parents. On. ar- 
riving in the spring, Harry located a claim on section 
9, Cortland Township, which he gave to his father on 
the latter's arrival. He then purchased a claim on 
section 4, Cortland Township, which he held for 
some years, obtaining his title from the Government 
when the land came into market. He subsequently 
sold this farm and purchased another on section 3, 
which he held until 1854, when he sold out, moved 
to Sycamore, and, in company with H. H. Rowe, com- 
menced the mercantile business, carrying a general 
stock. In 1855, Kimball Dow became associated 
with the firm of Rowe ..V Joslyn, the partnership con- 
tinuing until the hard times of 1857, when it was dis- 
solved. In 1858 Mr. Joslyn was appointed Deputy 
Sheriff and served six years, when he was elected 
Sheriff and served one term. In May, 1867, he pur- 




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chased a farm on section 16, Cortland, where he 
resided until May, 1883, when he sold out and pur- 
chased a few acres of land, together with a comfort- 
able dwelling-house on section 5, Cortland, but 
immediately adjoining the city limits of Sycamore on 
the south. In addition to that of Sheriff, Mr. Joslyn 
has held other local offices in the county. He was 
Collector of taxes for Sycamore for six years. While 
only receiving a common- school education, Mr. 
Joslyn mastered his studies so well that for one year 
prior to his coming to De Kalb he taught school in 
Erie County, of his native State. On his arrival here 
he taught the winter term of the school four miles 
north of Sycamore. He also taught one winter in 
Tazewell Co , 111. 

On the nth day of May, 1841, Mr. Joslyn was 
united in marriage with Lucy Ann Waterman, a na- 
tive of Genesee, now Wyoming Co., N. Y., but who 
came to this county in company with her parents 
at an early day. Five children were born unto them, 
—Louisa A.; Franklin M., now Probate Judge of 
Atchison Co., Mo.; John P., deceased; William L. 
an attorney and real-estate agent at Algona, Iowa;, 
James C, now Assistant Postmaster at Sycamore. 



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: harles P. Coy, farmer, section 13, Somo- 

3 ,' nauk Township, was born June 30, 1820, 

. ,,- " in Middletown, Rutland Co., Vt. Reuben 

Pjw Coy, his father, was born in the same township 

; J \^ in the Green Mountain State, and married 

' Charity Woodruff, a native of Farmington, 

Conn. Two of their five children are now living. 

Mr. Coy has one brother — Martin H. — a farmer in 

Middletown, Vt. 

Mr. Coy was reared on a farm and attended the 
common schools of his native place, and later was a 
student at the Troy Conference Academy at Poult- 
ney, one of the most popular and successful educa- 
tional institutions of the East. He taught six terms 
of school, and also acted about 18 months as a clerk 
in a store in Middletown. Associated with his 
brother Martin, he bought 300 acres of land in his 
native township, where they made a specialty of 
breeding sheep and cattle. He was married Feb. 21, 
1850. in Tinmouth, Rutland Co., Vt., to Nancy R. 
Coleman. They have become the parents of six 




children, whose record is as follows. Cornelia is the 
wife of John Scott, a farmer in Somonauk Township. 
1 I0r.1t e (1. is a farmer in the same township. Charles 
1). is deceased. Hattie E. is at home. Jane C. is 
deceased. Royal C. is a student at the Jenning 
Seminary at Aurora, 111. 

In 1869 Mr. Coy removed with his family to Illi- 
nois and settled where he now resides. At the out- 
set he bought 160 acres of fine and valuable land, 
and has increased his estate until he has 272 acres 
where he is pursuing a prosperous course of agricul- 
ture. 

While a resident of his native State, Mr. Coy was 
actively interested in politics, both local and general, 
and he held a number of township offices. He rep- 
resented Middletown in the State Assembly in 
1858-9, during which time the new State-House at 
Montpelier was constructed. 



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^ in Washington Co., N. Y., Dec. 19, 1820, 
and is a son of Simeon and Annie Hotchkiss. 
/ivj When 15 years of age, in June, 1S36, his par- 
I cuts emigtated to this State and located at Na- 
perville, Cook Co., 111. Two months later they 
moved to Kane County, where his father and family 
made a claim of 1,100 acres of land. This was prior 
to the Government survey, and claims were procured 
by plowing furrows and blazing trees. The land was 
all in its natural condition, and his father entered at 
once on the laborious task of improving his claim. 
The nearest postoffice was 10 miles distant, and 
postage 25 cents on each letter. His father had great 
faith in the future of the country and continued in 
his labors of improvement until the land was offered 
for sale by the Government, when he purchased 200 
acres. 

Nelson Hotchkiss remained with his father, assist- 
ing in the improvement of his claim, prior to the time 
it was offered for sale by the Government, and after- 
ward on the land his father purchased until 1855. 
During that year he moved on section j(>, Shabbona 
Township, where he at present owns 140 acres. He 
lived on the latter place engaged in cultivating it 



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until the fall of 1S83, when he removed with his 
family to the village of Shabbona. 

Mr. Hutchkiss was married April 22, 1845, to Miss 
Harriet, daughter "f Seth and Rachel (Davenport) 
Rice. She was bom in Chemung Co., N. Y., and 
accompanied her parents to this State in 1843. 

Mr and Mrs. H. are the parents of two children, 
namely: F. Addie, wife of William Jackson, a mer- 
chant .a Shabbona, and Lewis R., who married Eliz- 
abeth Vossburg and resides on the old homestead on 
section 26. 




f 



jichael O'Brien, farmer, section 13, Milan 
Township, was born Sept. 9, 1836, in 
County Clare, Ireland. Martin O'Brien, 
^^\ his father, claims lineal desi ent from one of 
the Irish kings — Bryan — from whom he is in 
the 29th generation. The genealogy is still in- 
tact, although the posterity is widely diffused. The 
senior O'Brien died in Ireland in 1858. 

The younger O'Brien came to America when he 
was 16 years of age, and located first at Boston, 
where lie spent some time occupied in the capacity 
of a common laborer. In 1856 he came to Chicago, 
and soon after proceeded to the Southern States, 
where he spent three years in various localities. In 
the fall of i860 he came to De Kalb County and pur- 
chased the farm upon which he has, since 1878 
prosecuted his agricultural interests, buying at first 
80 acres in Milan Township. He placed it in care 
of a man to enter upon the work of improvement and 
in 1871 added 40 acres to the estate, the latter tract 
being situated on section 12. In 1878 he entered 
upon the work of cultivating his property in person, 
and in 1884 purchased an additional 80 acres on 
section 13. The large and valuable farm is all im- 
proved and supplied with good farm buildings. Mr. 
O'Brien's farm is stocked with all varieties of stock 
except sheep. He is a zealous Democrat and is one 
of the school officers of Milan Township. 

Hi> marriage to Mary A. Butler took place Jan. 29, 
1878,111 Clinton Township. Mrs. O'Brien was born 
Dec. 23, 1856, in County Tipperary, Ireland, and she 
is the daughter of William and Mary (Pollard) But- 
ler, who are still living in their native land. She 
1 ame to America when she was 18 years of age, and 








% 



lived some time at Shabbona Grove. Mary E., Katie 
and Maggie are the names of the children of Mr. and 
Mrs. O'Brien. The family are members of the 
Roman Catholic Church. 



amuel Archer, dealer in grain and coal at 
Shabbona, was born in Suffolk, England, 
April 21, 1850, the son of John and Eliz- 
/i'V, abeth Archer. He came to America with his 
- !l £ parents in 1864, and made his home on a farm 
in the township of Paw Paw, De Kalb Co., 111. 
He received a common-school education and was 
engaged in farming till he formed the existing part- 
nership with Mr. George Lovering, Jan. 1, 1883. 
They dissolved partnership March 9, 1885, and Mr. 
Archer has leased the Bouslough Elevator for five 
years, and will carry on a trade in grain, seeds, hard 
and soft coal, and will commence business on M;n 

1, 1885. He has also purchased a tine residen 

the village. He was married in Malugin Township, 
Lee Co., 111., July 5, 1872, to Miss Sarah Agler, 
daughter of John and Sarah Agler. They had two 
children, both daughters, named M. Allie and A. 
Pearl. Mrs. A. died Nov. 16, 1878, and Mr. Archer 
was married again Jan. 5, 1881, at Amboy, 111., to 
Miss Sarah E. Lacey, daughter of William and Mar- 
garet Lacey, and born in Chicago, 111. 

Mr Archer is independent in his votes on politii al 
issues. 



rs. Olive A. Eggleston, widow of Clark 
A. Eggleston and daughter of Moses L. 
and Martha (Brown) Simpson, was born 
\ Feb. 7, 1 8 1 1 , in Chatham, Columbia Co., N. 
Y. Her parents were farmers and lived all 
their lives in the State of New York. Her 
mother was a Quaker, and was a member of a settle- 
ment of that sect in New York. After her marriage 
she settled with her husband near the State line of 
Massachusetts, going later to Ohio and locating at 
Cleveland. Mr. Eggleston was a mechanic and fol- 
lowed his trade until His removal to the West in 
1858, when he became a farmer in the township of 
Milan. The place included 160 acres, and Mrs 






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Eggleston has recently sold 80 acres. She has man- 
aged her business affairs alone since 1862, conduct- 
ing her farming and real-estate business herself. She 
has been the mother of five children, three of whom 
are deceased. George C. married Ella Duffy, and 
they reside in the township of De Kalb. Edgar H. 
married Clara Rands, and they live with the mother 
on the homestead. The latter is a member of the 
Methodist Episcopal Church. 



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^fffilt eorge W. Crapser, dealer in general hard- 
I'ilMJli ware . stoves, etc., and farm machinery, 
-Qu})f? K established his business at Shabbona, April 
* T J 5> JS77, and carries a stock averaging from 
$5,500 to $6,000. He was born near Northville, 
La Salle Co., 111., Jan. 16, 1848, and is the son 
of William H. and Emeline (Seaman) Crapser. He 
was educated in the common schools, and was 
brought up on his father's farm. In 1875 he began 
traveling as a salesman of farm machinery, and con- 
tinued that business about two years. He came to 
Shabbona in the spring of 1877, and on the 15th of 
April, that year, entered upon his present business. 
He was married at Sandwich, this county, March 
27, 1872, to Miss Emma J., daughter of John and 
Marian Lindertnan. She was born in Van Buren 
Co., Mich., Jan. T4, 1853. They have three children, 
— one son and two daughters. The eldest, Harry 
A., was born Dec. 6, 1873; the second, Hattie M^ 
was born Aug. 3, 1878, and Jessie E., Aug. 27, 1880. 
Mr. Crapser has served two years as President of 
the Board of Village Trustees of Shabbona. In 
politics he is a Republican. 



Mayfield Township after the organization. On this 
the original proprietor resided until 1870, when he 
Located in Sycamore and is now a resident there. A 
biographical sketch and portrait of Spafford Smith 
appears on other pages of this work. The only sister 
of Edwin P. Smith was named Eliza A. 

The subject of this sketch was born Jan. 19, 1843, 
in the township of Mayfield, on the farm which he 
bought of his father in 1883, with whom he was a 
joint occupant of the place previous to that date. 
He obtained such education as the common schools 
afforded, and has devoted his life with vigorous effort 
to the pursuit of agriculture. He is a Republican in 
political faith and relations. 

His marriage to Flora M. Joiner took place Jan. 6, 
1870, in the township of Mayfield, where she was 
born Feb. 27, 1849. She is the daughter of Cyrus 
and Elmina Joiner, of Mayfield Township, of whom 
a biographical notice appears elsewhere in this 
Album. One child, — Albert P., born Nov. 8, 187 1, 
— is the son of Mr. and Mrs. Smith. Mr. S. has 
officiated three years as Highway Commissioner and 
seven years as School Director. 




dwiu P. Smith, farmer, section 35, May- 
field Township, is a native citizen of De 
Kalb County. His parents, Spafford and 
jgSv. Eliza (Sholes) Smith, came to De Kalb County 
in the fall of 1839, the father remaining in 
Sycamore about six months. While there, in 
company with a brother, Curtis Smith, he entered a 
claim of about 1,000 acres of land, which they after- 
ward divided, and that portion allotted to Mr. S. 
Smith included 500 acres situated in what became 



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£ dmund Gathercoal, general farmer and 
stockman, located on section 13, Malta 
Township, was born in Norfolkshire, Eng- 



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Jg. land, Dec. 4, 1812. His father, Thomas Gath- 
ercoal, was also born in England, and married 
Susan Johnson. She died where she had lived 
all her life, when her son Edmund was but 13 years 
old. The father, who in early life was a common 
laborer, became a butcher in later life in his native 
country; and, having received a competence, he 
came to America to spend his declining years with 
his children, and he died in Kingston Townshipj at 
the home of his daughter, Mrs. Susan Clark, aged 82 
years. 

On the event of his marriage Mr. Gathercoal as- 
sumed independent relations with the world, and 
lived in Cambridgeshire, England, until 1S63. the 
year in which he emigrated with his family to Amer- 
ica. Their first location was at Belvidere, Boone 
Co., 111. In February, 1865, they settled in Malta 
Township, where the father purchased 40 acres oi~ 
land on section 13, anil later bought 40 acres addi- 



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I on ection 12 adjoining his first pun h 

entire propertj is now well improved. In polit- 
ical affiliation he is a Republican. 

Mr. Gathercoal was married in Cambridgeshire, 
i land, Ma) 2. 1841, to Sarah Garner, bj whom 
he has had 13 children, whose record is as follows: 
Thomas is a farmer in Kingston Township; Faith 
married George Ashelford (see sketch); John is a 
mechanic al Sycamore; Susan (Clark) resides in 
Kingston Township: Mary A. (Blake) live9 in De 
K.ilh, where her husband is employed as a florist by 
Isaac L. Ellwood; Christiana (Mrs. Balcom) lives at 
De Kalli; Addie M. and Bell are the two young- 
est; Rosanna died when 15 months old; William 
was nearlj five years of age when he died; James' 
decease look place when he was 15 months old; 
William (2d) was four and a half years old when he- 
died; an elder daughter, also named Rosanna, died 
at the age of 13 years. Mrs. G, was born June 1 1, 
1822. She is the daughter of John and Mary 
(Spener) Garner, both natives of England, where 
they passed their entire lives. 



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Bessie M. The youngest son, Roy, died when 10 
months old. Mrs. Whitinore was born May 3, 1847, 
in Warren County, N. Y., and is the daughter of Lu- 
iium and Sophronia (Collins) Andrews, who were 
natives of the State of Mew York, and where the lat- 
ter died. The former came to De Kalb County, and 
went later to Indiana. Mr. Andrews was born Feb. 
18, 1809, and married Nov. 21, 1832, and died Sept. 
iS, 1864. His wife, Sophronia (Collins) Andrews, 
was born April 6, 1 <S 1 5 , and died Oct. 2, 1850. 



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f i'PxJ, oward Whit more, tanner, section 34, May- 
/M field Township, was born in I'otnfret, Wind- 
~' x (£~ sor Co., Vt., Dec. 2, 1838. His parents, 
&5 Enos and Salina (Reed) Whitinore, were of 
i New England birth and origin. The father was 
born Nov. 27, 1802, the mother Nov. 25, 1815. 
They were married April 7, 1S30. The former died 
May 1, 1877, and the mother died Aug. 16, 1861. 
They settled in Mayfield Township about 1845, and 
were among the pioneer element of the county of 
De Kalb. They were residents of Mayfield Town- 
ship from the time of their removal hither until their 
deaths. 

Mr. Whitinore has been an inhabitant of the 
county and township where he now lives, since the 
age of seven years. He is the proprietor of a finely 
improved and valuable tract of land, which includes 
160 acres. Politically he is a Republican. 

He was united in marriage, at Sycamore, Feb. 1, 
1864, to Julia Andrews, and they have had five chil- 
dren,— Walter S., Eleanor, Alfred H., Roy P., and 

^€<¥^ ^A^flBg 





on a farm, receiving the advantages afforded 
y the common schools. 
He was married to Miss Sarah Ulyett, at Elmton 
Church, Derbyshire, England, Dec. 29, 1834. She 
was a daughtei of John and Margaret (Wardley) 
Ulyett, natives of that country, and was born June 
22, 1810, in Elmton, Derbyshire, England. In 1852 
Mr. Miillins emigrated, with his family, to this 
country. He immediately purchased a farm of 160 
acres on section 17, that township, and has since in- 
creased his acreage to 580 acres. Of this amount 
he now owns 160 acres, located on section 8, which 
he retains. 

Mr. and Mrs. Mullins were the parents of eight 
children, all of whom were born in England. Ju- 
liana, the eldest, was born March 6, 1836, and died 
in infancy. Mary was born June 10, 1839, and is 
the wife of Septimus Storey, a resident of Shabbona 
Township. George was born May 3, 1842, married 
M 11- \. Bostock and lives in I.ee Co., 111. John 
was bom Oct. 4, [844, married Martha Nicholson 
and is a farmer in Shabbona Township. Robert F. 
was born March 8, 1846. married Melvina Kenicut, 
and lives in Ackley, Iowa. William was bom 
April 3, [848, married Sarah Holmes and re- 
sides in Shabbona Township. Hcim was born Jan. 
30, 1850; married Retie Cisco and lives in Acklev, 



I obert Mullins, retired farmer residing at 
Shabbona, was born in Woodhall, York- 
'' shire, England, April 24, 181 1. He is a C >; 
son of George and Juliana (Gillott) Mullins, S 
natives of that country, and was brought up {£ 



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[owa. Thomas was born Oct. 12, 1S51, and is cn- 
gaged in the jewelry business at Shabbona 

Mrs. Mullins died June 16. [860, from fright 
caused by a tornado. 

In the latter part of [861 Mr. Mullins returned 
to England, and Jan. 7, [862, he was again united 
in marriage; Mis-- Mary E. Challand, daughter of 
Charles and Ann (Freeman) Challand was the bride. 
She was born in Bridgeford, Nottinghamshire, Eng- 
land, April 11, 1819. Soon after marriage he re- 
turned to this country, and Mrs. Mullins became 
the mother of a child — Esther A., born Jan. 26, 
1863. She grew to maturity under the parental 
roof-tree, became accomplished and educated, and 
died Feb. 26, 188 1. 

Mr. Mullins has been honored with various official 
positions in the county. He served several years 
as Commissioner of Highways and four years as 
Trustee of the village of Shabbona. He retired 
from active farm life in March, 1877, and moved 
into Shabbona. He has been a member of the 
Methodist Episcopal Church for 26 years. His wife 
is a member of the Wesleyan Methodist Church. 
Politically Mr. Mullen is a Republican. He has 
made three trips to the old country, the last time 
in company with his wife, soon after the death of 
their daughter. 

4— 

j.on. Henry Wood, farmer, section 8, Syca- 
more Township, was born Nov. 10, 1824, 
in the town of Randolph, Vt., ai.d is the 
son of Zechariah and Sarah (Bacon) Wood. 
His father was born in Middlebury, Worcester 
Co., Mass., and went thence in his early man- 
hood to Orange Co., Vt., where he married Sarah 
Bacon, a native of Pom fret, Windsor Co., Vt. He 
became a landholder in Randolph, where he resided 
until 1828, when he sold his estate preparatory to 
settling at Tunbridge. He bought a farm on Tun- 
bridge Hill, where he was engaged in general agri- 
cultural interests about eight years. He sold out 
again in 1835, and in January, 1836, set out for Illi- 
nois, feeling that the narrow valleys of the Green 
Mountain State and the limited opportunities of 
crowded New England afforded small outlook for the 
prosperous and useful future of his children; and 





9 



seeing all he desired for them — field for practical 
effort — in the promise of the Prairie State. On leav- 
ing Tunbridge he had a span of hordes and sleigh for 
the transportation of a portion of his household effects. 
He drove across the State of New York, and when in 
Pennsylvania exchanged his sleigh for a wagon with 
which he made his way to Plainfield, Will Co., 111., 
then the residence of Jesse C. Kellogg, his son-in- 
law. He remained in that place through the sum- 
mer, working a farm on shares. In June, 1836, he 
came on a prospecting tour to De Kalb County, then 
attached to Kane County, for judicial purposes, and 
located a claim of land on section 17, now Sycamore 
Township. The land had not then been surveyed 
and did not come into market until seven years later. 
His family, consisting of his wife, two sons, four 
daughters, a son-in-law (Sumner French and son by 
a former wife) and grandchild, joined him on the first 
day of December, 1836, at the house of Jesse C. 
Kellogg, who was then living on section 8, Sycamore 
Township. The entire household spent a part of the 
winter here, and part with Lysander Darling, a near a 
neighbor, remjving in the spring to the log house s=r 
Mr. Wood had erected on his claim. He entered v 1 
vigorously into the work of improving his farm and =3 
founding a home, and was a resident of Sycamote St/ 
until his death, which occurred March 24, 1853. 

To him and his wife were born 10 children, only ( ', 
two of whom, Thomas and Henry, survive. Follow- 
ing is the family record : Zechariah Wood, the father, 
was born Dec. 20, 1779, and died March 24, 1S53; 
Sarah (Bacon) Wood, the mother, was born Jan. 20, 
17S3, and died May 19, 1861. Their children were: 
Hannah, born Oct. 1, 1807, died April 8, 1837 ; Theo- 
dore, born Nov. 17, 180S, died April 14,1829; Lorinda, j 
born April 27, r8io, died May 29, 1837 ; Phebe, born 
Feb. 29, 1S12, died Feb. 14, 1873; Mary (1st), born 
Jan. 11, 1816, died Oct. 21, 1816; Mary (2d), born 
Dec. 29, 1817, died March 27, 1845 ; Susan Eliz- 
abeth, born June 19, 1820, died Sept. 23, 1845 ; 
Thomas H., bom Sept. 3, 1822; Henry, born No\ 
10, 1824; Sarah Emily, born June 16, 1827, died^ 
Sept. 10, 1S56. 

Henry Wood came from Vermont with the other 
members of his father's family, in the fall of 1836 
They set out from Middlebury on the first day of I 
October with two span of horses and two wagons, - 
one for the accommodation of the family, the other for^ 
the conveyance of the household goods. The journey- 



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DE KALB COUNTY. 



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furnished many incidents of travel which impressed 
J? themselves upon lire memory of the boy of n years. 
. * . In one instant e, he was walking some distance in ad- 
? <vance of the wagons with the son of his sister, Mrs. 
' French, when a train of cars came rushing toward 
them. Darkness was coming on, and in the dim 
light the wholly new experience presented a terrific 
appearance, — the blinding headlight, the unearthly 
mixture of sounds and the unparalleled speed of the 
approaching monster conveyed the impression that 
the fabled horrors of the lower pit had broken bounds 
and was abroad for prey. The youngsters precip- 
itated a retreat and paused not until they were once 
more with the wagons. Mr. Wood appreciates the 
sentiments of the Irishman who remarked the first 
time he saw a locomotive under way, "Sure, Pat, 
it's hell in harness!" During the entire journey the 
meals were cooked by the roadside and the family 
slept in the wagons. They arrived in De Kill) 
( ounty on the last day of November, the journey 
* having consumed exactly two months. The pri« es 
■ i'. of provisions during the winter were very high, and 
= all supplies were brought from Chicago. Butter was 
? 50 cents a pound, flour $25 a barrel, and pork and 
j= lard were 37^ cents a pound. 

S/ In the spring of r837 the family moved into a log 
/ "* house erected by the father on his claim. It was 1.) \ 
O 14 feet in dimensions and covered with " shakes," a 
variety of substitute for shingles riven from oak, 
three feet long, from four to six inches wide and 
bound in place with poles, no nails being obtainable, 
and if they had been, each pound was worth a pound of 
butter. The floor of the upper apartment was of shakes 
and that of the room below of puncheons made from 
bass-wood b .-s. Bedsteads were made by boring 
holes in a log on one side of the house, in which 
were driven poles, and with poles for cross-pieces a 
frame was constructed on which a straw mattress 
was placed. Two of them were on the lower floor, 
the upper not being sufficiently high for the purpose. 
The boys were required to sleep in the room above, 
•^K and it was a frequent thing for them to wake in the 
morning and find then beds covered with snow from 
one to three inches in thickness, which drifted in be- 
tween the shaken. The summer of 1S37 was a hard 
>P one, and but little was raised. For two months the 
family lived on potatoes and samp with milk. The 
-.amp was home-made, and was obtained with the aid 



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of a carpenter's plane, which was held in place with 
the cutting side upward. Pushing the ears of cum 
over the bit reduced tin grain to hominy, which 
made- wholesome and palatable food. 

The first five or six years of the life of Mr. Wood 
in De Dalb County were spent in the active labor of 
the farm, in the summers driving a "breaking" team 
on tlie raw prairie. General farming was conducted 
in wholly different methods from those employed at 
present, drain was cut with a cradle, and threshed 
in the following manner: A level place was selected, 
the grass cut away, the grain piled in a circle about 
15 to 20 feet in diameter, and oxen driven over the 
straw. One or two men turned over the straw anil 
kept it in place. When sufficiently tramped, the 
straw was thrown into a rick or stack, and the wheat 
cleaned by a fanning-mill. The nearest market for 
a time was Chicago, and Henry was tharone usually 
sent to that place, taking in a load of grain and re- 
turning with needed supplies. 

Until 22 years of age Mr. Wood remained with 
his parents. In the fall of 1S46 he went to Missouri, 
and engaged in teaching at Pilot Grove, Cooper 
County, during the winter following. He returned 
to Sycamore in the spring of 1847, and was occu- 
pied during the summer following in house-painting. 
In the fall he rented a farm, which he worked on shares 
two years, with satisfactory pecuniary results, and in 
1849 purchased 72 acres of land on section 9, 
located half a mile from In-- lather's house. He en- 
tered at once upon the work of improvement, and 
laid the foundation of a successful life. Starting 
with these 72 acres, he has from time to time, dur- 
ing years of unremitting toil, added to his original 
purchase, paying for all with the proceeds of the sale 
of farm products, thus demonstrating anew that 
farming is a profitable business. He is now owner 
of 267 aires of land in Sycamore Township, and 
160 acres of rolling prairie in Plymouth Co., Iowa. 
His farm is said to be one of the best improved in 
De Kalb County, and includes 62 acres of fine and 
valuable timber. The remainder is composed of 
tillable land of the best character, together with 
pasture. The farm buildings are of excellent and 
creditable type. Mr. Wood has operated extensively 
in live stock, his herd of cattle being chiefly thorough- 
bred "Short-Horns." lb has also given considerable 
attention to breeding choice swine. He is a practi- 



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cal advocate of mixed husbandry, and successfully 
conducts all the branches common to general 
farming. 

In early political days, Mr. Wood was an Aboli- 
tionist, but became a Republican on the organization 
of the party, and was actively interested in its for- 
mation and organization in De Kalb County. Dur- 
ing the war he was a member of the Union League. 
He has also discharged the duties of his citizenship 
as Supervisor, and as Township School Trustee. In 
1880 he was elected to represent the 17th District, 
including Kendall, Grundy and De Kalb Counties, 
in the Legislature of Illinois, and was re-elected to 
the same official position in i8cS2. During the first 
session he was on four regular Committees, " Canals 
and Rivers," " State Institutions," " License," and 
" Agriculture, Horticulture and Dairying." He was 
an active member of the " Legislative Farmers' 
Club." and served on special committees connected 
with the farming interests of the State. He was also 
selected by the House and from regular Committees 
to visit some of the State charitable institutions, 
with reference to special appropriations. Near the 
close of the session of 1882, he was one of ten dele- 
gates appointed by Gov. Cullcm to represent the 
Stale of Illinois in the Canal and River Convention, 
held at Dubuque, in the interest of the Hennepin 
Canal. During the session of 1883 Mr. Wood was 
Chairman of the Committee on " Public Charities," 
and was also on the following regular Committees : 
"Canals and Rivers," " Public Printing," " Retrench- 
ment," and "Visiting Committee to visit State Charit- 
able Institutions." 

He has been prominently identified with the De 
Kalb County Agricultural Society from the date of 
its organization ; was its President two years, and 
officiated several years in the capacity of Chairman 
of the Board of Directors. 

The primary education of Mr. Wood was begun 
in the district school of his native State, and he has 
since gathered a useful and available fund of infor- 
mation from observation and the various relations he 
has sustained in business and society. He has all 
his life been a friend of literature, has given much 
attention to reading, and has traveled extensively 
throughout the Union. He has now been a citizen 
of De Kalb County for almost half a century; he 
has witnessed the various changes that have taken 




place in transforming it from a wilderness to a well 
developed country, with a thrifty, enterprising people, 
and has been an active participant in almost every 
enterprise that has tended to its advancement. To- 
day he is one of the few old settlers that remain, 
and he can look back upon a life well spent, and 
know that what he now calls his own, under Provi- 
dence, has been obtained by unceasing, unremitting 
toil. Probably no man in De Kalb County has done 
more hard work than himself. No man has a more 
extensive acquaintance throughout the county; and 
whatever honor he has received from his fellow citi- 
zens results from the fact that his manner of life 
from his youth up is known of all men, and all know 
that honesty and integrity have been the controlling 
principles of his life. Other prominent traits of Mr. 
Wood's character are, industry, economy, temper- 
ance, executive ability and perseverance, and he has, 
in the different offices of public trust held by him in 
town, county and State, discharged the duties of ^ y 



the various positions with intelligence, fidelity and *" 



/S 






honesty, and has the respect and commendation of 
the people. 

He has been a frequent contributor to the local 
press, writing descriptive letters during his travels 
and also articles on agricultural subjects. He is a 
firm friend of the temperance cause, and, with sev- 
eral members of his family, is connected with the 
First Congregational Church of Sycamore. 

Mr. Wood is known to be something of a curiosity- 
hunter, and is an enthusiastic student of mineralogy. 
His collection of minerals and " precious stones," 
containing many rare specimens obtained from vari- 
ous parts of the United States and other countries, 
form an unusual addition to the furnishings of a 
country home. 

The marriage of Mr. Wood with Rhoda Elizabeth 
Richards occurred March 16, 1851. Mrs. Wood 
was born at Hamilton, Madison Co., N. Y., July 28, 
1829, and is the daughter of Nash and Emily Car- 
rier Richards. Ten children have been born to them, 
of whom six are living. Charles N. married Lizzie 
E. Taylor, and lives at Wahpeton, Dakota, where he 
is managing the real estate and loan business of his *|j 
cousin, T. L. French; Leroy B. married Georgia A. 
Crawford, and is Treasurer of the Piano Manufac- 
turing Company. Shepard H. is engaged in the real- 
estate and loan business at Wahpeton, Dak.; Emily 



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■^^ %A4*D!1»^© *^- 




DE KALB COUNTY. 



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S., onl) daughter, was graduated in [884, in the Vrl 
rtment of Wheaton College. She is an accum 
plished artist in oil and crayon, and tome ol hei 
llaneous work has ittracted favorable notic 
William II. and Albert ('. are the names of the 
youngest children who survive. 

There is much in the life of such a man as Mr. 
Wood worthy of commendation and honor. Coming 
to this country while it was in its native wild lies 5, at id 
growing up amid the hardships and privations of a 
new country, he developed a manhood Sturdy, noble 
and true in all its phases. The coming generations 
will not only desire to read the record of the lives of 
such men. but will have a worthy desire to look upon 
their portraits as well. We have therefore end 
ored not only to preserve a brief outline of the lives 
of many of the prominent and representative men 
and women of De Kalb County, but to give imper- 
ishable likenesses of many, which is done in the gal- 
axy of portraits given in this book. Among these, 
and one equally worthy the honor with any other 
man in the county, may be found that of Mr. 
Wood. It is engraved from a photograph taken in 
March. 1881. 




L adison Van Velzor. dei eased, formerly a 
farmer of Shabbona Township, was born 



in Putnam Co., N. Y., June 11, 1. Si 7, is the 
son of Rlisha Van Velzor, was brought up 
"j? at farming, receiving a common-school educa- 
tion, and removed in boyhood with his parent-. 
to Mlrjim Count) .tliu State. 

He was married in the latter county, June 27, 
[844, to Miss Eunice, daughter of foseph D. and 
Hannah (Rogers) Wilcox, and a native ol the same 
county. lie moved to St. Clair Co., Mich., in 1845, 
where he was engaged in the lumber business. 
From there he moved to Juliet, 111., spent a wintei 
there, then moved to Du Page Co'., 111., and finally, 
in 1S50. to Shabbona Township, this county. He 
was actively engaged in farming on sections 10 and 
11, where he had a large farm of 700 or 800 aires 
In 1877 he removed to the villagi ol Shabbona and 
built the fine mansion now occupied b) his widow 
children. His death occurred Oct. 23, 1884. 
He had nine children, two sons and seven daughters, 




namelj : De Win. who married Luc) Nicholson and 
ii Shabbona ; Mar) E., widow ol Jacob Wat- 

ami b\ing at 1 >c Kalb Center ; FranCi V.., wife 

of |ohn W, Middleton, ol Shabbona; Sarah E., wife 

ol Wellington Helm, of the township of Shabbona; 
William W., who married Emily Challand, of the 
same township; Emma C, Jane \.; Ida; wife of 
Ilcim Sherwood, Of Shabbona Township, and 
Lillie \ 

Mr. Van Velzor was an enterprising, thrift) farmer 

and of unquestioned integrity, just and kind to those 
in his emplo) who proved faithful to their duties, 
while he took no pains to conceal his dislike for the 
la/v and incompetent. In all his relations with his 
neighbors he was ever trusted and held in high es- 
teem. He died leaving a valuable propert) to be 
distributed among a large family. 





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^IM 



homas Adams, retired farmer on section 7, 
De Kalb Township, has been resident of 
ET* the county since 1849, when he purchased 
jstjy' 160 acres of land. He has prospered and 
W> increased his possessions to 240 acres, which 
is in an advanced condition of improvement. 
Mr. Adams was born Aug. 6, 181 6, near Belfast, 
Ireland, and is the son of William and Mary (Hanna) 
Adams. His parents were born in the North of Ire- 
land and were respectively of Scotch and English 
descent. They emigrated to America in 1847 and 
died a short time after their arrival in Canada. They 
had six sons and tour daughters, and nine of their 
children lived to maturity. Thomas is the fourth 
son and seventh child, and he was reared on his 
father's farm, and later became an assistant in the 
linen factory, his father belonging to the industrial 
class known in Ireland as linen drapers. He was 
thus occupied until he was 25 years of age, when he 
came to Canada and bought a farm near Kingston. 
He resided there about four years, coming thence to 
De Kalb County at the date named. He is a pro- 
gressive farmer and stockman, and raises annually an 
rage of 100 hogs, 50 head of cattle and a dozen 
horses. 

Mr. Adams was first married in Canada, to Eliz- 
abeth Dart, a native of the Dominion, of mixed New 
England and Scotch ancestry. They became the 



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parents of four children, — Mary J., William, Almira 
and Anna. Only the oldest of these is living The 
mother died April 15, [855, in De Kail) County. 
The second wife of Mr. Adams, Mary Morgan, to 
whom he was married in the city of New York, Oct. 
26, 1856, was born in Belfast, Ireland. Their three 
children were named William E., Isabella and 
Thomas J. The youngest only is living and he is 
managing the home farm. He was married Jan. 19, 
r882, to Miss Mary Welch, of Malta. 

Mr. Adams is independent in politics. He has 
officiated as Highway Overseer and as School Direc- 
tor. With his wife, he is a member of the Methodist 
Church. 



+#&+ 




troseph C. Coster, of the mercantile linn of 
!£- Bander & Coster, at Hinckley, is the sun 
of Richard and Rachel (Cook) Coster. His 
father was born in Holland and his mother in 
^r New York. The father emigrated to America 
and was married in the State of New York, 
where he located. His wife died May 7, 1S41, and 
later he came to Illinois to pass the remaining years 
of his life. He died March 7, 1854, in Kane Co., 
III. Peter, Alexander H., Joseph C, Rosetta A., 
Richard, Stephen P. and Cornelia are the names of 
his sons and daughters. 

Mr. Coster was born Aug. 18, 18 15, in Rensselaer 
Co., N. Y. He was trained to a knowledge of agri- 
culture and instructed in the common schools of the 
State of his nativity. In 1847 he removed to Sugar 
Grove Township, Kane Co., 111., coming thence in 
the spring of 1849 to De Kalb County, and purchased 
295 acres of land in Squaw Grove Township, on 
which he settled and where he has since resided. 
He still holds his original acreage, and nearly the 
entire tract is in tillage. 

The first marriage, to W. Maria Weeks, took place 
Dec. 8, 1838, in Rensselaer Co., N. Y. She was 
bom Aug. 4, 1818, in that count)', and bore him 
three children, — Harriet P., Melvin, and another who 
died in infancy. Both the others have since de- 
1 eased. Melvin entered the army of the United 
States, enlisting in the 105th Reg. 111. Vol. Inf. in 
August, [862, and died of illness at Bowling Green, 
Ky., Dec. 12, 1865. Harriet P. died March 1, 1848. 




The mother died Aug. 25, 1850, in Squaw Grove 
Township. Mr. Coster was .i second time married 
in Scpiaw Grove Township, to Mrs. Sophronia (Red- 
field) Bathrick. She was the widow of Daniel Bath- 
rick, .mil In-' .line the mother of a son by her first 
marriage. He was named Daniel and grew to man- 
hood. Six children have been born of tin- second 
marriage: Harriet M., Joseph A., Susan R., Mary 
and Alfred. One child died in infancy. Mrs. Coster 
died Jan. r, 1874. Mr. Coster was again married 
at Piano, Kendall Co., 111., to Mary E. Evans. She 
was born in the State of New York, Sept. 12, 1825, 
and died in Squaw Grove Township, May 18, 187S. 
Mr. Coster contracted a fourth matrimonial alliance 
in Kane Co., 111., Sept. 22, 1880, with Ke/.iah E. 
(Owens) Scott. Her first husband, John A. Scott, 
died Sept. 13, 1865. By him she had six children, — 
George R., Louis K., Hugh W., Lillie F., Walter W. 
ami Clara M. Mrs. Coster was born June 29, 1827, 
in England, near the border of Wales. She accom- 
panied her parents to America in 1834. William 
and Sarah Owens, her father and mother, were na- 
tives of England. 

In political bias and relations Mr. Coster is a Re- 
publican. He has officiated four years as a Justice 
of the Peace and as School Director. In August, 
1878, he engaged in mercantile business at Hinck- 
ley, in company with his son-in-law, J. H. Bander. 
(See Sketch.) The firm are carrying on an exten- 
sive business. 



^oooe^ 



^a.^harles S. Palmer, Postmaster at Hinckley, 

_^£u has resided in the State of Illinois since 

'if' 185 1, and in Hinckley since the spring of 

$ 1874. 



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He was born March 4, 1838, in Kane 
Co., 111., and is the fourth child of his par- 
ents, Jonathan L. and Laura (Smith) Palmer. 
His father was born in the State of New York, and 
his mother in Vermont. They had six children. 

Mr. Palmer was brought up on a farm, and wis a 
farmer until he was 36 years of age. In 1851 his 
parents settled in the township of Milan in De Kalb 
County, ili^ mother died in Cortland, and the de- 
mise of his father took place .it St. Charles, Kane 
■Co., 111. On coming to Hinckley in r S7.4, Mr. Pal- 
mer built a hotel, which is now occupied by O. P. I 



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DE KALB COUNTY. 



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Steinmetz as 'a store. He conducted his business 
as a landlord about 18 months, when he sold oul 
and soon after erected the store and dwelling now 
occupied bj Bauder & Coster. Mr. Palmer was 
appointed Postmaster in April, 1884. In political 
ii lions and relations he is .1 Republican. He 
ffii iated as one of the Board of Village Tru 
and as a School Director. 

Mr. Palmer was married in Milan Township Fell. 
17, 1S63, to Emily N. Coster. Mrs. Palmer was 
bora Aug. 26, 1845, and is the daughter of Alexandei 
H. and Miranda Coster. Laura M., Melvin 1'. and 
Myrtic E. are the names of the children of Mr. and 
Mrs. Palmer. 




avid Norton, farmer, section 14, Shabbona 
Township, was horn in Ontario, Wayne Co., 
N. Y., July 24, 1021, was brought upon a 
farm till his 17th year, and then removed to 
Geauga Co., Ohio, where he learned the car- 
penter's trade, at which he was employed a 
part of his time, the remainder being devoted to 
I. inning until the fall of 1S45. He then emigrated 
to the Prairie State, arriving at Sugar Grove, Kane 
'< ) County. Sept. 11, that year. He married at the last 
named place Aug. 20, 1846, Lucinda M., daugh- 
ter of Stephen and Julia (Tyler) Gates. She was 
horn in Wayne Co., N. Y., June 13, 1826, lost her 
mother in childhood, and was adopted and brought 
up b) her uncle, Isaac Gates. 

Mi .md Mrs. Norton have had four children, 
namely : Celia A., horn July 23, 1S48, who is the 
wife of William Husk, Postmaster and merchant at 
Shabbona; Wellington J., born Dec. 20, 1851; 
Florence A., born July 3, 1854, is the wife of Hiram 
More) and lives at Shabbona ; and one child died in 
infant \ . 

In the spring of 1847, the year following his mar- 
riage, Mr. Norton and wife moved to Shabbona 
Township, this county, where he entered some Gov- 
ernment land and purchased some at second-hand. 
Hi'- farm contains 100 acres on section 14, and 15 
on 5e< don 23, and is well improved. Mr. Nor- 
ton has held various local offices since his residence 
in Shabbona. During the war he was appointed En- 
rolling Officer for the town; served one term as Su- 



pervisor .md many years as Road Commissioner and 
Director of his school district. He has been identi- 
fied with the growth and improvement of the town 

sin< e its pit meer daj s, and is held in high esteem bv 
a wide circle of acquaintances. In politics he is a 
Republican. 

-5— 4"4> •— 




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« ! illiam M. Sebree, fanner, resident in the 
village of Hinckley, has lived in De Kalb 

l&y^ County since 1834, when he was brought 

' ~jP here an infant less than two years of age by 
his parents, John S. and Sarah J. (Bateman) 
Sebree. He is consequently the oldest living 
settler in Squaw Grove Township. His father 
was born in Virginia, and his mother is a native of 
Indiana, where thev lot ated after marriage and lived 
two years, removing in the winter of 1834 to Squaw 
Grove Township. The father died there April 29, 
1873. They had five children, named as follows ; 
W. M., Matilda J., James H, Mary A. and Ellen, 
William M. and Ellen are the only surviving chil- 
dren. 

Mr. Sebree was born Feb. 7, 1833, in Indiana. 
He was reared on the farm of his father in Squaw 
Grove, and he attended the common schools. His 
marriage took place when he was 23 years of age, 
and on that event transpiring he settled for an inde- 
pendent struggle with circumstances on his father's 
farm in the township of Squaw Grove. After con- 
ducting its affairs five years, be removed to section 
10, where he owned a farm of 120 acres. He con- 
tinued lis management 10 years, when he rented the 
property and removed to the village of Hinckley in 
1876. He owns 412 acres of land in Squaw Grove 
Township, nearly all of which is under tillage. 

Mr. Sebree conduc ted the c teamen at Hinckley 

years, and originated the plan of gathering 

cream for the manufacture of butter. He made in 

one day 2,480 pounds of butter, the largest amount 

ever made in a single day in the county. 

In political sentiment he is independent and has 
been Constable, Highway Commissioner and School 
Director, besides having held other minor offices. 
He is a member of the- Masonic fraternity. 

Mr. Sebree was married Sept. 26, 1855, in Squaw 
Grove Township, to Rosett.i Donaldson. She was 

bora m Steubenville, |efferson Co., Ohio, Way 23, 

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DE KALB COUNTY. 



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1837, and is the daughter of James and Jane (Cane) 
Donaldson. Herfather was horn in Ireland and her 
mother in the city of New York. They had two 
children, Rosetta and Nancy. The family came in 
the fall of 1844 to De Kalb County and settled in 
Squaw Grove Township. The father's demise oc- 
curred there, April 29, 1845; that of the mother 
took place Sept. 28, 1876. Five children have been 
born to Mr. and Mrs. Sebree, four of whom survive: 
Alice J., Nellie A., Effie M. and Ray M. One child 
died in infant \ . 



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fohn Pooler, farmer and stock-raiser, resid- 
|r ing on section 14, Afton Township, was 
•^ born in German Flats, Herkimer Co., N. 
Y., Aug. 11, 1824, and is of genuine " Yan- 
kee "descent. His parents, Jacob and Betsey 
(Price) Pooler, were born in Dutchess Co, 
" York " State ; were married there and then moved 
to Herkimer County. The father died at the age of 
67 years, and the mother when the subject of this 
notice was but seven years of age. 

Orphaned by the death of his mother at an early 
age, young Pooler was taken to be reared by an older 
brother, who is still living and resides near Cortland, 
this county, having attained the venerable age of 81 
years. He grew to manhood on his brother's farm, 
assisting in the farm labors and attending the com- 
mon schools. On arriving at the age named he en- 
gaged in farming by the month, with various persons, 
and continued following that vocation for seven 
years. 

At the expiration of the time named, Mr. Pooler, 
from his savings, purchased a farm in Steuben Coun- 
ty, in his native State, which he cultivated for five 
years. He then sold his property and spent a year 
in attendance on his wife (having previously mar- 
ried), who was undergoing medical treatment. On 
the convalescence of his wife he came to this State 
and located in Afton Township. He arrived herein 
1857, and at once settled on the southeast quarter 
of section 24, Afton Township, on which he resided 
until 1S70. He first purchased 80 acres, and subse- 
quently added 80 more on the same section. 

After residing on and improving his land on sec- 
tion 24, Mr. Pooler purchased the farm on which he 





is at .present residing. The original tract embraced 
160 acres, and he has since added, by a subsequent 
purchase, 80 more, making his landed estate on sec- 
tion 14, 240 acres, and on section 24, 160 acres, or a 
total of 400 acres. He erected his present residence 
in 1883. It is a frame building, and one of the neat- 
est and most convenient farm dwellings in the town- 
ship. He has alarge cattle barn on the home farm 
and good, substantial outbuildings. 

Besides cereal productions, Mr. Pooler deals to a 
considerable extent in stock. He raises from 100 to 
125 head of hogs annually, besides about 20 head 
of cattle and as many of calves, and disposes of 
some 30 head of cattle each year. He is one of 
those men whose possessions came not by inherit- 
ance, but by honest, industrious labor, coupled with 
energetic determination and good judgment ; and in 
the enjoyment of a competency he has the consola- 
tion of having accumulated it himself, together with 
the helpmeet he chose for his life companion. 

Mr. Pooler was united in marriage March 25, 
i85i,toMiss Elizabeth A., daughter of Daniel and 
Mary (Patten) Roof. Her father was born Aug. 15, 
1803, in Montgomery Co., N. Y., in which county 
her mother was also born Aug. 14, 1803, and both of 
whom are yet living in the same county. Her father 
followed the trade of a wheelwright until a short time 
ago. Mrs. Pooler was born Feb. 5, 1833, in Minden, 
Montgomery Co., N. Y., and resided with her parents, 
assisting in the household duties and attending the 
common schools until her marriage. 

Mr. and Mrs. Pooler were the parents of five chil- 
dren living and one deceased. The living are, — 
Charles H., born Nov. 7, 1856, in Addison, Steuben 
Co., N. Y.; Willie E., born Oct. 30, 1861, in Afton 
Township; Evron E., born Jan. 16, 1863, in Afton 
Township ; and Everett E., twin brother of Evron 
E.; May M., born May 1, 1873. One child, Hattie 
C, born Feb. 26, 1858, in Afton Township, died May 
8, 1884,011 the home farm. She was married Jan. 
18, 1881, to Charles Noble. March 2, 1881, she and 
her husband moved to Lake City, Calhoun Co., Io» .1, 
where the husband worked at his trade, that of a 
carpenter. She contracted consumption, and the 
dreadful disease increased in its different stages so 
rapidly that she seemed to realize her days of pleas- 
ure and happiness on earth were almost closed, and 
I thus realizing, she, on Aug. fi, 1883, returned to the 



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448 



DE KALB COUNTY. 



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home ol hei nativity, the old farm home on section 
1 ). to die in the arms of fathei and mother. Her 

sufferings were pitiful to behold, l>ul were endured 
by that fortitude which characterized her entire life, 
and of a daughter and wife whose consolation was 
that she had lived a good life, had fought the good 
tight and wis prepared for the hereafter. The dis- 
ease had reduced her almost to skin and bones, and 
for two months she had to be lifted in and out of 
her bed, and at last, on the 8th of May, 1884, with a 
smile of satisfaction on her countenance, she closed 
her eyes in death, and the dutiful daughter, the lov- 
ing wife, kind friend and Christian woman's soul had 
passed into eternity. 

When Mr. Pooler first came to Afton Township, 
the roads extended zigzag over the broad prairies; 
there were no fences save one now and then enclos- 
ing a farm house ; yet he had great faith in the fu- 
ture of the country and energetically battled against 
all obstacles, determined to establish a home for him- 
self and family. How well he has succeeded, with 
the co-operation of his good wife, the thrifty condi- 
tion of his farm and possessions will testify. 

As a gentleman worthy of recognition in the his- 
tory of the county, and an example of what resolu- 
tion, accompanied by energy and determination, can 
do and has accomplished, we deem it a pleasure to 
present the portrait of the gentleman whose name 
appears at the head of this notice. 




erbert H. Hopkins, member of the firm of 

Gurler Bros. & Co., who are conducting the 

business relations and manufactures of the 

" creamery " at Hinckley, was born July 2, 

1 86 1, at Chesterfield, N. H., and is the son of 

R. Henry and Ellen (Newton) Hopkins, natives 

respectively of New Hampshire and Massachusetts. 

After the marriage of his parents they settled in the 

Granite State and there spent their lives. 

Mr. Hopkins is the third of their six children. He 
spent all his school days in the common schools, and 
was a resident of New Hampshire until the spring of 
1880, when he came to the village of De Ka!l>, and 
obtained employment in the creamery at that pla< e, 
operating there two years in that capacity. He re- 




m. lined there a year longer, and was engaged in the 
manufacture of butter-tubs. In the spring of 1884 

1 came to Hinckley and assumed charge of the 
creamery belonging to (hirler Bros. & Co., becoming 
a partner therein. He is a Republican in political 
. onnei tions and belief, and belongs to the Order of 
Odd Fellows. 

Mr. Hopkins was married March 14, 1883, in De 
ECalb, to Frances C. Geiser. She was born Dec. 3, 

t86i, in the State of New York. 



3 » i[ ~ X i 



\:~(.i<f y nclrcw H.Johnson, general farmer, section 
29, Milan Township, was born Jan 27, 
* 1830, in Stananger, Norway. His father, 
Henry Johnson, was a farmer in that country 
and married Melinda Pierson. The latter 
died in September, 1883; the death of the 
former occurred sonic years earlier. 

Mr. Johnson is the fourth son of 11 children born 
to his parents, and was sent to the public schools, 
where he obtained a fair education. In 1854 he came 
to America, accompanied by his younger brother, 
Henry. They first located in Ottawa, La Salle Co., 
111., where Mr. Johnson of this sketch spent three 
years as a farm assistant. He was married in La 
Salle Count)', town of Mission, Oct. 19, 1857, to 
Sarah, daughter of Ole and Caroline (Benn) Baker. 
She is the younger of two children and was born in 
Norway, Jan. 27, 1841. At the date of her parents' 
removal to America she was r 8 months old. The) 
first settled in Wisconsin, where her father died 
when she was about three yearsofage. Her mother 
transferred her residence to La Salle County, where 
she died about the tune Mrs. Johnson attained to 
the age of 11 years. The latter was cared for by 
an aunt subsequent to the loss bf her mother- By 
her marriage to Mr. Johnson she is the mother of 
eight children, Henrj W., Caroline, Melinda, Ole, 
lames E., Emma J. and Aaron C. One child is not 
li\ ing. 

Mr. Johnson left La Salle County four years after 
his marriage, and went to Kendall County, there 
purchased a farm and lived on it three years, after 
which he pun hased So acres of land in Milan Town- 
ship, where he established and has maintained his 
li estead. To his original purchase he has added 






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DE KALB COUNTY. 



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80 acres on the same section, and So acres on sec- 
tion 31 in the same township, constituting a superb 
farm, which is under the best improvements, and 
supplied with modern farm fixtures. Politically he 
lie is a hearty, enthusiastic Republican, and has held 
several local offices. 



-S3- 



£ 



-:- 




illiam Jackson, dealer in general mer- 
chandise at the village of Shabbona, was 
one of the earliest merchants at that place. 

!' He was born in Schenectady, N. Y., Feb. 1, 
1845, and is the sou of William and Eliza 

M. Jackson. He received a common-school 
education, and came to Illinois in 1864, locating at 
Shabbona Grove, where he engaged in clerking about 
three years. He then began business as a manu- 
facturer of and dealer in boots and shoes, which he 
continued up to t870, when he sold out and followed 
clerking. In November, 1872, he formed a partner- 
ship with his brother, A. S., in a general store at 
Shabbona village, under the firm name of A. S. & 
Wm. Jackson. Theirs was the first store building at 
the present business center of the village. One year 
afterward they sold out, and the following spring Mr. 
Jackson resumed business alone. March 3, 1877, 
the building and stock was destroyed by fire, and lie 
resumed business May 22, 1877, the line of trade 
consisting of dry goods, groceries, boots and shoes, 
hats, caps and notions. 

Mr. Jackson was married at Shabbona Grove, 
June 18, 1873,' to Miss Addie Hotchkiss, a daughter 
of Nelson and Harriet Hotchkiss, who was born near 
Geneva, Kane Co., III. 

At 

MSl^dwin R. Colby, Supervisor of Milan Town- 
ship, resident on section 33, was born 
Aug. 10, 1823, in Oswego, N. Y. His 
■IS*- father, Daniel D. Colby, was a native of Onon- 
daga County,in the same State, and descended 
from New England parentage and from stock 
originally of Engljsh origin. His grandfather was a 
participant in the war of the Revolution, in which he 
received a wound that crippled him for life. He 
died in the State of New York. Daniel Colby fixed 

%&*%* Ss$$^ — «tK :; d n 





his residence in Oswego when he was 1 g years of 
age, and was a resident there during the remainder 
of his life, which terminated when he was 82 ) 
of age, in June, 18S3. The mother of Edwin R. 
1 m|I,\ was Elizabeth Singer, and was a sister of I 
M. Singer, of sewing-machine notoriety. She was 
born in New York and was of German parentage. 
The Singer family were me< hanics as far back as the 
17th century, the father, I. M. Singer, being a mill- 
wright. The inventive genius has been transmitted 
to some members of every generation since, and all 
are skillful in the use of tools. 

Mr. Colby is one of 14 children born to his par- 
ents, ten sons and four daughters. Twelve reai bed 
adult age, and ten yet survive. Mr. Colby is the 
third child in order of birth, and he resided at home 
until he was 17 years of age. He had learned the 
trade of cooper of a man who had been employed by 
his father in that business, and at the age named he 
set himself about the task of earning an independent 
living. He turned his knowledge of the business "I 
coopering to good advantage and followed it as a 
vocation for 16 years, alternating in the prosecution 
of general farming. 

He was married in 1854 to Catherine Simmons, 
who was born about 1824, in Connecticut, and was a 
farmer's daughter. Her parents removed to Osv 
where she was reared and educated. She became 
the mother of four children: Calvert C. married 
Frances Griswold and resides at Rockford, 111., where 
he is employed as a moulder. Albert J. married 
Nettie Steele. He is also a moulder and pursues 
that business at Rockford. Olive married Peter 
Cofield, a farmer in Shabbona Township. Eliza is 
the wife of William Shambo, a teacher in the town- 
ship of Milan. The mother died in November, 1850, 
in the State of New York. She was a judicious 
mother, an exemplary wife, and was generally es- 
teemed. A few years after her death Mr. Colby re- 
moved to Shiawassee Co., Mich., and located on a 
small farm, where he pursued his trade of cooper 
about three years. In May, 1861, he came to Illi- 
nois and located in the township of Shabbona. He 
was married there in June, 1863, to Mrs. Deborah 
(Simpson) Collins. She was born in 1828, in Orleans 
Co., N. Y. She came to Illinois after her marriage. 
Following are the names of the children of the se< - 
ond marriage: Sherman T., Eddie R.. Abraham A., 
Lovina and Nellie. 

Siting s^Ss* 



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\h ( olb) resided in Shabbona Township and car- 
f£ ried on .1 farm there eighl wars. At the end of that 
nine he sold liis place and purchased the estate he 
now owns in Milan Township, To this he has since 
added So acres, and the entire estate is now under 






excellent cultivation and improvements, with good 
farm buildings and line grades of stock. He is a 
Republican and has discharged the obligations of 
most of the township offices. 




#-# 



> 



ohn S. Sebree, deceased, a former resident 

giM K" of the township of Squaw Grove andoneof 

the earliest permanent settlers of De Kalb 

County, was born Aug. 22, 1808, in Virginia. 

In early life he spent some time in teaming 

and in boating on the Mississippi River. He 

was married Dec. 11, 1831, in Indiana, to Sarah J. 

> Bateman. She was born Feb. 7, 1812, and is the 

^ daughter of William and Elizabeth (O'Blonus) Bate- 

j* man. and was the second of four children born to 

5Sj her parents. After marriage Mr. and Mrs. Sebree 

I settled in Floyd Co., Ind. 
ift In the fall of 1834 he started with his wife and one 
y child for Illinois, making the journey to De Kalb 
' n Count) with a team and driving acow. On the way 
Mr. Sebree worked for a time near Bloomington, 111., 
picking corn on shares, for which he returned in 
January. Reaching Squaw Grove Township, he locat- 
ed a 300 acres of land, on which he built a shanty 
that had a roof of basswood bark, the same as that 
used by the Indians in building their wigwams. 
Their shanty had a fire-place built of sticks and mud, 
and the floor was covered with hay. This caught 
lire on one occasion, but did no damage save the fear 
of utter ruin to the establishment. They occupied 
this shanty two weeks, and Mr. Sebree built a log 
house which was far more comfortable. He cut the 
first hay in the township. When he reached the 
place where he located his land, the second growth 
of the" prairie grass was fresh and still green and made 
excellent hay, which was in immediate demand for 
their horses and COWS. 

After settling his wife and child as well as he could, 
Mr. Sebree returned to Bloomington for the corn he 
had earned, going awaj about the first of January 
and did not return until the last of February, follow- 



-^ 




ing. Mrs. Sebree was alone with her son and a 
small boy nearly two months. She prepared the 
corn from which her bread was made by pounding it, 
in a wooden mortar made by a hole in the top of a 
Stump, with an iron wedge. The family lived 12 years 
in the log house, in which they kept a sort of hotel, 
as there w as no other pl.u e lor prospectors and land- 
look, is to obtain necessary accommodations. Fre- 
quently the floor of the little log house was covered 
with the sleeping forms of tired travelers. In 1842 
Mr. Sebree built a frame house which is still stand- 
in- near the village of Hinckley, and in which she 
resides. She is 74 years of age, and is the general 
manager of a farm of 222 acres. She is uncommonly 
vigorous and never required the attendance of a 
physician until the winter of 1884-5. Her five chil- 
dren are married. William M., Matilda J., James 
H., Mary A. and Ellen. 

The father died April 29, 1S73. At the date of 
his removal to De Kalb County, he was in very 
straitened circumstances. At the date of his death 
he owned about 620 acres of land. 



W. Tyrrell, senior editor and publisher of 
the De Kalb Review, was born in Kalama- 
zoo, Mich., Nov. 12,1840. His parents 
v\t% returned to Chautauqua County, N. Y., and 
%k resided at Quincy, Fredonia, and other points in 
the county until 1850, when they took a boat at 
Dunkirk and came West, landing «.t Racine, Wis. 
Moving further on, the family settled in the town of 
Magnolia, Rock Co., Wis., shifting locations as cir- 
cumstances dictated, to different portions of the 
county. In 1853 or '54 the impulse to move on to- 
wards the wes'.ern " jumping-off place " again seized 
the head of the family (Manlius Tyrrell), and, with a 
yoke of steers hitched to a doubtful vehicle called a 
wagon, out of which an orthodox prairie schooner 
was improvised, a start was made for Iowa. 

There is in the life of every boy some one event 
which occupies a niche in the memory a little more 
prominent than any other. This trip to Iowa, rather 
with than in the " prairie schooner," rises up, even 
now, in the mind of the subject of this sketch, like a 
tolerably good-sized mountain, fraught as it was with 
circumstances which might have tempted the patience 

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of Job or tried the "sand" of an Alexander. Mak- 
ing their way through clouds of mosquitoes, storms of 
rain, across swollen streams, up and down hills little 
and big, encountering mishaps of various kinds, with 
those faithful steers, the Hawkeye State was finally 
reached. The now rich, prohibition and always 
patriotic State of Iowa had the honorof receiving the 
Tyrrell family at McGregor-on-the-Mississippi, noted 
for its one street and no lightning rods, the high 
bluffs on either side of -the solitary street absorbing 
all the electric fluid which old Jove has to spare in 
that neighborhood. The journey was continued on 
from McGregor until their destination, West Union, 
the county seat of Fayette County, was reached in 
safety, the steers discharged and paterfamilias set to 
work at blacksmithing, the will-o'-the-wisp, fortune, 
still moving on, moving on still westward, with the 
now travel-begrimed star of empire. 

Here the family lived, or "stayed," as the case 
may be, until the breaking out of the Rebellion. 
Young Tyrrell meantime had apprenticed himself to 
a printer by the name of Gharkey, who published 
The Fayette County Pioneer, a thorough " Dough- 
face," pro-slavery paper, and was at work in this 
"print shop " when the terrible war broke out. Tyr- 
rell was an " Abolitionist " at heart and was so called 
by Boss Gharkey, but a self-professed Republican, 
and " Union " to the back-bone. So, after the ap- 
palling news came flashing across the country that 
Fort Sumter had been fired upon by the hot-headed 
sons of South Carolina, he, with numerous other 
young fellows not yet old enough to vote, rushed off 
to the war with blood in his eye and a firm resolve in 
his heart " never, no, never! to give up until the last 
armed foe expired!" He served three years in 
Co. F, 9th Iowa Regt. Vol. Inf., commanded by Col. 
Vandever, of Dubuque, and participated in the vari- 
ous campaigns with his regiment, notable among 
which were the battles of Pea Ridge in Northwestern 
Arkansas, the siege of Vicksburg, the battle (?) of 
Lookout Mountain, and the many other minor battles 
and skirmishes in which the regiment was engaged. 
At Pea Ridge Lieut. Neff was shot down by his side 
at the first fire from the Confederates. 

But Tyrrell was glad to get back home as soon as 
his "commission " expired, and not more than two- 
thirds of the foe had yet been accommodating enough 
to expire. Knowing that Grant and Sherman and 
Sheridan and good, brave and noble old " Pap " 





Thomas would be left to worry the "rebs" awhile 
longer, he left the service without a pang or a wound 
to draw a pension on and came back to the old paths 
of peace and soft bread. 

Returning to Iowa and finding the "girl he left 
behind him " enjoying a state of double blessed- 
ness, he soon left the State and again turned up in 
Wisconsin, which, when he left it, was the " Badger 
State," but found on his return that the " badgers " 
had all gone West or to the war. 

The " printing habit" — which never entirely for- 
sakes a man when it has once thoroughly fastened 
itself upon him — returned to torment Tyrrell. Find- 
ing a situation open to him in Brodhead, Green 
County, in The Independent office, he entered that 
office and worked there for I. F. Mack, Jr., now 
editor and publisher of the Sandusky (O.) Register, 
for four or five years. E. O. Kimberly and Tyrrell 
then purchased the Independent plant and published 
the paper together some nine months, when, in con- 
sequence of a rupture in the Republican ranks at 
the county seat (Monroe), a new paper was wanted 
in that place in opposition to the Sentinel, which had 
had the temerity to oppose the " regular " nominee for 
State Senator. Great things were promised by the 
politicians, and Tyrrell sold out his magnificent in- 
terests and prospects in the Brodhea'd paper and 
went to Monroe and started the Green County Re- 
publican, with A. W. Potter as partner, a man who 
knew as little about the publishing business as the 
most fastidious could wish. While indulging in the 
laudable enterprise of running a paper for spite, 
Tyrrell took in another partner, — Mrs. Sarah Akin, 
;«vGray, — of St. Charles, 111. This last partnership, 
for a wonder, has never been dissolved! Potter, a 
nervous little body, soon found that the new paper 
was not a bonanza of formidable proportions, and pro- 
posed a dissolution. With Potter to propose was to 
dispose, and so Tyrrell went out of the new paper in 
a blaze of financial impecuniosity ! 

Again farewell to Wisconsin ! Hail, Illinois! Tak- 
ing his life partner along, Tyrrell found himself, in 
1870, located at St. Charles, Kane Co., 111. He soon 
found employment with S. L. Taylor in the Geneva 
Republican office, where he worked about a year. 
Meantime Mr. Taylor had established the St. Charles 
Transcript, but no sooner having it started than an 
opportunity presented itself to establish a new paper 
in Elgin. He went there and started The Advocate, 



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1). W. Tyrrell and Charles Archer taking his Geneva 
and Si Charles papers off his hands. These papers 
Tyrrell & Vrcher published for about a year, when 
the " i raze broke loose and II. N. Wheeler, 

the noted crank who promulgated the infamous sen- 
timent in the Quincy (III.) Herald thai "Garfield 
was no better than the man who shot him," con- 

d the brilliant enterprise of publishing a gran ei 
paper. With this in view, Wheeler and one Mc- 
Master proposed to Tyrrell to sell out to them, 
threatening at the same time to "start" .mother 
paper if their proposition to buy was not acceded to. 
Tyrrell was bulldozed out and "swindled into the 
bargain." Wheeler & McMaster gave T. a contract 
in writing to pay his portion of the debts against 
the firm of Tyrrell & Archer, but after they got pos- 
session of the a in they flatly refused to make 

their contract good. A year or two afterwards Tyr- 
rell sued Wheeler & McMaster and brought suit 
against them in the Kane County Circuit Court, and 
obtained judgment against them, which judgment 
Stands against them to this day. 

Tyrrell, out of work and out of money, as a last 
resort started the St. Charles Independent, which, 
owing to a "plentiful lack " of patronage, soon died 
a natural death, after a struggle of about eight 
months, more or less, mourned by few and remem- 
b < I by none except its one parent. 

In April, 1875, Tyrrell received a proposition from 
L. II. Post, publisher of The l)e Kalb County News, 
to go to De Kalb and work for him. Post was then 

Master. T\ 11 oil accepted the offer of work and 
moved there, working for Mr. P. about three years, 
when he was superseded in the News office by Geo. 
W. Taylor, of Sycamore. 'Tyrrell was again on his 
oars, with winter coining on and the cupboard bare. 
So he started a little daily, called it The Index, and 

ged to squeeze out a precarious living through 
the winter, working day and night like a Trojan to 
keep the wolf from howling around the door of the 
shanty. 

Post didn't like the competition, and, becoming 
disgusted with Taylor, proposed to buy out the little 
daily and take its proprietor back into the Netvs 
iflfii 'The arrangement was made, and Mr. Tyrrell 

i'in lined with Post until The Be Kalb County Chron- 
' . Mi Glidden's paper, opened its ponderous jaws 
and absorbed the News, body, soul and subscription 




list. Mr. 'Tyrrell then tried to work for Rosette, the 
man of iron will who steers the Chronicle craft, but 
the water and oil of their respective compositions 
wouldn't mix, and so the former formed a patent 
combination with L. E. Tomblin, ofthe Genoa Si/t- 
ings, resulting in the purchase of the De Kalb Re- 
view, established by S. L. Graham and II. I,. Boies, 
of 1 lie Syi aniore Republican, in February, 1883. 

Tyrrell & 'Tomblin are still " running " the Review, 
having engineered it successfully through babyhood, 
with every prospect of raising it to an exalted posi- 
tion in the ranks of country journals, at igi a year, if 
paid in advance! 



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ohn H. Bauder, merchant at Hinckley, has 

?" been in business at that place since 1875, 
and has been a resident of the State since 



1869. He was born Sept. 10. 1847,111 Mont- 
It gomerj Co.. N. V., and is a son of James and 
Catherine (Young) Bauder. His parents are 
natives Ofthe State of New York, and are now resi- 
dent there. 'Their family comprised eight children. 
The first 16 years of the life of Mr. Bauder were 
passed in home duties and in attendance at the com- 
mon school. In 1863 he went to Hamniondsport, 
Steuben County, in the same State, and entered upon 
a clerkship. He operated in that capacit) three 
years, and in 1869 engaged in a like employment at 
Aurora, Kane Co., III. lb- acted as a salesman in 
that 1 ity about si\ years. In 1 S75 he formed a 
partnership with Mr. Aver) G. Case at Hinckley, 
and the firm of Case iV Bander prosecuted the rela- 
tions ot a general mercantile enterprise one \car. 
when the senior partner s ( .ld out and the linn style 
became therein Meredith, Bauder & Co., the latter 
term representing .1 gentleman named Morgan. 
Messrs. Meredith and Morgan sold out iS months 
iii to J. C. Coster, the firm name becoming Bauder 

& Coster. Their stock consists of well ass,. ite. 1 

mi n handise suited t<> tin local p ttronage, and their 
11 11 actions annually amount to nearly $40,000. 

The marriage Of Mr. Bauder took place Sept. 13, 

1876, at Hinckley, to Hattii M (osier. (See sketch 

ol J. C. Coster.) One child, Mabel C, has been 
born lo them. Her birth cue unci April 10, 1878. 
Politically Mr. Bauder is independent in opinion. 



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He is a member of the Masonic Order, and belongs 
to Lodge 301, at Hinckley. He has held the follow- 
ing offices : Member of Board of Trustees for vil- 
lage of Hinckley, Township Clerk three terms, is 
present Village Treasurer, having held the office 
three years, and he has been Township Treasurer 
for the past six years. 



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iffS*! on. Thomas S. Terry, deceased, was born 
^|l||k at Enfield, Tompkins Co., N. Y., Jan. 25, 
18 1 9, and was the son of Erastus and 
Hannah (Scudder) Terry. Was educated in the 
public schools, and engaged in clerking and 
teai hing until he enlisted in the regular army, 
March 28, 184 1 ; was promoted Sergeant, served in 
Texas on the Mexican border, and received an hon- 
orable discharge March 26, 1846, having been in the 
service five years. 

In the autumn of 1846, he emigrated to Illinois 
and entered a quarter of section 24, township of 
Shabbona, this county, and engaged in the pursuits 
of agriculture. He was married in Clinton Town- 
ship, this county, Sept. 6, 1848, to Miss Mary J., 
daughter of James and Maria (Gott) Irwin, who was 
born at Albany, N. Y., May 22, 1829. Mr. and 
Mrs. Terry had six sons and one daughter, all of 
whom were born in Shabbona Township, in the fol- 
lowing order : 

1. William W. was born Aug. 22, 1849, and mar- 
ried for his first wife Miss Emma Harmon, who died 
a little more than a year afterward, leaving one child, 
a daughter. His present wife was Miss Millie 
Cooper : they reside in Portland, Oregon. 

2. Charles R. was born May 11, 1 85 1, married 
Miss Annie Stickney and lives in Piano, 111. 

3. Althea H. was born April 16, 1853, and is the 
wife of Ira Smith, of Aurora, 111. 

4. Fred E. was born Aug. 10, 1856, married Miss 
Kate Setchel and lives at Little Sioux, Iowa. 

5. Elias D., born June 7, 1858, lives at Beards- 
town, 111. 

6. Lincoln A., born April 20, i860, married Ella 
V. Quinn, and lives at the old homestead in Shabbona. 

7. Thomas S., born Oct. 18, 1864, is yet un- 
married and living at home. 



On the breaking out of the late war Mr. Terry, the 
subject of this sketch, recruited Co. E of the 105th 
111. Vol. Inf., in August, 1862, and Sept. 2, was 
commissioned Captain. He served in the Army of 
the Cumberland, under Gen. Thomas, but in March 
following was compelled to resign his commission on 
account of physical disability; and after his return 
from the army he never fully regained his health. 

In 1865 he removed with his family to Leland, 
111., where he resided until his death, which occurred 
March 7, 1868, at Earlville, 111., while temporarily 
absent from home. While a resident of Shabbona 
he held various local offices, being Town Clerk and 
Supervisor several years, Justice of the Peace 12 
years, and elected a member of the Legislature in 
i860, when he resigned his justiceship. He was a 
Freemason of many years' standing, being one of the 
charter members of Shabbona Lodge, No. 374, and 
of De Kalb Chapter, R. A. M. He was a zealous 
temperance man, and was instrumental in founding 
a lodge of Good Templars at Shabbona Grove at an 
early day. In politics he was an earnest Republi- 
can. As a neighbor and citizen he was known as a 
man of strict integrity, patriotism and public spirit, 
whose influence was always good. His comrades in 
arms have paid appropriate tribute to his memory by 
naming their post at Shabbona after him, as "T. S. 
Terry Post, G. A. R., No. 463." 

Immediately after the death of her husband, Mrs. 
Terry returned with her children to the old home- 
stead in Shabbona, where she still resides, with her 
two youngest sons. 



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illiam Leifheit, farmer, section 17, Squaw 
|k Grove Township, has been a resident of 
the State of Illinois since 1850, and since 
' that date has resided successively in the 
counties of Kendall and De Kalb. He was 
' born in Germany, in June, 1821, where he was 
bred a farmer. His parents, Frederick and Hattie 
(Borchas) Leifheit, were of German birth and emi- 
grated to America with their children in 1850. After 
a residence of two years in Kendall Co., 111., they 
went to Iowa, where the mother died, about 1855, 
The father returned to Kendall County and died 
about two years later. They had six children, — 



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Hannah, Mollie, Henry, William, August and Minnie. 

Mr Leifheit removed from Kendall County to 

Squaw ('.rove Township in [856, and bought 160 

acres of land on sections 17 and 1 8, locating his 
nee on the former, on which he has continued 
to live. I le now owns 565 acres of land in the town- 
ship, and has placed 4(10 aires under cultivation. 
Id has held several township offices, is a Republican 
in political opinion and in religious views and con- 
nection a Lutheran. 

He was married in July, 1850, in Kendall To., 111., 
to Caroline, daughter of Charles and Julia (Sholla) 
Eckhart. Her parents were natives of Germany, 
where she was also born, May 2, 1823. Mr. and 
Mrs. Leifheit are the parents of 11 children, — Will- 
iam 1.., Emmet A., Edward F., Caroline M., Adolph 
1\, Charles F., Julia A., Harvey H., Emma L., Anna 
H. and Mary A. Julia died Sept. 12, 1881, aged 20 
years. Mrs. Leifheit is a member of the Lutheran 
Church. 

Mr. Leifheit's portrait appears on another page.' 
He is a solid citizen of Squaw Grove Township and 
arned the respect of his fellow citizens by a 
straightforward life of effort and unvarying rectitude. 



-««- 



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£9 
Charles Sanderson 



Milan Township, has 
, a farmer on section 18 since 1874. 
g]& *" He was born April 11, 1861, in the town- 
wfe ship of Earl, La Salle Co., 111. His father, 
Sander H. Sanderson, was a prominent 
farmer of that count)', whence he came, when 
[8 years of age, to La Salle County, and where he 
was married to Anna Moland ; and there he was en- 
gaged in agricultural pursuits until his removal to 
Milan Township, where he became an extensive 
landholder. His death occurred in December, i88r, 
and that of his wife took place one week previous to 
his own demise. 

Mr. Sanderson acquired a fair education at the com- 
mon 51 hools, and up to the date of his parents'decease 
he spent the summer seasons at work on the farm. 
He was married April 20, 1882, to Carrie, daughter 
of Theodore and Maria (Davidson) Berg. She was 
bora in Henderson Co., 111.. June 19, 186 r, and when 
she was three years of age came with her parents to 
Milan Township, where they yet reside, on section 

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19. Slu- is the olden of fivi children, and the 

therofone, Mabel, born March 27, 1883. 

Mi Sanderson and his wife took up their 1 
dence alter marriage on 120 aires of land, in Milan 
Township, which has since become their propert) 
They have recently built a commodious frame res- 
id Mr. Sanderson is an earnest Republican, 

ami, wmIi his 'a id, is a member of the Lutheran 
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..harles H. Taylor, dealer in agrii ultural 
implements at Hinckley, was born April 
ot« 13, 1830, in Tioga Co., N. Y., and is one ol 
i nine 1 hildren born to his parents. David and 
/|- Sarah (Tappen)Taylor, born in the following 

4 onler: Nancy A, Malvina, Cornelius, Chas. II. > 
Catherine, Tappen A., Sarah, David and Marx The 
father and mother were born in Massachusetts, and 
settled after marriage in the State of New York, 
w here their li\ es terminated. 

Mr. Taylor is the son of a farmer, and passed the 
first 20 years of his life on the home place, engaged 
chiefly in farm labor, and operated several winters 
in the woods. He came West in 1850, and after 
prospecting in various localities about two years, he 
came in the spring of 1853 to Squaw Grove Town- 
ship, and bought 170 acres of land on section 4. 
He was its occupant one year, when he sold and for 
three years subsequent rented a farm. In 1858 he 
again bought a farm, and was engaged in the prose- 
cution of his agricultural interests until the spring 
of 1874, when he built a residence in the village of 
Hinckley, of which he took possession as soon as it 
was completed. In the spring of 1880, he engaged 
in the sale of agricultural implements, and condui ts 
a successful business. In political views and actions 
he is identified with the interests and issues of the 
Republican party. At the time of the draft in 1862, 
he was Enrolling Officer for Squaw Grove Township, 
from 1862 to 1868 he held the position of Super- 
visor of his township, and lias since officiated as 
Collector and Assessor and in other official positions. 
He was Census Enumerator in 1880. His marriage 
to Eliza Kellogg took place at Geneva, Kane Co., 
111., in March, 1855. She was a native of Ohio, and 
became the mother of six children, — Freddie, Dell, 



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Wilton, Anna, Zac. and Frank. Mrs. Taylor died 
in Squaw Grove Township, in August, 1864. Mr. Tay- 
lor was a second time married, in the same township, 
Id Maggie Murphy, "ho was born in Massachusetts, 
• Max 6, 1848. 



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' saac F. Morse, farmer, section 27, Shabbona 
i Township, settled in this county in 1846, 
and is now the possessor of 160 acres of 
and located on the section stated. He was 
born in Canaan, Marion Co., Ohio, Nov. 7, 
1819, and is a son of William A. and Hannah 
(Finn) Morse. His parents took him to Franklin 
Co., Ohio, in his childhood, and in that county he 
grew to manhood. His minority days Were spent on 
the farm and attending the common schools, in 
[I ) which he received a good education. 

? Mr. Morse was married Dec. 2, 1842, to Miss 

Q Sophia A. Park, in Worthington, Franklin Co., Ohio. 

\ She was a daughter of Jonathan and Aurelia (Slate) 

jgj Park, and was born in Worthington, Franklin Co., 

[ Ohio, March 21, 1823, to which State her parents 

Q moved from Massachusetts. 

y Mr. Morse moved to this State in 1845, with his 
( ") family, and located at Rock Island. He made the 
trip with teams and experienced all the trials inci- 
dent to such a tiresome journey, arriving at Rock 
Island May 12, of that year. He spent one year 
there, then came to Shabbona Township and located 
on the farm on which he is at present residing, and 
which he purchased from the Government. 

Mr. and Mrs. Morse are the parents of 1 1 chil- 
dren, six girls and five boys. Ten of their children 
survive, namely: Mary A., born Oct. 19, 1843, be- 
came the wife of Samuel Galloway, at present re- 
siding in Tippecanoe City, Ohio; Sylvia L., born 
Oct. 29, 1 846, became the wife of John N. Kittle, 
resident of Shabbona Township; Olive J., born Dec. 
28, 1848, married Charles E. Brown and resides at 
Sibley, Iowa; Frank F., born Sept. 5, 1852, married 
Emma S. Morse, and lives in Shabbona ; Ida C, born 
Dec. 2, 1S54, is the widow of Addison S. Slate, and 
resides with her father; Willis P., born Aug. 5, 1858, 
married Eva R. Slocum, and lives in Sibley, Iowa; 
Llewellyn H. H, born March 17, 1861; Althia E., 
born Jan. 4, 1863 ; Clara A. S., born Nov. 21, 1864; 



and Clyde S., born Oct. 20, 1868. William S., born 
Nov. 7, 1849, died July 4, 1850. 

Mr. Morse has held the office of Collector and also 
Constable for several years. Politically he is a Re- 
publican. Socially, he is a member of the Masonic 
Order, and was one of the charter members of Shab- 
bona Lodge No. 374, and also one of the first officers 
of that lodge. He was also a member of the I. O. 
O. F., and belonged to Fertile Lodge at Shabbona, 
which has been suspended for a number of years. 
He is a fair type of the early pioneer who in later 
life preserves the large-hearted, generous feelings of 
frontier days. His friends and the stranger are alike 
welcomed to his fireside. His wife is a member of 
the Congregational Church. 



*•&*. 



If 



& 



^rederick J. Troeger, farmer, section 32, 
„ Squaw Grove Township, has been identi- 
« fied with the agricultural interests of De 
%&? Kalb County and the township in which he 
lives for upwards of 30 years, having bought a 
farm here in 1S53, when he arrived at the 
period of his legal manhood. He was born Aug. 14, 
1834, in Lebanon Co., Pa. His father, George F. 
Troeger, who was a native of Germany, was a clergy- 
man in the interests of the Moravian Church, and 
transferred his family to the various places where he 
prosecuted the duties of his professional labors. They 
lived at different localities in Pennsylvania and Ohio, 
and in 1855 came to De Kalb County, where the 
father died Aug. 24, 1874. The mother, Magdalena 
E. (Rosethaler) Troeger, born in Pennsylvania, is yet 
living. 

Mr. Troeger is the youngest of four children. 
Emma L., Bertha A. and Henry A. are the names 
bestowed upon the elder children. In 1853 he bought 
80 acres of land on section ^, on which he operated 
until 1864, the date of his purchase of the farm on 
which he now resides. His real estate in the county 
comprises 175 acres. Politically he is identified with 
the Republican party. He has held the local offices 
of School Director and Overseer of Highways. 

He was married Nov. 6, 1855, in Northampton 
Co., Pa., to Sophia M. Beitel, and they have eight 
children : Emily L., Alletta M., Clarena G, Ida O., 



Hortensia E., Octavie E.. Benigna A. and Herman 




*4k3 



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458 



-— ^ — ^< -d >>: u n^ >^ — - 

BE KALB COUNTY. 






•>v»V 






A. Mrs. Troeger was born in the county where she 
was married, Nov. 15, 1833. 



Mr. and Mrs. Troeger are members of the Meth- 
' odist Episcopal Church and of the American Bible 




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avid Smith, the oldest living pioneer of 

, Shabbona Township, residing at Shabbona, 

"^ was born in Chatham, Canada East, Dec. 

S1>V" 10, 1820. He is a son of James and Sally 

- (Straw) Smith, formerly residents of VVaterbury, 
Vermont, and who were temporarily absent from 
that State, in Canada, at date of the birth of their 
son. 

David was reared on a farm, and spent his years 
prior to 13 in farm labor and attending the common 
schools in Vermont. His father deceased, and his 
mother was married to Edmund Tow 11,11. m deceased, 
who also was one of the early settlers in Shabbona 
Township. 

When 13 years old Mr. Smith, accompanied by his 
mother, came to Paw Paw, Lee Co., this State, arriv- 
ing there in October, 1834. His stepfather arrived 
in December of the same year, and he and Mr. 
Smith erected the first house in Shabbona Township. 
The house was located on section 26, was con- 
structed of logs and was raised on the first day of 
January, 1835. They entered at once on the labo- 
rious task of improving the land and made that their 
home. In 1835 David, then only 14 years of age, 
improved a claim, the same being the land now 
owned by Peter V. Miller and known as the south- 
west quarter of section 24. He sold his claim and 
improved another, southwest of the last named, 
which he was compelled to relinquish on account 
of his minority. Later he improved still another 
claim, and subsequently traded it for the place lie 
now owns. Mr. Smith has added to his land until he 
is at the present time the owner of 400 acres, situated 
on sections 11, 27 and 34. 

In 1850, when the news of the discovery of gold in 
California was received, Mr. Smith went overland to 
that State. He arrived there in safety, and at once 
engaged in pl.n cr-mining. He made a claim full of 
promise at the time, and did turn out rich in ore, but 
he was taken with a severe attack of typhoid fever 



and lost the benefit of his discovery. His brother, 
who was with him. was stricken with the same 
disease and died, and Mr. Smith concluded to re- 
turn home. He returned, via the Isthmus, arriving 
lure in Dei ember, 1X52, and has since been residing 
on his farm and in Shabbona. He moved into the 
village in 1879, and has five acres of land and 
several village lots there. 

Mr. Smith was married in Brooklyn Township, 
Lee Co., this State, June 7, 1839,10 Miss Eliza J. 
Carr. She was born in the city of New York, Aug. 
ro, 1 818, and was the daughter of James and Eliza 
(Johnson) Carr. She came to Illinois when seven 
years old. Of their union six children were born : 
Mary A., the wife of Frank Crowell, of Waterman, 
this State. Rebecca, wife of Bradford Heath, resident 
at Shabbona. Israel married Miss May Thomas and 
resides in Shabbona. Henry married Miss Jennie 
Neal and resides in Shabbona. Warren married 
Cate McFadden and resides at Shabbona. Eliza, 
youngest daughter, is unmarried and resides at home. 

Mrs. Smith died in August, 18S0, in Shabbona, 
and July 7, 1883, Mr. Smith was again married, to 
Miss Annie Sevier, daughter of George and Mary 
Sevier. She was born in Cedarville, Stephenson Co., 
this State, Dec. 28, 1849. 

Mr. Smith politically is a Republican. He is a 
member of Spartan Lodge, 272, I. O. O. F., at Paw 
Paw, Lee County. 




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*- — «- — * 

f&a.Jjharles Kittelson, general farmer on sec- 
[LtSfe tion 17, Milan Township, was born Oct. 
,- J ^ 28, 185 l-, in Earl Township, La Salle Co., 
pfc 111. His parents were Kettle anil Lavinia 
W (Sanderson) Kittelson, and he was but n 
I years of age when his father died, in March, 
1863. He was mainly" dependent on his own efforts 
for a livelihood after that event, previous to which 
he had received onlv a common-School education. 
He gave considerable attention to the proper train- 
ing of his mind, and also contributed to the familv 
maintenance, as there were four children younger 
than himself. They are named: Austin, born Dec. 
1, 1853; Emma, April 6, 1856; Adolph, Oct. 5, 
1858; and Knute, Nov. i 2. 1862. Emma is the 
wife of Goodman Jacobs, a farmer of Milan Town- 
ship. The mother and three brothers named live 



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DE KALB COUNTY. 






459 



9 



with Mr. Kittelson, of this sketch. The former is 
62 years of age. Her mother, Adaline Sanderson, is 
still living in La Salle County, and is nearly 90 
years of age, and is still healthy and sprightly to a 
remarkable degree. 

Mr. Kittelson was married May 29, 1879, in Earl 
Township, La Salle Co., 111., to Adelaide M. Sander- 
son, daughter of Knute and Augusta (Halverson) 
Sanderson. Her parents are natives of Norway and 
removed thence to La Salle County, where she was 
born April 20, 1857. They still occupy a farm in 
that county. Mrs. Kittelson has become the mother 
of three children, and one is now deceased, — Levi 
C, — who died in infancy. Amos K. was born Aug. 
28, 1S81 ; Silas H. was born Dec. 28, 1883. 

In 1881 Mr. Kittelson became by purchase the 
owner of the family homestead in Milan Township, 
and 80 acres additional from his brother Henry. The 
family are Lutheran in religious belief. He is a re- 
Republican in political principle and connection. 



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——5 vv^Sf-f^S-^^ i- 

ev. Frederick Witherspoon, deceased, 
formerly a resident of Somonauk, was born 
' in Hillsborough, N. C, March 31, 1814. 
His father, Rev. John K. Witherspoon, an old- 
school Presbyterian minister, was a grandson 
of John Witherspoon, who signed the Declara- 
tion of Independence. Frederick's mother's maiden 
name was Susan Kallock. 

The subject of this sketch was educated for the 
ministry in his native town, and ordained by the 
authorities of the Protestant Methodist Church. In 
1834 he came to this county and spent a few months 
in Somonauk, and the next year he settled here per- 
manently, as an itinerant minister, at Somonauk. now 
Sandwich. 

Nov. 3 of the latter year (1835), he married Miss 
Marietta Heath, a daughter of John and Mary 
(Powell) Heath, who was born in Medina Co., Ohio, 
April 7, 1820. They had five children, namely : 
John, who was born Aug. 5, 1837, married Mary 
Wheeler and is now living at Fremont, Neb.; Ed- 
mond S., born Jan. 3, 1840, married Julia Jones and 
lives at Hubbard, Iowa; Melissa H., born May 30, 
1842, is now the wife of Darius Horton, of Water- 
man, this county; Marietta B., born April 11, 1844 




is the wife of Frank A. Frost, of Shabbona; and 
Frederick N., born Feb. 22, 1847, became a member 
of the 58th 111. Vol. Inf., and died at Camp Butler, 
March 18, 1864. 

Rev. Witherspoon 's field of labor was mainly in 
Southern Illinois, he being assigned to the Southern 
Illinois Conference. In 1848 he preached at Shab- 
bona Grove. He died at Somonauk April 5, 1849. 



=8fs3s 




ames L. Eastabrooks. retired farmer, resi- 
dent at Hinckley, was born Dec. 9, i8i8 ) 
in Tioga Co., N. Y. His parents, John 
and Elizabeth (Howard) Eastabrooks, were 
natives of Connecticut, where they settled after 
marriage. Later, they went to Pennsylvania, 
and afterwards to the State of New York. They went 
then again to Pennsylvania, whence they came in 
1835 toDe Kalb County and located in Squaw- Grove 
Township, where they remained until their death. 
That of the father occurred March 14, 1850, in the 
66th year of his age. The mother died Nov. 20, 
1875, in her 93d year. They had nine children — 
Elizabeth H., Bradbury C, Ebenezer H., Bath- 
sheba A., Decatur M., Mary E., James L., Charlotte 
A. and Augusta A. 

Mr. Eastabrooks was five years of age when his 
parents removed to Pennsylvania the second time. 
He received his early education in the common 
schools of that State. He came at 17 years of age, 
in 1836, to De Kalb County, a few months after his 
parents had taken up their residence in the count) 
He has since remained in Squaw Grove Township 
and lived on a part of the homestead farm until the 
fall of 1878, when he removed with his family to 
Hinckley and took possession of the residence he 
had built in the summer of 1877. He is still the 
owner of 100 acres of land in Squaw Grove Town- 
ship. Politically, Mr. Eastabrooks is identified with 
the Democratic party. 

He was married Oct^ 21, 1847, to Elizabeth C. 
Cone. She was born July 12, 1830, in Oneida Co., 
N. Y., and is the daughter of Archibald and Rosetta 
(Cunningham) Cone. Her parents were native- of 
Scotland. Four days after their marriage, in Paisley, 
the latter emigrated to America and settled in the 
State of New York, livingjhere until 1843, tlu 






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DE KALB COUNTY. 




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in which the) removed to Squaw Grove Township, 
where the motherdied May <;, 1X74. The father 
died there Aug. 6, 1877. Following are the nanus 
of 1 heir 1 1 children — Jane, Jeannette, Man , William, 
Margaret, Isabella, John (isi), John (2d), Elizabeth 
C., Archibald and Rosetta. Six children have been 
born to Mr. and Mrs. Eastabrooks — Mary lv. John 
H., Archibald C, Julia A., Delia B. and James A. 
Archibald and Julia are deceased, The parents are 
members of the Methodist Church. 



'^"oseph Smith, farmer, section 25, Shabbona 

f Township, has a well improved farm of 150 

acres. He was born in the town of Provi 

dence, Saratoga Co., N. Y., Sept. 18, 1818 

His parents were Harmanius V. and Hannah 

(Westgate) Smith. His paternal grandfather, 

' Abraham M. Smith, was a soldier of the Revolution 

and an enthusiastic patriot. His mother was a 

3 daughter of Sylvanus Westgate, of Holland descent, 

nd a direct descendant of the Puritans of New Eng- 

1 land. She came to the State of New York in 1802. 

V/ Joseph's father was born in New York, Nov. 7, 1790, 

"* and died in Sandwich, this State, June 15, 1868. His 

[< ) mother was born Dec. 28, 1789, in Massachusetts, 

and died in March, 1866, at Little Rock, 111., where 

she had lived since 1855. She was the mother of 

three children, — Henry T. Nathaniel, Caroline E. 

and Joseph, the subject of this sketch, who is the 

only one living. 

The latter received an academic education, and 
taught school during the winter seasons, alternating 
with farm labor the rest of the year, from 1840 to 
[854, serving also as School Superintendent a portion 
of the time. His fondness for mathematics was a 
marked characteristic from early boyhood, and dur- 
ing his career as teacher he had but few equals in 
that branch of study. He still retains great aptitude 
in " figures," as well as a remarkable recollection of 
dates and facts. 

He was married in Erie Co., N. Y., Dec. 31, 1S46, 
to Miss Lovina Fritts, daughter of John and Betsey 
/ (Hentley) Fritts. She was born in Providence, Sara- 
£w toga Co., N. Y., Nov. 12, 1827. Both her grand- 
fathers were soldiers in the War of the Revolution. 
7" Mr. Smith and family emigrated from New York to 

^v^^i- ^€§^ — ^<m 




Illinois in 1854. He bought land in Clinton Town- 
ship, this county, where he engaged in farming one 
year, and then removed to Little Rock, 111 , and from 
there to Shabbona in 1857, where he purchased the 
farm on which he now resides. This farm he man- 
aged until 1S64, when he sold and entered the drug 
business at Piano, 111. The latter occupation he 
abandoned in March, 1866, and commenced agricul- 
tural pursuits on a place near Sycamore; but in Oc- 
tober following lie traded for his old farm in Shab- 
bona, since which time he has made this place his 
home. 

He is a member of the Ancient 'Order of Odd Fel- 
lows, of New York. On coming to this county he 
took the first degree of Masonry in the old lodge at 
West Paw Paw; but, owing to his removal to Piano, 
he failed to advance. In politics he has been a 
consistent Republican since the organization of that 
party. 

Mr. and Mrs. Smith have had five children. The 
eldest, Frances E., was born in Saratoga Co., N. V., 
March 25, 18152, and is now the wife of Jury J. 
Smith, of Sandwich, 111. The younger children were 
born in De Kalb County. Charles, born Aug. 20, 
1856, died Oct. 27, 1862; Mary, born July 27, 1863, 
is now the wife of Delos D. Clapsaddle, of Shabbona 
Township; Willie was born Dec. 23, 1866; and Jen- 
nie E., Aug. 27, r868. The two youngest are living 
at home. 










£3 



^fjj&a.-Jjharles Cruise, fa 
IjF Township, « as I 



armer, section 9, Milan 
1 on nsnip, was born Aug. 22, 1882, in 
gdP?"* - Mecklenburg, Germany. His parents had 
|ife three < hildren, of whom he was the eldest, 
y^ His father died when he was little more than 
1 child, and the widowed mother and the 
Other 1 hildren were substantially dependent on the 
exertions of the older son and brother for main- 
tenance, lie devoted the years of his life after 
tin decease of his father until he was 23 years of 
age to the fulfillment of that duty. At that time his 
mother died. 

He was married three years later, in July, 1848, 
to Mar) Ami. She is the daughter of Joseph and 
Sophia (Perry) Ami, both of $ horn were of German 
birth. Mr. Cruise removed in 1851, accompanied 






. 



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DE KALB COUNTY. 



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465 < 



hy his wife and two children, to America. They 
made their first stop at Chicago, where Mr. Cruise 
was occupied three years as a common laborer. In 
1854 he came to the county of De Kail) and rented 
the farm of William PattOD for sometime. In 1864 
he purchased the estate of which he is now the pro- 
prietor in Milan Township; and to this place he 
removed his family of three children. The farm is in 
excellent condition, and its prosperity is solely the 
result of the industry and judicious quality of the 
efforts expended upon it. Mr. Cruise is largely in- 
terested in raising fine grades of cattle, hogs and 
horses, and is ranked among the best and most 
skillful farmers in the township. Mr. and Mrs. 
Cruise have had six children, one of whom is de- 
ceased. Sophia married Erik Eriksen, a farmer in 
Milan Township; Amelia is the wife of Charles 
Rohr, a farmer of Dakota ; John, the eldest child at 
home, is the manager of the homestead ; George is 
a practical farmer and is still at home; Lizzie is pre- 
paring for a business career in Chicago. 

Mr. Cruise is a Republican, and his qualities as a 
man and a citizen have permanently established his 
family among the best in the township. 



«3 

■Charles O. Boynton, farmer and dealer in 
Jj real estate, at Sycamore, purchased the 
\p property on which he resides in 1859. His 
L home farm embraces 120 acres, 40 acres be- 
ing included within the city limits. He was 
born July 19, 1826, in Rockingham, Vt. His 
parents, John and Betsey (Davis) Boynton, were na- 
tives of the same place, where the former was born 
July 2, 1798. John Boynton was a joiner by voca- 
tion, and in June, 1827, he removed to McLean, 
Tompkins Co., N. Y., making the transit from the 
Green Mountain State with a team, there being at 
that date no other means of locomotion. He worked 
at his trade for a time, afterwards becoming a mer- 
chant, and also managed a small tannery in com- 
pany with another man. He died at McLean, April 
29, 1869. His wife, the mother of Mr. Boynton of 
this sketch, died in McLean in 1833. They had six 
children. Mary married Daniel Marsh, of McLean 



and died about 1S45. Eliza is the widow of John 
P. Hart, formerly a farmer and dealer in stock, who 
died in 1870. John H. resides at Chicago, III. 
Laura married H. W. Carr, general agent of the 
Chesapeake & Ohio Railroad Company, whose office 
is situated at No. 329, Broadway, New York. Lydia 
is the widow of Henry A. Jarvis, formerly a carpen- 
ter. He died at Chicago in 1 87 1 . After the death 
of their mother their father married Ann M. Fitts. 
There are are two children from the second mar- 
riage. Edward is a clerk in the employment of 
Charles Carley, a produce merchant at Sycamore. 
Fitz is the President of the Second National Bank at 
Cortland, N. Y. 

Mr. Boynton passed several years during his min- 
ority as a clerk in his father's store, and soon after 
becoming of age, in October, 1847, came to Chicago 
and opened a dry-goods store on Soutli Water Street. 
He transacted business there one year, and in 1849 
came to Sycamore, where he opened a general store ^ y 



and conducted the affairs of a commercial enterprise 



A 



V) 



about three years. In 1S52 he began to operate in 
loans in a small way and continued as a financier =3 
until 1S79. In 187 1 he formed an association with S^ 
R. L. Divine, under the style of R. L. Divine & Co., =3 
in establishing and managing a banking house, their *£/ 
relations existing one year, when he sold out to the 
senior partner. In 1880 Mr. Boynton began to traffic 
in real estate and has extended his operations until 
he is the owner of 1,300 acres of finely improved 
land in De Kalb County, which is managed by ten- 
ants. He is the proprietor of about 12,000 acres in 
Iowa, and 500 respectively in Kansas and Minnesota. 
His claims in Arkansas include over 60,000 acres. 
The improved tract in Iowa embraces 2,00a acres. 
Mr. Boynton has officiated as Chairman of the Board 
of Trustees of Sycamore several years. 

He was married Nov. 26, 1861, in Ledyard, Cay- 
uga Co., N. Y., to Lucetta P. Stark, and they have 
three children. Charles D. was born Aug. 10, 1862. 
He was educated at the Stevens Institute, where he 
was a student in the scientific course four years. 
Mary E. was born Feb. 23, 1S64. Elmer E. was 
born July 7, 1874. Mrs. Boynton was born May 10, 
1836, in Wilkesbarre, Pa. Her parents, Paul and *J 
Pauline (Billings) Stark, removed with their family to wd 
Ledyard, N. Y., in 1855. 

The portraits of Mr. and Mrs. Boynton appear on 
other pages of this volume. 







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DE KALB COUNTY. 



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York. 






tophen A. Hall, Supervisor of Squaw drove 
Township, and farmer on section 24, lias 
been a landholder thereon since 1867, 
when lie purchased 160 acres of land, on 
which he has since operated as a farmer. He 
w.i^ born March 13, 1834, in the < ity of New 
His parents, Alexis and Emeline (Hunt) 
Hall, were natives of New England. The mother 
died in the city of New York, and in 1842 the father 
came to the township 'of Big Rock, in Kane Co., 111. 
He died there Jan. 15, 1883. Six children born to 
them were named Fritzena, Charles Arabella, Stephen 
A. and Arnold. 

Mr. Hall came with his father to Kane County in 
1842, where he remained until 1867. In that year 
he bought 160 acres of land in Squaw Grove Town- 
ship. On this farm he has since resided and has 
placed it all under culture. He is a Republican in 
political principle, and was elected Supervisor in the 
spring of 1882. He has held the office ever since. 

Mr. Hall was married March 29, i860, at Big 
Rock, Kane Co., 111., to Elizabeth, daughter of Dea- 
con Jeremiah and Mary (Reese) VVhildin, and they 
have had five children, — Frank A. (deceased), Sarah 
L., Minerva A. (deceased), Arthur J. and Leonard S. 
Mr. Hall has been Township Trustee and School 
Director. Both himself and wife are members of the 
Baptist Church. 



Ilsahel E. Hayes, farmer, section 35 and 36, 
^g Shabbona Township, was born in Cazenovia 
' Township, Madison Co., N. Y., Feb. 2, 1832, 
and is a son of Milo and Adaline (Partello) 
Hayes, He was brought up on a farm and re- 
ceived a common-school education. In April, 1855, 
he came to Kane Co., 111., and located at Sugar 
Grove. In the spring of 1864 he removed to Shab- 
bona Township, this county, locating on section 17 ; 
but in three years he sold out and purchased a tract 
on section 27, same township, where he followed his 
vocation of farming for 13 years; he then bought his 





present place, in March, 1880, which comprises 194 
acres, his dwelling being on section 35. 

Mr. Hayes was first married Oct. 4, 1857, at Sugar 
Grove, to Miss Cornelia Booth, and they had six chil- 
dren, all boys, as follows : Elmer W., who was born 
Oct. 12, 1859, married Sarah Spears and is now liv- 
ing in Shabbona; Charles E., who was born Aug. 2, 
1 86 1, and is living at home ; George S., who was born 
Oct. 24, 1863, and died in infancy; Joseph G., born 
May 26, 1865, is also living at home ; and James B., 
born Aug. 10, 1868, died when an infant. 

Mrs. Hayes died Feb. 24, 1881 ; and Sept. 15, fol- 
lowing, in Johnson Co., Mo., Mr. Hayes married Mrs. 
Lavinia Russell, widow of Willis Russell and daugh- 
ter of William and Hannah Arthur. She was born in 
Maryland, March 27, 1851, adopted by Elhanan 
Roop and brought up in Missouri. By her first mar- 
riage she had four children, namely : Mary E., born 
Aug. 3, 187 1 ; Lelieu E., Oct. 27, 1873; Susan L., 
born in 1875, died in infancy; and Paul A., born 
March 15, 1877, and died in August, following. Mr. 
Russel died in November, 1878. Mrs. Hayes is a 
member of the Baptist Church, and Mr. Hayes, in 
his political action, has always voted with the Re- 
publicans. 




eorge S. Potter, farmer, section 24, Squaw 
Grove Township, is a native of the county 
and town where he lives. His parents, 
Samuel E. and Olive P. (Winslow) Potter, 
were natives of Massachusetts, and settled in 
1 the township of Squaw Grove in De Kalb 
County about 1847. Their deaths took place there 
respectively July 20, 1856, and Nov. 15, 1883. Their 
children were named Harriet S., George S., Mary O., 
Orlando B. and Samuel L. 

Mr. Potter was born Sept. 24, 1860. Hewas edu- 
cated in the common schools and attended a semi- 
nary at Aurora several terms. Following in the 
footsteps of his forefathers, he has always been a 
farmer, and is the owner of 120 acres in Squaw Grove 
Township and 40 acres in Kane County. The entire 
acreage is chiefly under the plow. Mr. Potter is a 
Republican in his political views. 

He formed a matrimonial alliance with Flora M. 
Long, in Kane County, April 29, 1873. Mrs. Potter 






V) 




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DE KALB COUNTY. 




was horn Feb. i, 1849, in Kane Co., 111., and is the 
daughter of John L. and Sarah A. (Cornell) Long. 
Her father is a native of New York and her mother 
of Massachusetts. 

-c&' — 

Lewis Olmstead, farmer, owning 137 acres 

located on sections 25 and 36, Shabbona 

Township, was born in Wilton Township, 

Fairfield Co., Conn., May 13, 1802. He is 

the son of David and Rebecca (Jackson) 

Olmstead, who removed to the vicinity of 

Ithaca, N. Y., when that city was but a small hamlet. 

Mr. Olmstead was brought up on a farm of his 

father's, alternating his labors thereon by attendance 

at the common schools. 

He was married in Tompkins Co., N. Y., Feb. 27, 

(t ) 1823, to Miss Eleanor, daughter of Jesse and Betsey 

^ Owens, and by her had six children. The eldest, 

^> Betsey, married James |Hare, and died when 32 

[ years of age. Aaron, second child, married Huldah 

*$ Bayley and resides in Butler Co., Iowa. Hector died 

* at the age of 25 years. Harmon married Miss 

&u Lee and resides in Dakota. Silas married Lucetta 

> Bayley and resides in Leland, 111. Lewis died at 
(\ the age of 18 years. John was a member of the 
Second Illinois Light Artillery, in the late Civil War, 
and died in the hospital at Vicksburg. Mrs. Olm- 
stead died May 4, 1852, and Mr. Olmstead was a 
second time married Nov. 14, 1852, in Somonauk 
(now Sandwich), to Mrs. Marietta Witherspoon, widow 
of Rev. Frederick Witherspoon and daughter of Dr. 
••'%> John and Mary (Powell) Heath. She was born in 
' Liverpool Township, Medina Co., Ohio, April 7, 
k 1820. Of their union three children were born, — 
two boys and one girl. Mary E., born Aug. 11, 
1855, is the wife of George Goodrich, a resident of 
Lincoln, Neb. Lewis M., born Dec. 5, 1859, mar- 
ried Maudie Lane and lives on the old homestead. 
Frederick J., born Dec. 26, r863, lives at home. 
Mr. Olmstead came to this State in 1837, and lo- 
II cated in La Salle County. In August, 1838, he 

* came to Shabbona. The county was not surveyed, 

tand the town contained only two families, — those of 
Mr. E. Town and Nathan Olmstead, a brother. He 
made his home on the farm on which he now resides 
and on which he has since continued to reside. He 





-^£^£ ^A^j 



and his wife are both members of the Congregational 
Church. 

Politically, Mr. Olmstead has been a Republican 
ever since the party was organized. He is a man of 
powerful physique, and, although 83 years of age, 
he would be hale and hearty were it not for an acci- 
dent a few years since in which his leg was broken. 
He is now confined to a wheel chair for locomotion. 

Mrs. Olmstead came to Somonauk, this county, 
with her parents on the last week of r833. She was 
the oldest lady settler of De Kalb County present at 
the old settlers' picnic held at Pritchard's Grove, 
Sept. 8, 1 88 r, on which occasion she was presented 
with a fine case of silver spoons. The presentation 
speech was made by Hon. M. B. Castle, of Sandwich, 
this county. Mrs. Olmstead had five children by 
her first marriage, a record of whom will be found in 
the sketch of Rev. Frederick Witherspoon in this 
work. 



|SI£ ee E. Tomblin, junior editor and publisher 
' of the De Kalb Review, was born in the 
township of Clinton, De Kalb County, Illi- 
nois, Dec. r4, 1858, where he led an unevent- 
Jk ful life of farm work and attending the country 
school until 1875. Mr. Tomblin's father, N. F. 
Tomblm, died in the fall of 1S74, and the following 
year L. E. moved with his mother to the village of 
Waterman, where he attended school for a time ; 
then going to Emerson, Mills Co., Iowa, where he 
served his first apprenticeship as printer's devil on 
the Mills County Chronicle. He returned to Illinois 
and worked on the old De Kalb News through the 
winter of '76-77, then again attending school for a 
time. In r878, in company with his brother, M. N. 
Tomblin, they established the Hinckley Review and 
Waterman Leader, which papers they successfully 
founded and managed for four years, selling the en- 
tire interest to H. W. Fay, who had entered as a 
partner a year before. Mr. Tomblin immediately 
started the Genoa Si/tings, and successfully con- 
tinued that paper for one year, when he formed a 
partnership with D. W. Tyrrell, a well-known news- 
paper man, for the purpose of purchasing the De 
Kalb Review, then printed in Sycamore, which paper 
they have successfully established in De Kalb, to- 
gether with a large job printing establishment. In 




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the spring of 1884, Mr. Tomblin was appointed 
Government Mail Weighei on the Chicago, Milwau- 
kee & St. Paul Railroad, between Chicago and 
Marion, Iowa, Having passed the civil service ex- 
amination, lie was in May of the same year ap- 
pointed as an Inspector of Customs in the Chicago 
Custom I louse, which position he held until Jan. 
1, [885: rhere being a change in administration he 
returned to De Kail) and resumed his duties on the 
Review, in which paper he had retained his interest. 
In the fall of 1SS1 Mr. Tomblin was married to 
Miss Laura M. Palmer, of Hinckley, to whom a 
daughter was born in 1S84. 



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M. Tanner, retired fanner, living at 

M'; Hinckley, was bum Feb. ?, [828, in Alex- 
is* .-. ., ,, , ,,. 



Uidria, Jefferson Co., New York. His par 
ents, William and Betsey (Paddock) Tanner, 
were natives respei tively of the Slate of New 
York .ind Connecticut. Their children were 
born in the following order : Emily, William A., 
Elizabeth, Jane A., Mary and Maryette (twins), Sarah 
and Oscar M. 

William Tanner came to Kane Co., 111., with his 
family in 1836 and settled in Sugar Grove Township. 
Later they removed tu Aurora, where the mother 
died, Oct. 19, 1854. The father died there, Feb. 22, 
1S55. The youngest son, Oscar M., accompanied 
his parents to Kane County, and was an inmate of 
the paternal home until the year following that in 
win. h he attained his majority. In the spring of 
1 85 9 he came to De Kalb County and bought 80 
acres of land in Afton Township, where he settled 
and remained six years. In 1865 he sold the 
property there and bought a farm on section 15, 
Squaw Grove Township. In the fall of 1884 he 
l« night a resilience in the village of Hinckley, 
where he has since lived. His farm contains 183 
acres, and is nearly all under cultivation. Politic all) 
Mr. Tanner is a Republican, and has been active 
in school matters, have served seven years as School 
Director. 

He was united in marriage to Sarah J. Spaulding, 
at Aurora, July 3, 185 1. Mrs. Tanner is the daugh- 
ter of Dr. A. and Julia A. Spaulding. Her parents 
were natives of the State of New York, and had a 




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family of six children — Emil) D., Sarah I , Ntavman, 

Henry A.. Julia A. and Eliza J. Mrs. Spaulding 
died Oct. 1, 1847, in Jersej City. Mr. Spaulding 
fixed his residence in Aurora in [847, where he died 
Dee. 4, 1SS4. Mis. Tanner was burn Oct. 19, 1832, 
111 Washington Co., N. Y. Henry Spaulding, a 
brother Ol Mi's. Tanner, has been a resident ol 
Paris, France, fur the last 12 years. He is a mem- 
ber of the jewelry house of Tiffany & Co., of New 
York, and is the manager of the branch house in 
Paris. A sister, Eli/.a J., is the wife of Harlow 
Miner, of Denver, Col. Following isthe record of 
the children of Mr. and Mis. Tanner: Rosella 
J. was bum in Clinton, De Kalb County, April 20, 
1852; Oscar R. was born Feb. 11, 1856, in Aurora, 
Kane Count) ; Rilla 15. was born in the same place, 
April 14, 1 S 5 S ; Emma R. was burn Jan. 26, 1S63, 
in Afton Township; Rhoda E., was bom in Squaw 
Grove, March 5, [867; Alice K. was born Nov. 9, 
1S75, in that township. 

— 1M^€1MM§« — 

eter Miller, farmer, section 24, Shabbona 

Township, was among the first of its sub- 
jjep^v stantial settlers, having located here June 
1S45. He was born in Columbia Co., N. Y., 
Feb. 21, 1816, the son of Simeon and Betsey 
(Bedell) Miller. When ten years of age he 
was taken by his parents in change of residence to 
Cayuga Co., N. Y., where he was brought up on a 
farm, receiving a common-school education. He 
was married in that county, Feb. 25, 1841, to Miss 
Elizabeth Quilhot, daughter of Henry and Hannah 
(Van Allen) Quilhot. She was born at Amsterdam, 
Columbia Co., N. Y., March 22, 1815. 

Mr. Miller was engaged in agricultural pursuits, in 
the town of Conquest, Cayuga Co., N. Y., until the 
spring of 1845, when be emigrated to this State, ar- 
riving at Shabbona Grove June 5, that year. He 
purchased a claim to the southwest quarter of section 
24, which he subsequently entered at Government 
price, and which has been the home of himself and 
family for 40 years. He has had five children, — 
three sons and two daughters, — namely: Isaac P., 
who was born April 8, 1843, and died May 15, 1845; 
Peter V., who was born Aug. iS, 1846, and died June 
4, 1857; Mary E.,*who was born May 28, 1850, and 

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is now the wife of Dr. Francis Steward, of Rochelle, 
III.; Myntlret S., who was liorn July 11, 1855, and 
married Clara E. Adams, and now resides at the old 
homestead; and Catharine J., who was born Oct. 22, 
1861, and died Feb. 28, 1863. 

Mr. Miller is a representative man of the class of 
industrious, thrifty and successful farmers who took 
their lands from the Government in a natural state in 
the pioneer days; who endured the many trials and 
discomforts incident to a settlement in a new coun- 
try, remote from markets and the many advantages 
of advanced civilization; and who, by industry, 
economy and good management have secured to 
themselves and children valuable and well improved 
farms, with tasteful and commodious residences, 
abounding in aJl the comforts of rural life in a rich 
and well settled country. 




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ells A. Pay, retired farmer, resident at 



f ^?RJI? Hinckley, was born Nov. 13, 18 14, 1 



|5S> Onondaga Co., N. Y. His father, Jona- 
2x> than Fay, was born in Massachusetts and 
married Rhoda White, a native of Vermont. 
Mr. Fay, of this sketch, is the youngest of their 
six children. 

On reaching his legal freedom, in 1836, he settled 
in De Kalb County, locating on Government land in 
the township of Squaw Grove. He afterwards bought 
his original claim, which comprised 300 acres situated 
on sections 29 and 32, on which he was a resident 
until 1882. In that year he removed to the village 
of Hinckley, where he fixed his permanent residence. 
In political opinion he is identified with the Repub- 
lican party. He is still a landholder, and owns 270 
acres of land in De Kalb County. He has been 
Justice of the Peace, Assessor, and has held other 
minor offices. 

His marriage to Harriet E. Lay took place June S, 
1842, in Somonauk Township. She was born in Con- 
necticut, and her parents, Samuel H. and Emily 
(Pratt) Lay, came to De Kail) County in 1841, set- 
tling in Somonauk Township, where her father died. 
Her mother died m Squaw Grove Township, at the 
home of Mrs. Fay. Five children have been born to 
the latter and her husband, — Emma F., Jane L., 





Alcott W., Ida C. and Ashley H. The first and last 
born are deceased. Mrs. Fay is a member of the 
Methodist Church. 



jJ.V ames Cameron, farmer, section 26, Shab- 
bona Township, was born in Delaware 
Township, Juniata Co., Pa., Oct. n, 1824, 
of Scottish ancestry. His parents were John 
iL and Sarah (Jones) Cameron. He was reared 
on a farm until 17 years of age, and then fol- 
lowed the blacksmith's trade for 14 years. 

In March, 1852, he moved to Mercer Co., 111., 
bought land and pursued farming there for three 
years. In the spring of 1855 he sold that place and 
removed to Shabbona Township, this county, pur- 
chasing a farm on section 34, where he resided until 
1865; then lived a year at Earl, La Salle County; 
at Malta from November, 1866, to June, 1869, in the 
grain trade and hardware business ; next in Creston 
Township, Ogle County, in the hardware business; 
and in the spring of 1870 he returned to Shabbona, 
this county, residing on his farm since 1873. It 
comprises 100 acres. 

In his political connections, Mr. Cameron was a 
Whig in the days of Whiggism, and has been a Re- 
publican ever since the organization of the latter 
party. He and Mrs. C. are members of the Meth- 
odist Episcopal Church at West Shabbona. 

In Juniata Co., Pa., Sept. 26, 1846, Mr. Cameron 
married Miss Melinda E., daughter of James and 
Nancy (Talbert) Wallace, who was born in that 
county July 26, 1824, of Scottish and English de- 
scent. 



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tj^lPfohn F. Newsham, general farmer, section 
tSJ^lt? 9, Milan Township, was born Jan. 24, 
F ^* 1842, Erie Co., Pa. Charles Newsham, 
senior, his father, was a native of England, and 
emigrated to the "States " before marriage. 
He is still a resident of Erie Co., Pa.,' and is 
76 years of age. The wife and mother, Mary R. 
(Ward) Newsham, was born in the city of London, 
England, where she was educated. She was married 
soon after coming to America, at Pittsburg, Pa. She 



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died Nov. 13, 1882, in Erie Co., Pa., and is survived 
by seven of her nine children. 

Mr. Newsham fulfilled his minority under the 
guardianship of his parents, and in the spring of 1867 

came to De Kalb County. After a few months he 
made a purchase of 80 acres of land on section 9, on 
whirh he has since resided, in Milan Township. 
After securing his claim he returned to Erie County 
and was married, Oct. t, 1S67, to Maggie Brown. 
She was l>orn July 6, 1S46, in Green Township, Erie 
Co., Pa., whither her parents, David and Catherine 
(Bys) Brown, removed from the State of New York. 
She is one of six children born to her parents, who 
are now resident in the village of Malta, De Kalb Co. 
She was carefully educated and instructed in all 
womanly arts. She is the mother of one child, — 
Verna B., — born Jan. 28, 1878. She returned to 
Milan Township with her husband soon after mar- 
riage, and they have had a prosperous life, through 
the exercise of good judgment and ability. Their 
farm includes 200 acres of excellent land with suit- 
able farm fixtures. Mr. Newsham is a Republican. 



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eorge T. Mason, farmer, section 36, Squaw 
r Grove Township, is the son of Roswell 
\/l\i"~ ' W. and Jane (Spofford) Mason, and is of 
New England descent and origin. They came 
from Vermont, their native State, to New York, 
and to Kendall Co., 111., in 1856. Mrs. Mason 
died while absent from her home on a visit to Wis- 
consin. Mr. M. is now residing at Colorado Springs, 
Col. Their children were named George F. and 
Anna E. 

Mr. Mason, the subject of this sketch, was born 
Jan. 22, 1842, in Chautauqua Co., N. Y., and was 
about 14 years of age when his parents became resi- 
dents of the State of Illinois. He lived in Kendall 
County until February, 1S67, when he purchased his 
farm in the Township of Squaw Grove. His original 
purchase included 80 acres, and now consists of 160 
acres, all of which is tillable and mostly in a fair 
slate of cultivation. Mr. Mason is politically in 
sympathy with the Republican party, and has offici- 
ated as School Director. 

He was married Oct. 22, 1864, at Joliet, 111., to 
Augusta, daughter of Timothy and Harriet (Chilcott) 




Hodgman. The former was a native of Vermont 
and the latter of the State of New York. Mrs. Mason 
had two brothers and a sister, all older than herself 
and born in the following order : William, Jeannette 
and Henry. She was born Sept. 29, 1847, at Crown 
Point, Essex Co., N. Y., and has been the mother of 
five children, — Louis A., Warren G., Oscar W., 
Harry L. and Elva A. The first-born died in early 
childhood. Mrs. Mason's grandmother on her mother's 
side was a sister of the famous Joseph Call, the 
"Giant of New England." 





" illiam W. Irwin, farmer, sections 6 and 7, 
awL Shabbona Township, was born in Wash- 
ington Co., N. Y., Sept. 29, 1S22, and is a 
son of James G. and Mary (White) Irwin. 
His parents removed to Oswego County, in 

<J his native State, when William was an infant, 
and located on a farm. 

William remained on the farm in Oswego County, 
assisting in its cultivation and attending school until 
16 years of age, when he engaged to learn the coop- 
er's trade, which he soon mastered and followed for 
several years. He came to Shabbona, this county, 
April 17, 1856, spent nearly a year in that township, 
and then brought his family from " York State " and 
located in Victor Township. He lived there one 
year and then moved to Shabbona Township and 
settled on the farm on which he is at present residing. 
His farm comprises 210 acres and is in good tillable 
condition, with a comfortable residence and good 
substantial out-buildings. He also owns 344 acres 
in Iowa. 

Mr. Irwin was married in Oswego Co., N. Y., Jan. 
16, 1855, to Miss Elizabeth E., daughter of Daniel 
D. and Elizabeth (Singer) Colby. She was bom in 
Granby, Oswego Co., N. Y., Sept. 19, 1829. Eleven 
children constitute the issue of their union, seven 
boys and four girls, and their record is as follows: 
Willie W. was born Oct. 2t, 1855; Charles A. was 
born Jan. 20, 1858, married Maggie Hutton and re- 
sides at Storm Lake, Iowa, where he is practicing 
law, and is Chairman of the Republican Committee 
ol Buena Vista County. He is also teaching law in 
a business college; Miles H, born Jan. 10, r86o 



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died March i, i860; Frank D. was born Feb. 25, 
1861 ; Mary E. was born Aug. 2, 1863, married Geo. 
B. Foster and resides at Shabbona ; Cora A., born 
Sept. 23, 1865, died Oct. 31, 1865; Lewis J., born 
Oct. 2, 1866, died Sept. 22, 1875; Emmet J. and 
Emma M. (twins) were born June 20, 1868 : Emmet 
J. died Oct. 16, 1869; Lottie A., born Jan. 31, 187 1, 
died Sept. 17, 1879; John H., born Oct. 6, 1873, died 
Sept. 7, 1875. 

Politically, Mr. Irwin is a Republican, and relig- 
iously, he and his wife are members of the Method- 
ist Episcopal Church. 

When Mr. Irwin arrived in Chicago he had to 
borrow $10 to enable him to get to this county; and 
by his industry he has now his splendid farm in the 
above named township, besides the property he owns 
in Iowa. He is now able to retire from active life. 



V . 






-'. 



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jjion. Augustus Adams, of Sandwich, is the 
pioneer inventor and foundryman of North- 



ern Illinois, having established at Elgin the 
first foundry and machine-shop west of Chicago. 
Mr. Adams was born May 10, 1806, in Genoa, 
Cayuga Co., N. Y. Samuel Adams, the father 
of Augustus Adams, died when the latter was 1 1 
years old, leaving to his son the heritage of an un- 
sullied name and the necessity of immediate effort 
for self-maintenance. In the succeeding spring he 
went with his brother-in-law to Chester, Geauga Co., 
Ohio, where he spent some years in alternate farm 
labor and attending school. 

In boyhood Mr. Adams had a studious nature and 
a reflective mentality, and he made the best use of 
the limited advantages afforded by the sections of 
New York and Ohio where he resided, both being in 
their pioneer period. By devoting his leisure time to 
study and reading, he acquired a substantial store of 
general knowledge, and an education which on 
reaching mature years he made available in teaching, 
and in this avenue of effort he passed several win- 
ters. From the bent of his tastes and circumstances, 
he decided on mechanical inventions as a field for 
the development of his genius, having been aroused 
to the crudeness and inefficiency of farming imple- 
ments, and believing with all the enthusiasm of true 
genius in the possibilities open to inventors of agricul- 



(>) 



6 



tural machinery. While he labored, his mind was 
busy with plans for the future, and he worked on, 
saving the results of his industry and frugality until, 
in 1829, he was enabled to establish a foundry and 
machine shop at Pine Valley, Chemung Co., N. V. 
Upon the inventors of that early day rested con- 
victions of a twofold necessity. Not only invention 
waited on opportunity, but ways and means as well ; 
and facilities to aid the inventor in testing his appli- 
ances, being practically wanting, and, to the mind of 
the latter, remote from the centers of progress, the 
necessity for such assistance was as palpable as the 
dream of his genius. The establishment at I'ine 
Valley was in successful operation until 1837. 
Meanwhile, the thousand tongues of rumor had 
painted glowing pictures of the promise and oppor- 
tunity of the undeveloped West on every imagination 
east of the lakes, and filled every mind with longing 
to test the possibilities that awaited effort. 

To Mr. Adams the field for the exercise of his in- 
ventive faculties opened by the agricultural resources 
of the Prairie State, offered the opportunity he had 
hardly dared to hope for, and he foresaw the im- = 
portance and necessity of labor-saving machinery in ^ 
dealing with the enormous crops. Gradually he » 
formed the purpose of transferring his business and *L/ 
interests to the land of promise, a plan which he car- " 
ried into successful operation in the fall of 1838, (' 
when he came to Elgin, where he operated as he 
found opportunity, bringing every effort to bear on 
His ultimate purpose. His family joined him at 
Elgin in the fall of 1840, and in the year following, 
associated with James T. Gifford, he fulfilled his 
cherished plan and found himself at the head of a 
machine shop and foundry in the midst of the bound- 
less, beautiful prairies, whence every outlook was 
freighted with promise of successful application and 
the fruits of effort and genius. Here he labored with 
vigor and efficiency, and invented and manufactured 
the first " harvester " on which grain was collected 
and bound. He and Philo Sylla also invented the 
" Hinge Sickle Bar," which is now in use on all mow- ( { - 
ing-machines. He there commenced the manu- 
facture of the Adams Corn-Shellers. These machines 
were the outgrowth of a necessity consequent upon 
the change in the staple product of Illinois, — wheat 
failing from the nature of the soil and corn taking its 
place. Shellers were indispensable, and the hand 
machines which were manufactured to some extent 




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DE KALB COUNTY. 



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\t in the shops at Elgin were entirely inadequate in 
disposing of the huge crops that grew on the broad 

•&» acres of Illinois and other prairie States. This new 
want re-awakened the energies of Mr. Adams, and 
'j the "Self-feeding Corn-Shellers " have given his 
name a permanent place in the consciousness <>t 
every agriculturist between the eastern and western 
oceans. In i S56 Mr. Adams, while still resident at 
Elgin, started a machine shop on a limited s< ale at 
Sandwii h, where he experimented in theconstrui tion 
of a power corn-sheller. Within a year the idea was 
perfected; and, the opportune destruction of his 
small engine giving him an opportunity to replace it 
by one larger and more available, he was enabled to 
push the work of manufacturing as fast as his means 
would permit. In a few months, so to speak, the 
Sandwich Corn-Sheller attained a popularity which 
crowded the factory to its utmost capacity, and as 
\ early as 1861 the works afforded employment for a 
large force of men. The shops were destroyed by 
fire at a time when the products were in great de- 
mand, when the firm which had become A. Adams 
& Sons, with their well-known energy, reconstructed 



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* 



the building on a larger and better scale and by ex- 
traordinary exertions supplied the demand. The 
value and necessity of the corn-sheller was an estab- 
lished fact, and in 1867 home capital for the estab- 

O lishment of an incorporated company flowed in 
abundantly, resulting in the organization of the Sand- 
wich Manufacturing Company, with Augustus Adams 
as its President. Increasing demand for machines 
necessitated increased facilities, and the results are 
manifest in the superb shops at Sandwich. 

In [870 Mr. Adams established his younger sons 
at Marseilles, 111., in the manufacture of corn-shelters, 
in order to make available the line water-power of 
the Illinois River in view of its greater economy as 
compared with steam power. They organized and 
were incorporated under the State laws as the 
" Marseilles Manufacturing Company," with the 
senior Adams as its President, he having resigned 

^ his position as chief official of the Sandwich com- 
pany. His interests are at present writing centered 
in the establishment at Marseilles, whose products 
have acquired a national reputation. 

\( Mr. Adams is an inflexible adherent to the prin- 
^ ciples, and supi>orter of the issues, of the Republican 

\j element in politics. While a resident at Elgin his 
charai teristic traits of good judgment and clear fore- 



sight received recognition in his election, in 1847, as 
a Delegate to the Constitutional Convention of Illi- 
nois to revise the Constitution, and he performed 
effil ient service as a member of that body. In 1850 
he was elected a member of the House of Represent- 
atives in the Assembly of Illinois, and in 1854 he 
was elected to the Senatorial branch of that body, 
He was also appointed one of the commissioners to 
locate the Insane Asylum of Northern Illinois. In 
religious convictions and connection Mr. Adams is a 
Congregationalism, and belongs to the orthodox type 
of the Christian element. 

He was married Oct. 21, 1833, toLydia A. Phelps, 
and they became the parents of nine children, — eight 
sons and a daughter, — who were born as follows: 
Darius, Aug. 26, 1834: J. Phelps, Sept. 18, 1835; 
Henry A., Jan. 21, 1837; John Q., July 23, 1839; 
H. Raymond, June 29, 1842; Amy W„ May 29, 
1S44; Oliver R., Sept. 10, 1845; Walter G., July 12, 
1848; Charles H., Feb. 17, 1855. The mother died 
Dec. 14, 1867. Mr. Adams was a second time mar- 
ried Jan. 13, 1869, to Mrs. L. M. Mosher. 

The portrait of Mr. Adams on another page is an 
appropriate accompaniment to the collated records 
of De Kalb County, whose welfare has been so long 
one of his chief interests. The gallery of the por- 
traits of inventors who have secured her permanent 
reputation and prosperity would be singularly deficient 
without it, and the citizens of Sandwich will welcome 
it on these pages as that of a personal friend, — one 
who has walked among them in manly rectitude and 
to whom his features have a more than common 
interest. 



s^lyjfwTohn C. Hopkins, attorney at Hinckley, was 
rSltfe. bom |une 21, 1858, in Yorkville, Kendall 



i- 




June 2 1, 
Co., 111., and is the son of Robert and Miry 
(Cook) Hopkins. His parents came to Ken- 
dall County in 1838, where they passed the 
remaining years of their lives. They had six 
children, — William H., Martha C, John C, Hiram 
R., Mary E. and Stella. 

Mr. Hopkins was an attendant at the common 
schools until he was 15 years of age, when he en- 
tered the Chicago University and was graduated 
there in 18S0. He entered at once upon the study 
of law and was graduated in 1882 in the Union Law 



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School. In January, 1883, he was admitted to prac- 
tice in the Federal Courts, and in September, that 
year, he established his practice as an attorney at 
Hinckley. In political faith Mr. Hopkins is a Demo- 
crat. He is a member of the Masonic fraternity and 
belongs to the Chapter, R. A. M. 

He was united in marriage at Aurora, 111., Sept. 
29, 1883, to Emma A. Young. Mrs. Hopkins was 
born April 7, 1865, in Oswego, Kendall Co., 111., and 
is the daughter of Henry and Sarah (Gray) Young. 

The only child of Mr. and Mrs. Hopkins — Robert 
H. — was born Sept. 3, 1884. 



Tames Lane, farmer, owning 193^ acres 
on section 13, Shabbona Township, was 
' born in Kent, near London, England, Nov. 
23, 1836, and is a son of Henry and Mary 
(Luxford) Lane, natives of that country. 
James Lane was brought up on a farm in his 
native country and received the advantages afforded 
by the common schools. He emigrated to this coun- 
try during his 23d year, in 1859, and landed at 
New York May 16 of that year. He immediately 
came to this State and on May 23 located in La 
Salle County, where he followed the vocation of a 
farmer. He continued to follow that calling in that 
country until 1S74, and then came to Shabbona 
Township, this county, and purchased land on sec- 
tion 24. On this land he resided until 1878, when 
he removed to his present residence on section 13. 
He worked the place until 1880 as tenant and then 
purchased it. 

Mr. Lane was united in marriage to Miss Anna 
M. Johnson, in Crawford Parish, England, May 23, 
1858. She was a daughter of George and Ann 
(Turner) Johnson, natives of England, and was born 
in Dartford, Kent, England, Feb. 16, 1837. Her 
grandfather was an English soldier and took part in 
the memorable battle of Waterloo, in which engage- 
ment he was wounded and died near the battle- 
ground. 

Mr. and Mrs. Lane have been the parents of nine 
children, seven of whom were born in La Salle and 
two in this county: Henry G. was born April 12, 
i860; Edgar A., Feb. 17, 1862, and died in October, 
1863; Maud M., born Jan. 25, 1864, is now the wife 





of Lewis Olmstead, a farmer of Shabbona Township 
EllaM. was bom March n, 1866; Elmer E., Apri 
14, 1868; Arthur A., March 27, 1870; Charles J., 
March 11, 1872; Oscar E, June 12, 1875; and 
Frederick, July 21, 1879. 

Mr. and Mrs. Lane are members of the Congrega- 
tional Church at Shabbona. 



^aniel D. Olmsted, farmer, section 31, Clin- 
ton Township, and owner of 205 acres in 
the township, was born in Catharine, Tioga 

f!<V County, now Schuyler Co., N. Y., June 21, 
1822. He is a son of Coleman and Clara (Dau- 
chey) Olmsted. He lived at home assisting his 
father and attending the common schools until 1835, 
when he removed with his parents to Big Flat, Che- 
mung Co., N. Y., and three years later, 1838, came 
with them to Illinois. The family located in La 
Salle County, where they continued to reside until 
the spring of 1841, when they removed to Shabbona 
Grove, this county. The Olmsted family are of 
Revolutionary stock. His great-grandfather died at 
Valley Forge. 

Mr. Olmsted was married Nov. ro, 1846, at Clin- 
ton, this State, to Miss Ann B. McNish. She was a 
daughter of Alexander McNish, of Washington Co., 
N. Y., and was born in that county. She was the 
mother of two children by Mr. O, both of whom died 
in infancy. The wife and mother died July 19, 1S49, 
and Mr. Olmsted was again married Dec. 12, 1850, 
to Miss Elizabeth A. Frost, at Catharine, Schuyler 
Co., N. Y. She is a daughter of Jonathan and Eliz- 
abeth L. (Sherwood) Frost. She was born in Catha- 
rine, Schuyler Co., N. Y., and has become the mother 
of four children by Mr. Olmsted. Their children are: 
Frank D., born Nov. 9, 1851, married Malinda Cam- 
eron and resides in Shabbona. George J. F., born 
Sept. 1, 1854. Charles S., born March 6, 1856, and 
died Oct. 1, same year. Charles J. C, born Sept. 13, 
1858, and died March 9, 1861. 

Mr. Olmsted settled on his present farm in 1847, 
Two years afterward his house was burned, which he 
rebuilt and has continued to reside upon the farm 
ever since. 

In politics Mr. Olmsted, in the days of the old 
Whig party, was a member of it, but since the or- 



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ganization of the Republican party, lias acted and 
voted with it. He and his wife were both members 
of the Methodist Episcopal Church, with which de- 
nomination Mr. Olmsted has been identified ever 
since its organization at Shabbona. 



ollei'T. Eidc is a member of the firm of 
Eide & Hommersand, dealers in general 
merchandise at Lee, Lee Co., 111. These 
gentlemen established their business here Oct. 
1 6, 1883, and carry an average stock of $8,000 
in value. They are enjoying a very prosperous 
business. 

Mr. Eide was born in Norway, Dec. 12, 1852, and 
and is the son of Torres and Randvei Eide; he was 
brought up as a farmer and as a fisherman in Central 
and Northern Norway. He arrived in the United 
States Dec. 19, 1882, coming directly to Chicago, 
where he spent a few months, and in February, 1883, 
he came to the village of Lee, Shabbona Township, 
and engaged as a clerk in the general store of Berliz- 
heimer & Stensland. Oct. 16, 1883, he formed the 
existing partnership with Mr. Hommersand, purchas- 
ing the establishment where he had been acting as 
manager since April 15, of that year. The present 
firm are succeeding well in their business. 

The marriage of Mr. Eide took place in Norway, 
July 15, 1881, to Miss Christina H. Greve, born Aug. 
12, 1861, is a daughter of John Greve and a native 
of Norway. They have had two children, namely: 
Torres, born in Norway, March 19, 1882; and Helena, 
born in Lee, April 23, 1883. 

Mr. Eide is a Republican in his political views, 
and both himself and wife are members of the Lu- 
theran Church. 

. ... ... . ; ..» 



''(Syn lmcr Bushnell, farmer, section 36, Squaw 
Hill,' Grove Township, has been a resident of 
De Kalb County since 1865, and is the 
j?S- owner of 200 acres of land, on which he is now 
prosecuting his agricultural operations, and 
which is nearly all under cultivation. He was 
born March 30, 1830, in Cattaraugus Co., N. Y., and 



(® is the son of Amasa and Mila (Frary) Bushnell 
^ His parents were natives of New York, and came 

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thence to Kendall Co., 111., in 1S55, where the father 
died on the 20th of September of the same year. 
The mother removed to De Kalb County in 1865, 
and died Jan. 9, 1876. Their three children were 
named William J. (see sketch), Elmer and Marcus S. 

Mr. Bushnell was reared as a farmer's son, obtain- 
ing his education at the public schools and working 
as a farm assistant on the home place until the age 
of 25 years. He came to Kendall County when his 
parents removed there, and he lived at Little Rock 
in that county until his removal to Squaw Grove 
Township in 1865. He has officiated as Overseer of 
the Highway, and is identified in politics with the 
Republican party. 

He was married Nov. 25, 1S52, in Cattaraugus Co., 
N. Y., to Paulina R., daughter of William Merchant. 
She was born April 4, 1832, near Cazenovia, N. Y. 
Of their marriage the following children have been 
born: Lillie M., Ada C, George H., Lettie and Kitty. 
Ada and Kitty are deceased. 



-ES- 



acob Stone, farmer, section 10, Milan Town- 
- ship, was born June 20, 1832, in Chester 
Co., Pa. He is of German descent, his 
grandfather, Garrett Stone, having been a na- 
tive of that country. The latter was a black- 
smith by calling and emigrated to the United 
States, where he located in Chester County and died 
there nearly 90 years old. Jacob Stone, senior, son 
of Garrett, was a shoemaker in early life and is now, 
at 80 years of age, engaged in farming in Perry Co., 
Pa. The mother of Mr. Stone of this sketch, Mar- 
garet (Glenn) Stone, was of Irish descent and was 
born in Pennsylvania. Her father, Hugh Glenn, 
was born on the Atlantic Ocean while his parents 
were en route to the United States. The latter set- 
tled on a farm in Pennsylvania, where they died. 
Margaret (Glenn) Stone died Feb. 28, 1865, in Perry 
Co., Pa., when nearly 58 years old. 

Mr. Stone is third in order of birth of eight chil- 
dren, four of whom are deceased. He was taught 
the details of the shoemaker's craft by his father, and 
when he became 19 years of age he set out to operate 
as a journeyman, that method of obtaining employ- 
ment being in vogue at that period and necessary to 
both craftsman and beneficiary, as settlements were 








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sparse. He passed a year in that capacity, and then 
became the manager of the homestead farm, in which 
he was employed until his marriage. 

He was united in marriage Dec. 29, 1857, in 
Coral Township, Perry Co., Pa., to Susannah S. Hen- 
derson. She was born April 15, 1830, in Perry 
County, and is the daughter of H. and Nancy 
(White) Henderson. Her father was born in Ire- 
land. Her mother was a native of Perry County, and 
was of Irish extraction. She died in the same county, 
in 1S72. The father's decease occurred in 1884. 
Mr. and Mrs. Stone have been the parents of seven 
children, all of whom are living except one, — John 
W. The others are William H., Margaret A. (Mrs. 
George Applebee), Israel A., Benjamin W., James E., 
and Eddy T. 

The family came West in 1868. They located on 
160 acres of unbroken prairie, which has been con- 
verted into an attractive and valuable farm, by ap- 
plication and industry. Mr. and Mrs. Stone are 
actively interested in the progress and welfare of the 
Methodist Episcopal Church, to which the entire 
family belong, and in which the former has officiated 
in the several public relations. He has also acted as 
school officer. In political faith and connection he 
is a Republican. 



illiam D. Coulsou, resident on section 23, 
Squaw Grove Township, has been a farm- 
JUS^t* er in the State of Illinois since 1853, with 
the exception of three years which he spent 
in the military service of the United States. 
He was born March 15, 1838, in England, and 
is the son of John and Mary (Dale) Coulson. His 
parents lived and died on their native soil. They 
had 10 children, of whom Mr. Coulson of this sketch 
is the oldest. He came to America in 1853 and at 
once located in Illinois. In the summer of 1862 he 
enlisted in the 127th 111. Vol. Inf., and was in the 
service until the war closed. He was wounded once, 
receiving a gunshot wound in the right hand at the 
siege of Atlanta. After his discharge from the army 
he returned to Kendall Co., 111. He continued there 
three years, and in 1868 bought 165 acres of land, 
which has since constituted his homestead and on 
which he has erected a line residence. He is the 



owner of 240 acres of land in Squaw Grove Town- 
ship, all of which is under cultivation. In politi< al 
faith he coincides with the principles of the Repub- 
lican party. 

He was married Jan. 15, 1867, at Yorkville, Ken- V^ 
dall Co., 111., to Phebe A., daughter of John and 
Leah (Jones) Darnell. Her parents were natives of 
North Carolina, and had a family of 10 children. 
Mrs. Coulson was born Sept. 19, 1842. She is the 
mother of three children, — Addie L., Alice M. and 
Harry G. The parents are members of the Method- 
ist Church. 





homas Wright, deceased, was an early pio- 
neer of Shabbona Township, being one of 
the four Englishmen who located in the 
western part of the township in the fall of 185 1 
and laid the foundation for the settlement 
since known as the " English." 
The subject of this sketch was born in Woodhall, 
Yorkshire, England, Dec. 21, 1802, his parents be- 
ing William and Fannie Wright. He was mar- 
ried in his native parish, April 3, 1831, to MisS 
Mary, daughter of George and Julianna Mullins. 
She was born in Yorkshire, Feb. 6, 1809. Mr. and 
Mrs. Wright had five children, all born in England, 
namely: George, born Oct. 10, 1832, was married 
first to Elizabeth Scott, and, after her death, to Em- 
ily C. Johnson, and is a farmer of Shabbona Town- 
ship; Ann, born July 13, 1835, is now the wife of 
William Cutts, of Lee County ; William, born May 
9, 1840, became a soldier of Co. E, 105th 111. Vol. 
Inf., was wounded at Resaca May 15, 1S64, and 
died in the hospital on the 25 th of that month ; Rnl>- 
ert M., born Nov. 1, 1844, married Elizabeth Fowler, 
and is now a resident of Fort Dodge, Iowa, where he 
is practicing law; Julianna, born Jan. 31, 1844. is 
now the wife of James Spaulding and lives in Palo 
Alto Co., Iowa. 

In England Mr. Wright was employed as over- 
seer of a gentleman's farms. He emigrated to 
America in 1850, reaching Morris, Grundy Co., 111.. 
May 31 of that year. During the ensuing summer 
he came to. Shabbona, and in November, i8sr, he 
moved his family to that place. He came in com- 
pany with S. Story, Wm. Cutts and Joseph Billam. 



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Settling mi the northeast quarter of section 18, he 
ged in Farming and continued in that calling 
until about eight years prior to his death, when lie 
removed to 1 :e County, He died Sept 7, 1882, in 
that county, a member of the Methodist Episcopal 
Church. In his political action he voted with the 
Republican party. 



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inmost Peckman, fanner, section 6, Squaw 
Grove Township, was born in Germany, 
^.ug. 30, 1830. He lived in his native 
..i r l country until he was 24 years old — in r854 — 
I and settled in Kendall Co., 111., to which place 
J he at once proceeded in landing in the United 
Stales. He resided four years there and came 
thence to Somonauk Township, and after a residence 
there of seven years he bought 102 acres in the 
township of which he has Keen a citizen. 

He was married in Kendall County, to Justinia 
Wollenweber, and they have three children — Her- 
man, Henry and Ernest. Mrs. Peckman is a 
native of Germany and was born Sept. 7, 1829. 
With her husband, she belongs to the Lutheran 
Church. 



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fX^klamuel Cutts, farmer, section iS, township 
SB(^ of Shabbona, occupying 203 acres of land 
was born in the village of Harthill, York- 
nVj shire, England, June 28, 1831, and is the son 
of George and Sarah (Rudeforth) Cutts. He 
was 1 eared to agricultural pursuits, and emi- 
grated to America in September, 185 r, coming direct- 
ly to Lisbon, 111., where he resided a year. He then 
came to Shabbona Township and " took up" the 
west half of fractional northwest quarter of section 
iS, — a track containing 100 acres; he has since 
purchased 103 acres additional. He was one of the 
1 party of young Englishmen who founded the 
so-called English settlement in the western part of 
Shabbona Township in 1852. The surrounding coun- 
try at that time was in its natural state, and the most 
familiar neighbors of these men were prairie wolves. 
Mi. Cutts has always voted with the Republicans; 
and, while not a member <>f any Church he has con- 



tributed liberally in the support of the Methodist 
Episcopal Church of his neighborhood. 

He was married in Shabbona Township, June 23, 
1857, to Mrs. Mary Dal ton, widow of Thomas Dal- 
ton and daughter of John and Mary (Tiffin) Barnes. 
She was born in Aspatria, Cumberland County, Eng- 
land, March 31, 1828, and had four children by her 
first marriage, namely, Mary P., born July 27, 1849; 
Thomas I'., Jan. 15, 1851, married Lydia Hampton 
and lives in Lee, 111.; Isabella, born Aug. 29, 1853, 
is the wife of Siren Madison and resides in Nebraska ; 
and Sarah A., born Feb. 27, 1855. Mrs. Cutts came 
to America in 1852, and her children born in this 
country, by the present marriage, are : Margaret E., 
born March 12, 1858; Agnes, born March 2, 1861, 
died May 23, 1876; John YV., born Jan. r, 1864; 
Addie M., July 22, 1S67 ; and Emma M., Nov. 10, 
r87Q. 



||Nj"jarwood Veale, farmer, section 4, Milan 
j tiiiSiS'. Township, was born Sept. 13, r849, in 
OTSS&-' 1 Devonshire, England, and is the son of 
jW^<\ Oliver and Mary A. (Bailey) Veale. Hi s 
'T' parents emigrated from their native land to the 
I province of Ontario, Canada, settling in Darling- 
ton. Their removal to the New World was effected 
in 1852, and they became farmers in Canada. Six 
children were included in their family, and in 1864 
the parents with four children came to Illinois. The 
father selected and purchased r6o acres of land in 
Milan Township. On this they settled and there 
the mother died, Nov. 19, 1872. After that event 
Mr. Veale entered upon the work of conducting the 
homestead, and not long after his father went back 
to his children in Canada for a permanent home. 
He is now 75 years old. 

Mr. Veale was married March 28, i87r,to Flora 
Blackmail. Her parents, Ira and Sophia (Kibbee) 
Blackman, were born in the State of New York, and 
were of New England descent and English ancestry. 
They belong to the agricultural class in New York, 
and in 1846 removed to Wisconsin, settling in Rock 
County. Mrs. Yeale was born there Feb. 21, 1S48, 
and was a resident there until the removal of her 
parents in i860 to a farm in the township of Milan. 
Her father and mother are respectively 83 and 70 

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years of age, and reside in their declining years in 
the village of Malta. Mrs. Veale was educated with 
care and when 19 engaged in the labors of a teacher, 
pursuing that vocation until her marriage. Clyde B., 
Merta S., Bertha M., Lester I. and Marwood V. 
are the names of the several children now includ- 
ed in the family. 

Mr. Veale managed the homestead on shares for 
12 years. In April, 1883, he became its sole pro- 
prietor by purchase, and now has 160 acres of land 
under excellent tillage and greatly increased in value 
by the farm buildings he has erected since his pur- 
chase. He is a Republican In practice and theory, 
and has held various township offices. Mr. and Mrs. 
Veale are both members of the Methodist Episcopal 
Church. 






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jj (JReremiah Libby Brown, for many years a 
prominent and respected citizen of Genoa 
Township, but now deceased, was born of 
American parents, at Scarborough, Maine, 
April 77, 1805. He had only such educational 
advantages as were afforded in the common 
schools of that period. He lived with his parents, 
working on the farm during the summer seasons and 
attending school winters, until he was 18 years old. 
At that time he seemed to have formed a great de- 
sire for seafaring life, and selected the most exciting 
and romantic, as well as most dangerous kind of 
ocean life, that of whaling. He joined a whaling 
vessel, with which he remained three years, when he 
returned home and with his father's family moved to 
the town of Hope, Hamilton Co., N. Y. 

In August, 1830, Mr. Brown was married to Judith 
Richardson, of Johnstown, N. Y. The seven chil- 
dren born of this marriage were Julia Ann, born June 
20, 183^ James P., Jan. 31, 1833; Judith, April 6, 
1835; Esther E., June 15, 1837; Abigail J., Aug. 6, 
1840; Ruth Sina, Nov. 12, 1842; and Jeremiah W. 
(see sketch), Aug. 7, 1845 I a " are now living except 
Julia Ann, who died April 27, 1844; and Ruth Sina, 
July n, 1856. 

Mr. Brown moved with his family to Illinois in the 

^*§- ^©^ ^<W 




fall of 1837, and settled on section 30, Genoa Town- 
ship. He was, therefore, one of the very earliest 
settlers in this pari of the State. Three years prior 
to this date there was not a white settler within the 
borders of De Kalb County. He, as well as his 
family, were compelled to undergo many hardships, 
but able, sturdy and worthy men and women were 
developed by these hardships and difficulties. His 
life was a successful one, and, besides accumulating 
considerable property, he lived to do a great deal of 
good and in many ways aided in developing his town- 
ship and building up a good society. 

Mrs. Brown died March 4, 1848, at the home farm 
in Genoa Township. Mr. Brown was married again 
in May, 1850, to Eliza A., daughter of Abner and 
Mary Jackman, of the town of Sycamore. Four chil- 
dren were born of this marriage: Emma R., born 
Feb. 8, 1851; Dillon S., May 12, 1852; Charles A., 
Jan. 12, 1858; and Lizzie M., Jan. 5, 1866. His 
last wife and all the children, except the two men- 
tioned, are now living. 

Mr. Brown was never especially prominent in 
politics, yet always active. He served continuously 
in some township official position, for a number of 
terms being Supervisor. In early life he was a 
Democrat. In 1840 his brother-in-law, Ezra Starr 
Gregory, cast the first, and that year the only, Aboli- 
tion vote cast in the county, voting for James G. 
Birney for President. Mr. Gregory was the pioneer 
of that grand political movement in De Kalb County, 
and his name should be honored as the first to 
come boldly to the front in an effort to remove the 
dreadful stain of slavery from our civilization. At 
the next election Mr. Gregory was joined by others 
of De Kalb County's worthy citizens, who wanted all 
men under our flag who should obey the laws of the 
country, to be as free as they were. These men were 
Jeremiah L. Brown, Abner Jackman, Justus Preston, 
Gideon King, John Judd, and Benjamin P. Brown, 
brother of the subject of this sketch. At the 
next election these patriots were joined by a host. 
Upon the formation of the Republican party, Mr. 
Brown accepted its principles and the remainder of 
his life he passed within its ranks. He died at his 
home, Jan. 5, 1882. 

As one of the pioneers of the county, and a gentle- 
man respected and esteemed by all who knew him, 

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we place a portrait of him in this volume. It is en- 
graved from a photograph taken shortly before liis 
death. 



ames Darnell, farmer, has been a resident 
* on section 6, Sijuaw Grove Township, since 
1859, with the exception of three years, 
daring which he lived at Sandwich. He is the 
sixth often children born to his parents, John 
and Leah (Jones) Darnell, who were natives of 
North Carolina. They removed thence to Kendall 
Co., 111., where the son was born, Sept. 7, 1835. He 
there grew to the estate of manhood, and in 1859 
came to the site of his present residence, where he 
purchased 106 acres of land, of which he lias since 
been the owner; and he has added by later pur- 
chases until his estate now comprises 186 acres. 

He is a Republican in his political views and has 
officiated seven years as School Director. He is a 
member of the Congregational Church. 

He was married April 3, 1S62, at Sycamore, 111., 
to Susanna Taylor, and they are now the parents of 
four children, — Elizabeth M., Anna, Jessie B. and 
Edna E. Mrs. Darnell was born Dec. 16, 1840, in 
Philadelphia, Pa., and is the daughter of William 
and Catherine (Roberts) Taylor. Her parents set- 
tled in Kendall Co., 111., in November, 1854. Her 
father is a resident of Piano ; her mother died at 
Sandwich, May 12, 1864. They had eight children, 
of whom Mrs. Darnell is the oldest. The father of 
Mr. Darnell died in Kendall Co., 111., Jan. 15, 1852. 



* — ^B- — * 

enry W. Wormley, farmer, residing on sec- 
5 tion 4, Shabbona Township, and the owner 
of 365 acres in the township, was born at 
East Painted Post, now called Corning, Steuben 
Co., N. Y., Nov. 2, 1832. He is a son of John 
and Deborah (Winans) Wormley, who emi- 
grated, when Henry was five years of age, to Oswego, 
Kendall County, this State. 

Henry was brought up on a farm in the latter 
county, and alternated his labors thereon by attend- 
ance at the common schools until he attained the 
age of 17 years. He then engaged as a clerk and 

^^ — <^< ; !]n 





followed that vocation until 1852. During that year 
lie went to California, via New York and Nicar 
He spent 14 months in that State, mining and en- 
'I in other pursuits, then returned to this State. 
In 1854 he, in company with his brother, pun based 
the homestead farm near Oswego, Kendall County. 

In the spring of 1856 Mr. Wormley came to this 
county and purchased land in Shabbona Township, 
on section 4, on which he at present resides. When 
he purchased the land it was in its natural condition, 
and by energetic toil he has succeeded in converting 
it into a fine, productive farm. 

Mr. Wormley was married in Oswego, Kendall 
County, this State, Jan. 5, 1858, to Miss Miranda S., 
daughter of Samuel and Elizabeth (Wolever) Lilley. 
She was born in Hornby, Steuben Co., N. Y., March 
25, 1837. Six children constituted the issue of their 
union, and their record is as follows : Cassius L., 
born Nov. 2, 1858, died March 20, i860. Carrie M., 
born Nov. 15, 1861 ; Lois M., March 24, 186S; Jes- 
sie N., April 23, 1873; Blanch C, Jan. 12, 1876; 
Harry R., Sept. 25, 1879. 

Politically, Mr. Wormley is, and has been ever 
since the organization of the party, a Republican. 
He has held the office of Justice of the Peace 15 
years, Highway Commissioner several years and As- 
sessor two terms. 





atriek M. Hart, farmer, section 
Township, was born Aug. 1, 
IsP County Sligo, Ireland, 
t'bj father, was a 
jl^ on the Green I 



6, Milan 
1831, in 
Edward Hart, his 
farmer and was born and died 
Isle, as did the mother, Kittie 
(Maddon) Hart. They reared seven children, 
of whom Mr. Hart is third in order of birth. 

His marriage to Maggie Burns took place in Ire- 
land, Jan. 1, 1855. She is the daughter of William 
and Jane (Noble) Burns, who were members of the 
agricultural class in Ireland. Her mother died when 
Mrs. Hart was a small child, and in due course of 
time her father was again married. He is still a resi- 
dent of Dunn Bakon, County Sligo, Ireland, where 
Mrs. Hart was born, in March, 1832. 

After their marriage Mr. and Mrs. Hart decided 
to emigrate to America, which they did in the spring 
following, and they first located near Toronto, Can- 
ada. They continued there but a year, when they 



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DE KALB COUNTY. 



483 



came to Kendall Co., 111., where they worked farms 
on shares nine years. In the spring of 1866 they 
proceeded westward with their savings to found a 
home for themselves, and they purchased 160 acres 
of land on section 16, in the township of Milan, 
which has since been their field of operation, and 
which they have reclaimed from its original state in 
which it was still lying when they became its pos- 
sessors. It is equipped with suitable and creditable 
farm buildings. 

Mr. and Mrs. Hart have had five children, re- 
corded as follows : William E., Cora A., wife of 
William Wescott, a farmer in Milan Township, Alice 
J., Edward and George. Mr. Hart is a Republican 
and is a school official. The family attend the 
Church of England. 




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eorge Wright, farmer, owning 120 acres 
located on section 7, Shabbona Township, 
* and residing thereon, whose postoffice is 
Lee, Lee County, was born near Sheffield, 
England, Oct. 10, 1832. He was brought up 
in Darnell, three miles from Sheffield. He 
emigrated to this country in 1850, when 18 years of 
age, with his parents, and in November, 1851, came 
with them to this county, locating at Shabbona. 

Mr. Wright was married to Miss Elizabeth Scott, 
Feb. 26, 1857, in Shabbona. She was a daughter of 
William and Jane Scott, and was born in Brooklyn, 
N. Y., Sept. 3, 1835, of English parentage. Seven 
children constituted the issue of their union, namely: 
Thomas W., born Dec. 29, 1857, married Miss Jane 
Parris and resides in Calhoun Co., Iowa. Mary J., 
born Dec. n, 1859, is the wife of Clark Richardson, 
of Calhoun County; John E., born March 25, 1861, 
married Sadie Willrett and resides in Malta Town- 
ship; Cora E., born Dec. 4, 1862, is the wife of 
William W. Hallett, a teacher in the schools at Lee, 
Lee County ; Stephen A., born Dec. 8, 1865 ; George 
C„ born May 14, 1869; Robert S., born Feb. 8, 1877, 
died May 8, 1881. 

Mrs. Wright died March n, 1877, and Feb. 5, 
1879, in Shabbona Township, Mr. W. was again mar- 
ried. His second matrimonial alliance was formed 
with Miss Emily, daughter of John and Christina E. 

;£ — ^-^nfl 





Johnson, natives of Sweden. She was born in that 
country, Nov. 1, 1840. 

Mr. Wright, soon after his parents came to this 
county, engaged in the occupation of farming, and 
has constantly followed that vocation except about 
two and a half years, which he spent at Lee. He 
has a good farm of 120 acres, comfortable residence 
and good outbuildings, and enjoys the comforts of his 
hard-earned possessions. 

Politically, he is a Republican, having cast his first 
vote for Fremont, and continued to vote that ticket 
to the present time. Religiously, he and his wife are 
members of the Methodist Episcopal Church. 



— 4$r 

|®^j|enjamin K. Favor, farmer, section 23, 

H2lf Squaw Grove Township, is a native-born 

citizen of the State of Illinois, having been 

born Dec. 29, 1839,111 Kendall County. His 

parents, Ephraim W. and Roxalana (Webster) 

Favor, were born in New Hampshire and 

came to Kendall Co., 111., in 1836. They passed the 

remaining years of their lives on their farm in that 

county. Their children were Emily R., Mary A., F. 

W., Sarah A., Benj. K. and Susan. 

Mr. Favor was brought upon his father's farm and 
remained at home a year after attaining his majority. 
In 1862 he enlisted in the r27th Regiment of Illinois 
Volunteers, and continued in the military service of 
the Union, receiving his discharge July 16, 1865, at 
Quincy, 111. Returning to Kendall County, he re- 
sumed the occupation of a farmer and continued a 
resident of that county until March, 1876, when he 
came to De Kalb County and purchased the farm on 
which he has since operated. He purchased 200 
acres of land on sections 23 and 24, and the entire 
place is now in fine agricultural condition. 

Mr. Favor coincides politically with the Republi- 
can party and has been School Director. The mar- 
riage of Mr. Favor to Cornelia A. Doyle took place 
at Bristol, Kendall Co., Ill, Aug. 14, 1862. Mr,. 
Favor was born Aug. 26, 1843, in the State of New 
York, and is the daughter of Edward and Catherine 
(Fallon) Doyle. Her parents were born in Ireland. 
were married there and afterward emigrated to the 
United States. They landed at the port of N T c« 
York, and later went to Canada, were they main 



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tained a n .is long as they lived. Of their 

six children tour survive, — Cornelia \ . Mi< hael, Ber- 
nard and John K. Annie and John are deceased. 
To Mr. and Mrs. Favor four children have been 
Brodie K... Myrtie A., Wallace M. and Ethie 
M. Wallace died when about a year old. 



— 4* 



;->>.— J- 




illiani Converse Phelps, Assistant Secre- 
tary of the Sandwich Manufacturing Com- 
pany, was born June 16, 1849, in Kirkland, 
> Oneida Co., N. Y. His father. Alonzo E. 
Phelps, was born Jan. 17, 1804, in Cazeno- 
\ia, N. Y., and married Juliet Bradley, who was 
born in Cayuga, Co., N. Y. Dr. Phelps removed to 
Sandwich in October, 1869, and after practicing his 
profession a short time, he retired. He died at Sand- 
wich, Nov. 14, 1882. The mother of Wm. C. died at 
Sandwich, only a short time subsequent to removal 
hither, her demise occurring Dec. 25, 1869. They 
had seven children : Mary B. and Juliet B. were 
twins. The former is the wife of J. P. Adams, of 
Sandwich, and the latter married William Barnes, a 
farmer in Kirkland, Oneida Co., N. Y. Francis B. is 
a machinist in the employment of the Sandwich 
Manufacturing Company. 

The subject of this sketch is the youngest of the 
four surviving children. When he was 15 years of 
age he entered a variety store in Clinton, N. Y., 
where he was employed two years, after which he be- 
came assistant book-keeper in Clark's cotton mills in 
New York State, and operated in that capacity two 
years'. He next obtained a situation in the office of 
a wholesale hardware manufacturing company in the 
city of New York, where he remained four years, dis- 
charging the duties of order clerk and managing the 
entire routine of affairs pertaining to that department. 
He entered upon the work of book-keeper of the cor- 
poration in whose interests he is now engaged, jn 
February, 187 1. Two years subsequently "he was 
elected to the position he now tills, and operated in 
the local office until the fall of 1880. At that date 
he went to Lincoln, Neb., in order to conduct a branch 
house of the company and continued in that avenue 
ill" business until November, 1881, and during that 
time opened up a large business for his company in 
that particular field. On his return to Sandwich he 

%^fa s^£ &<M 





was again elected to Ins former position, in which he 
has siiuc cifiic iated. Mr. Phelps is the present Cit) 
Treasurer of Sandwich. He is a member of the Ma- 
sonic fraternity, and also belongs to the order of 
Mutual Aid of Illinois. 

His marriage to Frances J. Root occurred Nov. 8, 
187 1, at Sandwich. Three' children have been born 
to them as follows: Clare A., Aug. 19, 1872; Mary 
B., Aug. 26, 1875; Ethel J., Oct. 18,1877. ^ Irs - 
Phelps was bom Sept. 26, 1850, in Utica, N. Y., and 
is the daughter of George W. and Salina A. Root. 



l-'ttsfc manuel Younggren, farmer (postoffice, 
Lee, Lee County), residing on section 8, 
Shabbona Township, where he owns 160 
j?&. acres, and also owning 80 acres in Milan Town- 
'* ship and two acres of timbered land in Shab- 
bona Grove, was bom in Jonkoping, Sweden. 
March 24, 1823. He is a son of Magnus and Cattha- 
rine (Andersdolter) Younggren, natives of that 
country, where his father followed the occupation of 
a farmer. 

Emanuel was educated in the public schools of his 
native country and brought up on a farm. After at- 
taining his majority, he learned the carpenter's trade, 
and for seven years was employed in the widely 
known match manufactory of his native town. 

Mr. Younggren was married in his native town 
Dec. 26, 1848, by Rev. Pastor Wadell, to Miss Mar- 
garetha, daughter of Andrew and Margaretha Sand- 
man, natives of that country. She was born in Jon- 
koping, that country, Oct. 1, 1817. Five children 
constitute the issue of their union. The record is as 
follows: Charles Wm. was born in Jonkoping, Jan. 
28, 1850; Axel Rudolph was born at the same place, 
Jan. 20, 1852; Gustavus Magnus was born qn the 
sea near the shore of Newfoundland, Sept. 5, 1S54 ; 
Jenny was born in Shabbona, this county, May 20, 
1858, and died Dec. 22, 1858; Melvina Clarinda was 
born in the same village, Nov. 29, 1859, and died 
Aug. 4, 1 88 1. 

Mr. Younggren emigrated with his family to this 
country in 1854, leaving his native country June 23, 
of that year. He landed at Quebec and came thence 
by boat and rail to Chicago, arriving at that city Oct. 
S, ot 1I1, same year. From the latter place he c ame 
direct to Shabbona Township, this county, and at 



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DE KALE COUNTY. 



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once engaged in farming and working at his trade. 
In 1863 he purchased his present farm on section 8 
and has since continued to reside there. About this 
time, Oct. 8, 1063, he sustained a serious accident 
while engaged in threshing. His right hand was 
drawn into the cylinder of the machine and so 
crushed that he was obliged to have it amputated, 
two inches above the wrist. This was a severe blow- 
to a man dependent on his labors to support a large 
family. He nevertheless was not the man to give up, 
and by his push, pluck and energy, has succeeded in 
accumulating a fine property. 

Politically, Mr. Y. is a Republican. He has held 
the office of Commissioner of Highways, Town Col- 
lector and other minor offices. Religiously he and 
his family are members of the Lutheran Church. 

SBJ3 

Sbharles H. Hitchcock, M. D., physician 
^3 and surgeon at Hinckley, has been a resi- 
dent of that place since 1869. He was born 
'fjjG' Oct. 16, 1S31, in Strong, Franklin Co., Maine. 
His parents, Enos and Ann (Richards) Hitch- 
cock, were born in the same State, where they 
were married and lived until death. The decease of 
the mother occurred June 6, 1849; the father died 
May 31, 1872. Their children were six in number 
and were named William, Charles G, J. Bennett, 
Julia, Charles H. and Laura. 

Dr. Hitchcock obtained an elementary education 
in the public schools of his native State, and at 18 
years of age went to Massachusetts, where he spent 
two years. He went thence to Philadelphia and 
prepared for the career which he has since chiefly 
pursued without intermission. He attended medical 
lectures in the City of Brotherly Love and studied 
medicine two years, after which, in 1855, he pro- 
ceeded to Cincinnati, Ohio, where he passed a 
similar period in study under the direction of Pro- 
fessor Stockwell, and was graduated in the American 
Medical College in February, 1857. 

On receiving his credentials, Dr. Hitchcock came 
to Illinois and located at Earlville, La Salle County, 
where he entered upon his practice, and operated 
there about 18 months. In 1859 he went to Mc- 
Lean in the county of the same name, where he pros- 
ecuted the duties of his profession until he entered 





the army of the United States. In 1862 he became 
surgeon of the 117th Regt. 111. Vol. Inf., and after a 
service of 15 months in that capacity he resigned and 
returned to his former field of action, where he re- 
mained until 1S66, when, on account of impaired 
health, he went to Dixon, 111., and embarked in the 
drug business. In 1869 he removed to Hinckley and 
resumed his practice, which he has continued to 
prosecute with uninterrupted success. In political 
views and connections he is a Republican. He be- 
longs to the Masonic fraternity. 

Dr. Hitchcock was married in Earlville, Oct. 13, 
1858, to Lizzie M., daughter of Rev. Samuel Gallo- 
way. Her parents were born respectively in Penn- 
sylvania and New Jersey. Her father is a graduate 
from Princeton College, and after marriage located in 
the South; but, the climate not being favorable to 
the health of his wife, they returned to New Jersey, 
where she died. He is now located in Texas. Their 
children were named Charles, Lizzie, Mary. Jacob 
and Mattie. Mrs. Hitchcock was born July 28, 1837. 
Four children have been born to Dr. Hitchcock and 
his wife, of whom two are deceased, — Arthur S. and 
Lillian. Hattie E. and Mollie S. are the name's of 
those yet living. 



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»l|j» hilo Slater, resident at Hinckley, is the son 
ml of Thomas and Mary (Tears) Slater, the 
'lifc?'^ former a native of Connecticut, the latter of 
$ffi the State of New York. They settled first in 
n 



J/LV. Slaterville, Tompkins Co., N. Y., and in the 
spring of 1S38 came to Kane Co., 111. Both 
are deceased. 

Mr. Slater is the fourth of their children in order 
of birth, and he was born May 20, 1824, in Tompkins 
Co., N. Y. He was 14 years of age when he came 
with his parents to Illinois, and he was 23 years old 
when he bade adieu to the parental roof and set out 
in life independently. He bought a farm in Kane 
County, which he carried on seven years. He then 
sold out and in 1854 came to De Kalb County. He 
bought a farm of 190 acres in Squaw Grove Town- 
ship, on which he has since lived. He is now the 
owner of 425 acres of land, with 350 acres in tillage. 

Mr. Slater is a prominent Republican, and during 
the campaign of 1884 was President of the Repub- 



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l)F. KALB COUNTY. 



lican Club at Hinckley. He is President of the 
Board of Village Trustees, has been Supervisor and 
Justice of the Peace and held most of the minor 
offices. 

He was married Nov. 10, 1847, in Sugar Grove 
Township, Kane County, to Sallie, daughter of Cyrus 
C. and Almira (Avery) Nichols. Her parents were 
natives respectively of Vermont and New York, and 
had six children. Mrs Slater was born Sept. 26, 
1828, in Chenango Co., N. Y., and died Jan. 25, 
18S4, in Hinckley. She had been the mother of five 
children, one of whom — Sarah — is deceased. Cyrus 
T., Mary A., l'hilo F. and Eva are living. 








arnes L. Greenfield, farmer, section 23, 

I?- Shabbona Township, was born in Rensse- 

1F*9 ] aer (j t ]vj y., March 10, r82i, and is the 

son of Joseph R. and Polly (Green) Greenfield. 

He removed in childhood to Oneida County, 

that State, and resided both at Trenton and 

Steuben, receiving a common-school education and 

. ^ working on a farm. 

In 1844 he came to Illinois and located at Sugar 
Grove, Kane County, where he was engaged in farm- 
ing two and a half years. He then returned to his 
native State, where, at Steuben, he engaged in mer- 
cantile business till 1854. Finally he came to De 
Kalb County and purchased the farm on which he 
now resides. 

He was married in Trenton, N. Y., Jan. 24, r84g, 
to Miss Elizabeth I). Ball, daughter of Capl. Thad- 
deus and Cynthia (Tuthill) Ball, who was born at 
Trenton, N. Y., Sept. 13, 1827. They have had two 
daughters and one son, viz.: Mary E., born Oct. 10, 
1850, became the wife of J. L. Airs, and died May 
27. 1881; Lillian E., born Sept. 2, 1857, is the wife 
s*\ of H. H. Bouslough, of Somonauk Township; and J. 
Emerson, born Sept. 25, 1864, is employed as a mer- 
chant's clerk at Aurora. 

Mr. Greenfield devoted his attention to the man- 
\i agement of his farm until failing health compelled 
him to seek ease and comfort in retirement from 
active duty. He and his wife still reside at their 




pleasant country home. In political matters he votes 
the Republican ticket; and, while he takes a warm 
interest in public affairs, he has never consented to 
ai cept public office beyond some minor position of 
local jurisdiction. He is satisfied to have won the 
respect and esteem of his neighbors and fellow c iti- 
zens. Mrs. Greenfield and her surviving daughter 
are members of the Congregational Church. The 
elder daughter in her life-time was a member of the 
same Church. 




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, f.^aWsa M. Calkins, deceased, a former resident 
of Sycamore Township, was born Nov. 10, 
1796, in New Berlin, Chenango Co., N. Y. 
He was married Sept. T7, i8i7,to Ruth Am- 
bler, wln> was also born at New Berlin, Sept. 25, 
i8or. Mr. Calkins owned a farm in the town 
where he was born, and after marriage settled him- 
self to the pursuit of agriculture. After ^ few years 
his wife's health became precarious, and he removed 
to the village where he was occupied as a merchant 
until 1842, when he returned to his farm. A year 
later he sold the place, and in the fall of r843 set 
out for Illinois. The family journeyed, by stage to 
Utica and thence by canal to Buffalo, and from there 
by the lake route to Chicago, whence a private team 
conveyed the parents and eight children to Sycamore. 
Mr. Calkins leased the City Hotel and managed a 
house of public entertainment one year, when he re- 
moved to Boone Co., 111., and spent two years in 
the management of a rented farm. He then returned 
to De Kalb County and entered a claim of land in 
Kingston Township, where he built a frame house 
and improved a portion of the land. Soon afterwards 
he removed to Genoa, where he spent a winter, and 
in the spring following bought a farm on section 9, 
Svc amore Township. This he retained in his pos- 
session until 1S65, when he again sold out and re- 
turned to the State of New York, locating in Palmyra, 
Wayne Co., N. Y., where he died Aug. 26, 1872. 
His first wife died Aug. 2, 1841 , and left six children : 
Maria A. died in November, 1870. Lois A. is the 
wife of Abner Angell, M. D., of Belvidere. Melissa 
J. is the widow of J. M. Hammond, of Boone Co., 



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111. Caroline M. is the widow of Wm. H. Wise (sec 
sketch). Mary E. married M. M. Townsend, M. 1). 
Mathew B. died June to, 1S69, at Belvidere. Mary 
(Hovey) Calkins, second wife of Asa M. Calkins, died 
in May, 1882, at Palmyra, N. Y. 



—5- 



#~# 




:<>,hauncey W. Broughton, farmer & stock- 
raiser, residing on the northeast quarter of 
section 31, Afton Township, and owning 
about goo acres of land on sections 30, 31 

p. and 32, was born in Pepperell, Middlesex Co., 

< Mass., July 22, 1817. He is a son of Will- 
iam and Ruth (Winters) Broughton, both of whom 
died in Ashburnham, Worcester Co., Mass., his 
father when he was 42 years old and his mother 
about 1870. 

After the death of his father, which occurred when 
Mr. Broughton was about 13 years of age, he went to 
live with an uncle, John Conant, in Brandon, Rut- 
land Co., Vt. His uncle's business was diversified. 
He was the owner of a blast furnace, was a merchant, 
and later followed the milling business. Mr. Brough- 
ton lived with him, receiving the advantages afforded 
by the common schools, until he attained majority. 
On arriving at that age he received $150 and two 
suits of clothes from his uncle, and went forth to 
fight the battles of adversity alone. He worked in 
his uncle's mill for a while by the month, and then 
engaged in the woolen business, in which he was in- 
terested for about a year, after which he engaged in 
the marble business and remained in that about a 
year. He accumulated nothing in either line of 
work. 

Mr. Broughton, at this period in his life's history, 
took the " Western fever " (a " disease " he is glad 
existed at that time), and sold out his possessions in 
Vermont and came to this State in 1884. He 
located in Kaneville, Kane County, and purchased 
200 acres of land from the Government, which he 
soon after increased by a purchase of 40 acres 
of timbered land from Mr. A. Churchill and has in- 
creased it to 700 acres. He had great faith in the 
future development of the country and the conse- 
quent enhanced value of his land, and entered at 
once upon its improvement. He built a small frame 
house, and in 1845 replaced it with a more comforta- 





^g^ £A<r ; ll!l£ll[l^§ ^^ 



ble and commodious building and continued to reside 
on and improve his land for about nine years. The 
Western fever still clung to him and he sold his pos- 
sessions and moved to Fayette Co., Iowa, where he 
bought land and remained from May, 1854,10 March, 
1855. During the latter month he returned to this 
county, intending to remain a short time and then 
move to Kansas. The report of cholera existing in 
that (then) Territory induced him to change his mind, 
and he purchased a half section of land on sections 
30, 31 and 32, Afton Township, this county, on which 
he has resided ever since. He has one of the larg- 
est farms in that township, and conducts it in a 
thorough, systematic and practical manner. He has 
about three-fourths of his land under subjugation, 
a fine frame residence, large barn and good, commo- 
dious out-buildings. He has this present year (1885) 
120 acres of corn and a large crop of oats and 
grass. He keeps about 100 head of cattle, and this 
year has 200 head of hogs, besides 25 head of 
horses. 

Mr. Broughton was married May 3, 1843, to Miss 
Mary, daughter of Samuel and Mary (Richards) 
Churchill. She died May 4, i860, on the farm where 
Mr. B. now resides, leaving one child, C. Preston, 
born Feb. 23, 1S44, in Brandon, Vt., and at present 
a resident of Jackson Co., Mo. Mr. Broughton was 
a second time married Jan. 30, 1861, to Miss Caro- 
line C. Churchill, a sister of his first wife. She died 
on the farm in Afton Township, May 29, 1871, leav- 
ing three children, two having departed this life pre- 
vious to her death. Their children were Ella, born 
Jan. 26, 1865; Wm. A., born Feb. 19, 1863, and 
died Jan. 6, 1866; May, born May 7, 1867; Judson 
K., born April 2, 1869, and died Oct. 26, same year; 
and Ben, born May 25, 1871. 

Mr. Broughton was again married March 25, 1875, 
to Miss Belle, daughter of Charles and Mary A. 
Beers. Her father died Sept 25, 1877., aged 80 years, 
and her mother is living with a daughter, Mrs. Chan- 
dler, at De Kalb, and was born Jan. 9, 1808. 

Two children constitute the issue of the last union, 
namely: Charles B., born June 18, 1877, and 
Chauncey W., Jr., born Sept. 10, 1879, both in this 
county. 

Mr. Broughton has been Supervisor of his town- 
ship four terms, and while a resident of Kane County 
was Assessor two terms. He is truly one of the 



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DE KALB COUNTY. 



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live and practical men of the county. 
Commem ing Life with $150 and " two suits of clothi >," 
he has, through his own good judgment and perse- 
verance, procured .1 competency, and in his home 
content sits in the lap of plenty while mim«s smiles 
at the trials of the past. 

As a representative and self-made man of the 
county, as a man whose good judgment and ener- 
getii determination conquered all obstacles that stood 
between him and success, and as a respected and 
honored citizen of the county, we are pleased to give 
a portrait of Mr. Broughton in this work. 



onathan Stevens, deceased, formerly a 
\\y- farmer on section 3, Shabbona Township, 
^ and section 34, Milan Township, was born 
in Scipio, Cayuga Co., N. Y., in 181 5; moved 
to Monroe Co., Mich., in boyhood; learned the 
millwright's trade, at which he worked in vari- 
ous places for a number of years; and then purchased 
a farm near Adrian, Mich., which he carried on until 
185 1, when he removed to La Salle County, this 
State. In that county he bought a farm and con- 
ducted it till 1857, when he finally came to this 
county and purchased a farm on the line between 
Shabbona and Milan Townships, on sections 3 and 34. 
He built his house in Shabbona Township, within a 
few feet of the line. • He subsequently increased the 
area of his landed estate to 500 acres, and continued 
in agricultural pursuits thereon until the time of his 
death, which occurred Dec. 9, 1874. 

Mr. Stevens was twice married. First, in his na- 
tive county, he married Miss Ann R. Fisher, who 
died within a year afterward ; secondly, in Chicago, 
111., May 23, 1863, Mrs. Lucy G., widow of Henry 
O. Osborne and daughter of Samuel and Electa 
(Newton) Newcomb, who was born in the town of 
Thetford, Orange Co., Vt., and removed with her 
parents to Livingston Co., N. Y., when 12 years of 
age. She was first married in the town of York, N. 
Y., April 19, 1840, to Henry O. Osborne, and they 
resided at Perry, Wyoming Co., N. Y., where Mr. O. 
was engaged in hotel-keeping. They subsequently 
removed to Michigan, locating first in Almont, La- 
peer County, and afterward at Mt. Clemens, Macomb 
County. In 1855 they came to this State and settled 




^ • 



__-l^ 



at I. eland, I ,a Salle County, where he died, Jan. 7, 
1 86 1. He was a native of Brixworth, Northampton- 
shire, England. Mrs. Osborne continued to reside 
at Leland until her marriage to Mr. Stevens, May 
23, 1863. 

Mr. S., while a resident of Shabbona, held various 
local offices, as Commissioner of Highways, etc. He 
was a zealous worker for the interest of the Baptist 
Church, was at the head of the building committee 
when the present church edifice was built at Shab- 
bona, and contributed liberally to clear the society of 
debt. He devoted himself so energetically to the 
cause of the Church in his later years that he seri- 
ously impaired his health. He was very generally 
highly esteemed as a public-spirited, worthy citizen. 
He never had any children. His wife survives him, 
and designs in making the old homestead in Shab- 
bona Township her future home. 

\ ufus Harrington, farmer, section 12, Squaw 
Grove Township, has been a resident of 
his homestead in that township 35 years, 

having settled on a tract of land in 1850 
hich he bought in 1848, the year in which 

he came hither from his native State. His 
original purchase included 200 acres, but he has 
disposed of all but 40 acres in Squaw Grove Town- 
ship and 40 acres in Kane Co., 111. 

He was born Sept. r, 1809, in Pittsfield, Otsego 
Co., N. Y., and is the son of Jacob and Polly (Spen- 
cer) Harrington, natives of New England. They 
had five children, all of whom lived to mature years. 
They were named Lydia, Job, Rufus, Huldah and 
Clarissa A. Their mother, Mrs. Harrington, died 
when Rufus was six years old, and he lived from 
that time until he was 12 years of age with a man 
who was a miller by trade. As soon as he was old 
enough he became a farm assistant, and was in the 
employment of different individuals until he was 16 
years of age. In 1825 he began to learn the busi- 
ness of chair-making and painting, serving an ap- 
prenticeship of three years, and following it nearly 
20 years as a vocation. He received $48 a year 
while learning his trade, and board, and he clothed 
himself. He came to De Kalb County in Septem- 
ber, 184S. lie has held the offices of Township 

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DE KALB COUNTY. 



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491 



Clerk and Commissioner of Highways, and is a Re- 
publican. 

He was married Feb. 25, 1833, in New Berlin, 
Chenango Co., N. Y., to Eliza Welch, and they had 
I five children, four only of whom grew to advanced 
life. One died in infancy. Those who survived 
were named George, Blin, Jesse and Buel S. Blin 
became a soldier in the 127th 111. Vol. Inf. and was 
killed May 19, 1863, at the battle of Vicksburg. 
Mrs. Harrington was born July 8, 1813, in New Ber- 
lin and is the daughter of Vine and Polly (Tyler) 
Welch. Her parents were born in the State of New 
York and had eight children : Calista, Vine, Polly, 
Eliza, Sarah and Ebenezer lived to mature life. Two 
died in infancy. Mr. and Mrs. Harrington have 
been members of the Baptist Church since 1834. 




^ 



oleman Olmsted, deceased, was born in 

Wilton, Fairfield Co., Conn., April 9, 1792. 

He is a son of David and Rebecca (Jackson) 



f)L Olmsted. About 18 14 he removed to Tioga 

!*• Co., N. Y., near what is now called Odessa, 
and was a pioneer of that county. He learned 
the trade of blacksmith and followed it in Tioga 
County until 1838. 

In the spring of the year named he moved with his 
family to this State and located in La Salle County. 
He remained there until the spring of 1841, when he 
removed to Shabbona Township and entered Govern- 
ment land. He also purchased a half section of the 
Reservation. His title was uncertain, and to perfect 
the same he was compelled to pay for his land three 
times. In 1846 he moved to Ottawa,, La Salle Co., 
this State, and for several years lived on a farm. In 
1872 he went to Missouri, was unfortunate in his 
business ventures, lost heavily and returned to his 
son's, D. D. Olmsted, where he died, June 5, 1881. 

Mr. Olmsted was twice married. His first alliance 
was with Miss Clara Duchey, in 181 1. Of this union 
six children were born : George, Jan. 19, 1816; Re- 
becca, July 5, 1818, and died in 1849; John D., 
July 7, 1820; Daniel D., June 21, 1822; Jane, Aug. 
28, 1824; Clara, Nov. 5, 1S26. 

Mrs. Olmsted died July 14, 1S28, and Nov. 4 
of that year Mr. Olmsted was united in marriage 




with Mrs. Hannah Bedient. Four children were the 
issue of their union, namely : Clara M., born Aug. 6, 
1829; Samuel B., Jan. 24, 1831 ; Hannah, Sept. 9, 
1833; Mary, Aug. ir, 1846. 



\f rrin M. Norton, farmer, section 2, Squaw 
Grove Township, was born Nov. 27, 1825, 
ESp 5,1 i n Geauga Co., Ohio. He is the son of 
Robert and Lovisa (Monroe) Norton, who were 
born respectively in Vermont and Connecticut, 
and were of Scotch descent. Their children 
were Orrir. M. and Orry T. (twins) and Mary Jane. 
The family removed to Kane Co., 111., about 1837, 
and some years later made a permanent residence 
in the township of Squaw Grove. The senior Norton 
died April n, 1849; the mother's demise took place 
Jan. 1, 1877. 

Mr. Norton has been a resident of the township 
since his parents removed here, and he is the owner 
of a fine house, a farm of 303 acres, under advanced 
improvements, well stocked and supplied with neces- 
sary and suitable farm buildings. Mr. Norton is a 
Republican and has held the office of School Di- 
rector. 

He was married Dec. 25, 1853, in Geneva, Kane 
Co., 111., to Jemima Drake, and they have had two 
children, — Charles M. and Alice. Alice died Nov. 
16, 1863. Mrs. Norton was born Aug. 10, 1835, in 
Allegany Co., N. Y., and is the daughter of Ede and 
Hannah (Seavey) Drake, natives of New England, 
who were the parents of nine children, — George, 
William, Ede, Laura, Arvilla, Rosina, Betsey, Salina 
and Jemima. 




liYlXj^avid C. Hoag, farmer, section 20, Paw Paw 
<^MSt Township, where he owns and occupies 81 
h^f-"^ acres of land, was born in Johnstown, 
v $jti Montgomery Co., N. Y., July 1, 1829, and 
& when six years of age his parents, Abram and 
\ Nancy (Lamb) Hoag, moved with him to Ber- 

rien Co., Mich., where he was brought up, in agricult 
ural pursuits. 

April 3, 185 1, he married Miss Clarissa, daughter 
of Jeremiah and Phebe A. (Long) Ketcham. She 

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was born on Long Island, Dec. 3, 1831. The chil- 
dren of Mr. and Mrs. II. comprise two sons and five 
daughters, viz : Frank A., born Jan. 29, 1855, mar- 
ried Harriet Atherton and lives in Paw Paw Town- 
ship; Jennie M., born July 3, 1857, is the wife of Or- 
lando B. Woodward, of the same township ; Celia C, 
born Oct. 20, 1859, is the wife of Lewis 1'. Woods, of 
Lee Co., III.; John C, born Sept. 30, 1862, is living 
at his parental home; Martha M., born June n, 1S66. 
is the wife of John Butterfield, of State Center, Iowa; 
Carrie B. was bom June n, 1868; and Bertha A., 
Nov. 9, 1870. 

Mr. Hoag removed to Kingston, this county, in 
1851, and engaged in farming there until 1856, when 
he changed his residence to Paw Paw Township, set- 
tling upon section 29. In April, 1S65, he removed 
to his present farm on section 20. He has held va- 
rious local offices, having served as Township Col- 
lector three terms, Road Commissioner three years, 
etc., etc. He is a pronounced Prohibitionist. For 
12 years his was the only Prohibition vote cast in his 
town, but in the last Presidential campaign he was 
re-enforced by six others. He and his wife are mem- 
bers of the Methodist Episcopal Church of South 
Paw Paw. 



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enry A. Sanderson, farmer, section 29, 

Milan Township, is the owner of 60 acres 

of the undivided estate which was once a 

portion of his father's homestead, and he is also 

Ithe proprietor of 80 acres of land on section 20. 
The entire amount in both tracts is under ex- 
cellent improvement. lie is the son of Sander H. 
and Anna (Morland) Sanderson. His father was 
born March 12, 1825, in Norway, and came to the 
Ui.ited States in 1843. He has held the office of 
Justice of the Peace about 10 years, and other minor 
offices. He has also been in the mercantile busi- 
tt Lee, Lee County, for about three years : the 
firm name was S. Sanderson & Son. He died Dec. 
1, 1 SS 1 . His wife, Anna Sanderson, was born May 
5, 1832, and died Nov. 24, 1 881 . 

Mr. Sanderson is the oldest of 10 children, one of 
whom died in infancy, i lis birth occurred Oct. 14, 
1851, in La Salle County, and he remained an in- 

^g&Z O 



mate of his paternal home until the death of his 
father and mother, and has since continued there 
resident. 

lie was married Jan. 17, 1S84, in York Township, 
Green Co., Wis., to Melinda Nessa. Mrs. Sanderson 
is the daughter of Nels and Isabella (Moland) Nessa. 
Her parents were born in Norway, where they were 
married, and in [854 emigrated to the United States. 
Their daughter was born in Norway, Nov. 24, 1853. 
On first coming to America they fixed their residence 
in Green Co., Wis., and are still living in York Town- 
ship. They have reared a family of eight children, 
of whom Mrs. Sanderson is third in order of birth, 
and three of her brothers and sisters are deceased. 

Politically, Mr. Sanderson is a Republican, and 
both he and his wife are members of the Lutheran 
Church. 



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braham V. Van Deusen, farmer, residing 

on and owner of 140 acres of land located 

* on section 34, Shabbona Township, was 



born in Galway, Saratoga Co., N. Y., Dec. 13, 
1 83 1. He is a son of John B. and Sarah A. 
(Marquith) Van Deusen, respectively of Hol- 
land and French extraction. 

His father's family moved to Clifton Park, in his 
native county, when Abraham was an infant, and in 
that place he spent his boyhood years, attending the 
public schools. Arriving at maturity he learned the 
carpenter's trade, and in April, 1857, came to tltis 
State and located in La Salle County. He worked 
at his trade in that county until October, the same year, 
and then came to this county and lived in Paw Paw 
until March, i860, when he purchased the land on 
whii h he at present resides. It was in its original 
natural condition, and he engaged in the laborious 
task of improving and cultivating it. That his labors 
have accomplished the intended desire, to prepare a 
home for himself and family that would be a comfort 
to them in the future, the line appearance and con- 
dition of his farm will testify. 

Mr. Van Deusen was married in Crescent, Sarato- 
ga Co., N. Y., Sept. 6, 1854, to Miss Elizabeth, d.i 
ter of David and Jane Ann (Wilbur) Steenburgh, of 
Holland and English extraction. She was bom in 
Clifton Park, Saratoga Co., N. Y., Dec. 15, 1834. 
The issue of their union was one child, Ernest C, 



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born in Shabbona Township, June 4, 1869. They al- 
so have an adopted daughter, Alida M. Van Wert, 
born in Shabbona, April 22, 1872. 

Mrs. Van Deusen joined the Methodist Episcopal 
Church in 1853, and continued a member of the same 
until 1865, when she joined the Seventh-Day Ad- 
ventists, her church being located at Serena, La Salle 
Co., 111. Politically, Mr. Van Deusen has voted with 
the Republican party ever since its organization. It 
is worthy of remark that he uses neither intoxicating 
liquors of any kind, tea, coffee nor tobacco. 



^ 




i^harles Alfred Bishop, whose portrait ap- 
SrcT pears on the opposite page, is a member 
of the law-firm of Jones & Bishop, of 
Sycamore, and was born Sept. 26, 1854. He 
is English in lineal descent, and his immedi- 
ate progenitors were natives of Nova Scotia. 
His paternal grandparents, Gordon and Elizabeth 
(Oakes) Bishop, were of pure Anglo-Saxon extraction 
and became the parents of seven children, born in 
the order following: Eunice A., Adolphus and Ed- 
ward G. (twins), James I,., Mary E., Allen and 
Ainslie. The homestead estate was in the township 
of Horton in Kings Co., Nova Scotia, and a portion 
of it lay in the section known to all the nations 
of the earth through " Evangeline," Longfellow's 
exquisite poem, the provincial character and location 
of which, as much as any other of his works, gave 
the author a Continential recognition, which event- 
uated in securing a place for his memorial bust in 
Westminster Abbey. The geographical location of 
the portion referred to is designated Grand Pre, and 
has become known to literature through the writings 
of several other authors of distinction, among them 
the author of Antony Brode, or the Boys of Grand 
Pre School. 

As they approached the period of manhood's 
estate in years and physical development, the twin 
brothers, Adolphus and Edward, assumed the man- 
agement of the homestead, and continued their joint 
Operations until the marriage of Adolphus to Joanna 
Willett, daughter of George and Ann (Dunn) Willett. 
She died in 1861, leaving three sons, — Charles A., 
David A. and Franklin W. She was a lady of re- 
markable, amiable and lovely character,"and though 

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she died young she lived long enough to impress the 
remembrance of her winning graces and equable 
sunny temperament indelibly on the memories of 
her friends. After her death, the husband and 
father turned his attention to mining and became 
largely interested in the Waverly and Joggins gold 
mines, situated respectively in the counties of Hali- 
fax and Lunenburg in Nova Scotia. In 1863 he mar- 
ried the sister of his deceased wife, Mary E. Willett, 
a lady of culture and refinement and an accom- 
plished and popular vocalist. Of the second mar- 
riage two children were born, namely, Ernest (now 
deceased) and Nellie May, born in 'February, 1875. 
Adolphus Bishop was born in 1822. He has been 
all his life in active business, and has operated ex- 
tensively for some years as a speculator in farm prod- 
uce, buying and shipping to New York, Boston and 
parts of the West Indies. Previous to 1867, the 
date of the "Confederation of the Provinces," he 
was a loyalist or Tory in political principle; subse- 
quently he was identified with the Anti-Confederate 
party. He is a man of prominence and ability and 
has been active in the local affairs of his county and 
township, having served several successive terms as 
a member of the Common Council of Kings County, 
representing the division known as "Ward Four." 
He has also been unremitting in his interest and 
efforts in behalf of the welfare and improvement of 
the locality where he has resided most of his life. 
He acted as Fish Commissioner under appointment 
from the Dominion Government from 1S70 to 1S75. 
In character, the father of Mr. Bishop of this sketch 
is a representative of the best type of men belonging 
to the class distinctly characterized as yeomanry. 
Honorable, upright, dignified and courteous, he has 
wielded all his life a palpable influence in his family 
and social circle. He reared his sons on the old- 
school plan, subjecting them to inflexible discipline 
tempered with judicious and considerate kindness, 
but never lapsing into indulgence. He is a man 
respected by all classes, and his home has always 
been the center of a broad and generous hospitality. 
The younger sons are business men in their native 
province. David is a merchant at Truro, and Frank- 
lin is a farmer in the township of Horton. 

Mr. Bishop was early placed at school and receiv- 
ed a thorough preparatory education in the excellent 
schools of Kings County, which are of the same 
type throughout the confederated provinces of the 

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496 



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DE KALB COUNTY. 



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Dominion. When he was 17 years ol age he en- 

flered Acadia * oil at Wolfville, Nova Scotia, where 
he was .1 student until June, 1873, pursuing a literary 
and scientific course of study. In September of 
' th.it year he went to Saclcville, New Brunswick, lo 
avail himself of the advantages of the Wesleyan 
College, and remained a student there until June, 
1875, when he yielded to solicitation and accepted a 
position as Principal of the High School at Sackville, 
in which lie officiated until May, 1878; then came 
to Illinois, to fill a more advantageous situation. 
An unavoidable delay of a few hours while en route 
or. asioned the loss of a creditable and remunerative 
position in Kane County, and after a few days, de- 
liberation Mr. Bishop decided to proceed farther 
West, and made all necessary arrangements to that 
effect. 

A chance visit to Sycamore changed all his plans 
n and purposes, and he sought admission to the privi- 
leges of the various law offices at Sycamore, which 
v he finally obtained in that of H. A. Jones, who re- 
\4+ ceived him for a prescribed period, pending the 
^ absence of a student to whom the opportunity had 
^L4. been promised. The latter failed to avail himself of 
J= his right, and Mr. Bishop continued his reading in 
Y the office of Mr. Jones. In June, 1880, he presented 
himself before the Appellate Court of Illinois in ses- 
sion at Ottawa, for admission to the Bar. He passed 
an examination of unusual severity, ranking third in 
a class of 34 applicants. 

Two years after entering the office Mr. Jones he 
became his associate, and the firm is now engaged in 
the prosecution of an extensive business which 
places it among the prominent law associations of 
De Kalb County. The cases which Messrs. Jones 
& Bishop are called to manage are largely of a civil 
character, ini Luding a fair share of criminal practice. 
Although Mr. Bishop is still a comparatively young 
r, he has already earned a creditable reputa- 
tion as an advocate, and the natural traits of his 
character are such as to promise a steady and sub- 
"^ stantial preferment in his profession. Cool, wary, 
imperturbable and gifted With discernment, he is 
K ■» fully sensible of the advantage of making haste 
slowly, realizing the force of the truism that " fools 
rush in where angels fear to tread." Believing that 
a man's worth to the world depends on the quality of 
his work therein, he strives to exercise a prudence 



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and judgment which will leave no necessity of re- 
trieval. 

In addition to the business connections of his pro- 
fession, Mr. Bishop has farming interests in I)e Kalb 
County and Iowa. He has hitherto been too busy 
to become an aggressive politician, but from princi- 
ple adopts and supports the issues of the Republican 
party. He is a prominent member of the Order of 
Odd Fellows, Lodge No. 105 at Sycamore, and be- 
longs to the Ellwood Encampment, No. 173. He 
was a Delegate from the subordinate lodge at Syca- 
more to the School of Instruction held at Blooming- 
ton, 111., under orders issued by the State Grand 
Lodge, when he obtained the unwritten work of the 
order as theretofore changed by the Sovereign Grand 
Lodge of the United States, in order to communi- 
cate the same to the local lodge, a work which he 
accomplished in accordance with the obligations im- 
plied in his selection for the duty. He delivered 
the address of welcome at the 63d anniversary of 
the Order of Odd Fellows which was held at Syc- 
amore in 1882. He was elected a member of the 
Board of Education of Sycamore in the spring of 
1882, and has since been connected with that body, 
of which he has officiated in the capacity of Secre- 
tary since 1884. 

He was united in marriage to Parmelia J. Wharry, 
on the 25th day of August, rSSo, at Sycamore, 111. 
Mrs. Bishop is the daughter of Major Evans Whar- 
ry, who was the first to make a practical attempt to 
found a town at this point, and who is inseparable 
from its earliest history. In May, 1836, he came to 
De Kalb County as the representative of a company 
of capitalists who had formed the plan of establish- 
ing a city on the Kishwaukee River, and where he 
entered vigorously into the projected work, of which 
a description is given in the historical portion of this 
work. The scheme came to naught through the col- 
lapse attendant upon the undue inflation of values 
which precipitated the financial stress of 1837, but 
Major Wharry continued his individual effort for the 
progress of the place, and established a mercantile 
enterprise, which was probably the first in that ave- 
nue of business in the vicinity of Sycamore. Almost 
his first work was the building of a saw-mill on the 
river, and he constructed the first dam across the 
stream. Major Wharry was a prominent and influ- 
ential element in securing the establishment of the 



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county seat at Sycamore, and he contributed liber- 
ally of money and effort to that end. He continued 
his exertions in behalf of the place as long as they 
were needed, interesting himself in the systematic 
arrangement and naming of the streets. He is a 
member of the family of his daughter. He was 
born Aug. 23, 1801, at Little Falls, Herkimer Co., N. 
Y., and is the son of Hon. Evans and Phebe (Bel- 
knap) Wharry, both of whom were members of the 
distinguished families in the Empire State. The 
earliest known ancestor in the paternal line went 
from Scotland to the North of Ireland, and after one 
or two generations Robert or David Wharry, a Prot- 
estant, came to the New World, landing at the city 
of New York, whence he proceeded to Goshen, and 
there married Polly Peacock, who was of the same 
national lineage, coming from Ireland to Goshen 
when she was six years of age. Of her marriage 
10 children were born, of whom Evans, afterward 
Judge, Wharry was the second. He was born in 
1749, in Orange Co., N. Y. He was early orphaned 
and devoted his abilities, which were of a superior 
order, to the study of navigation; but one trial of a 
seafaring life sufficed, and he abandoned the project 
to become a surveyor, a business which tended to 
interest him in the contingencies of the Colonial re- 
volt against the mother country, and in which he be- 
came personally active. The details of his military 
service are meager from obvious reasons, but it is 
matter of record that he was in command of a com- 
pany at the siege of Quebec. His services obtained 
recognition from the Government, and he was the 
recipient of a pension which was continued to his 
wife, who survived him nearly 20 years. 

After the Revolution he settled in Herkimer Coun- 
ty and passed the remainder of his life in honorable 
and useful citizenship, serving as a judge to the ex- 
treme of the constitutional limit. He was the friend 
and associate of Washington, Franklin, Knox, Ham- 
ilton, Burr, Governor Clinton and others whose names 
are on the "eternal roll of fame." He died at Little 
Fails, in April, 183 1. His wife, who was greatly his 
junior in years, was an acknowledged beauty. She 
was the daughter of Joseph Belknap, of Newburg, 
one of the intimate friends of General Washington 
and in whose family circle he was a frequent guest 
during his residence at Newburg. It is well known 
that Washington was a great lover of children, and 
the younger members of the families of his friends 




were the objects of his special attention. Miss 
Phebe was in comparative childhood, and was a spe- 
cial favorite of the distinguished guest of her father. 
Of her marriage to Evans Wharry, nine children 
were born, and she died about 1850, at a great age. 
The record of Herkimer County states that Judge 
Wharry had " one or two sons who left the country 
many years ago," but he failed to discover that one 
of the individuals of indefinite ultimatum became a 
pioneer of De Kalb County. Major Evans Wharry 
married Mrs. Martha Smith. Mrs. Bishop, only 
daughter of her parents, was born April 2, 1856, at 
Sycamore, where she was brought up to the age of 
15 years, when she was sent to Fairfield Seminary 
in the State of New York. She was a pupil at that 
institution three years, and in 1874 entered Wells 
College at Aurora, N. Y., completing a course of 
study there in 1877. She possesses superior literary 
abilities, which were recognized and appreciated dur- 
ing her collegiate course, as she was made Presi- 
dent of the " Phoenix Literarum," a literary society: 
she also conducted the Chronicle, the Wells Col- 
lege journal. She returned to Sycamore in 1878. 
Mrs. Bishop is acknowledged to be a lady of excep- 
tional brilliancy and attainments, and is a valuable 
member of the social circles in which she moves. 



9 

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,lark Nichols, farmer, section 13, Squaw 
If Grove Township, is a citizen of that town- 
ship of more than 40 years' standing, hav- 
)p ing accompanied his parents hither in 1844. 
, J \ He was born Nov. 3, 1841, in Allegany Co., 
N. Y., and is the son of Eli G. and Phebe 
(Horton) Nichols. His parents were natives of New 
York and came thence in the fall of 1844 to make a 
permanent residence in De Kalb County. Their 
deaths occurred respectively Oct. 2, 1851, and Oct. 
24, 1873. Huldah A., Phebe A. and Clark are the 
names of their children. 

Mr. Nichols has been engaged all his life in farm- 
ing. He is the owner of 78 acres where he resides^ 
and also of 30 acres in Kane County. He has held 
the office of School Director and politically affiliates 
with the Republican party. 

His marriage to Mary A. Schryver took place Sept. 
27, 1866, in Kane Co., 111. Her parents, William 



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and Martha (Amerman) Schryver, were born in the 
State of Mew Vdrk and were of mixed German and 
English descent. Mrs. Nichols was born Sept. 16, 
iX.|i, in the city of New York. William E. and 
Mary A. are the names of the children of Mr. and 
M 1 . Nli hols. 



lenry S. Dickinson, wagon-maker and deal- 
er in 1 aniages at East Paw Paw, was born 
in Otsego Co., N. Y., April 27, 1833, his 
parents being Oliver H. and Olive (Brooks) 
Dickinson. He was brought up in his native 
county and was educated in the public and 
select schools of the day. 

lie learned the wagon-maker's trade in the East, 
came to East Paw Paw, 111., in the fall of 1855, and 
worked as a journeyman at his trade until Jan. 18, 
1856, when he bought out his employer, since which 
time he has carried on his business continuously and 
with success. 

A^ to politics, Mr. Dickinson has always been a 
Republican. 

He was married at East Paw Paw, 111., Dec. 9, 
1856, to Miss Nancy S., daughter of Jacob and Mary 
(McCoy) Wiriek. She was born at Far West, Mo., 
March 5, 1839. 




-*s/\* — «-• 







sif»13 ernard C. Allbee, retired farmer at Him k- 
. W^j;~: ley, is the son of Joseph and Electa (Crip- 
-' ^ pen) Allbee. They were natives of the 
State of New York, and had a family of 13 
children, Mr. Allbee of this sketch being sec- 
ond in order of birth. He was born June 10, 
1 S r 1, in Cayuga Co.", N. Y. When two years old his 
parents moved to Ohio, where he lived till 1838. In 
thai \ear he came to De Kalb County and settled in ' 
the township of Squaw Grove. He arrived here pre- 
vious to the land's coming into market and located 
on what is now section 15. He has been the owner 
of several different farms, and has lived in Squaw 
Grove Township since 1840. 

In 1S83 he retired from active farm labor, and re- 
moved to the village of Hinckley. He is a Republi- 





can in political sentiment and relations, and has held 
sc\ eral official positions. 

Mr. Allbee was married Jan. 4, 1840, in the town- 
ship of Sugar Grove, Kane Co., III., to Mary E., 
daughter of Benjamin and Anna (Vanbelger) Jones. 
Her parents were natives of Connecticut and had sev- 
en children, of whom Mrs. Allbee is second in order 
of birth. She was born June 5, 1823, in the 1 it) of 
New York. She has been the mother of 16 children, 
— Sarah, Catherine, Joseph P., Eleazer and Electa 
(twins), Emma E., John B., Charles F., Ella M., Ber- 
nard C, Anson G., Phebe J., Willie H., Carrie A., Lil- 
lie M. and Edgar. 

. 1 -K# # fr . »f 1 . 

|{dam Haish, farmer, section 26, Pierce 
Township, is a pioneer of that township. 
He is a native of Bonddish, Germany, where 
he was born Aug. 12, 1830. Two years after 
his birth his parents emigrated from "das 
Faderland " to the United States. They made 
a short stay in the State of Pennsylvania, where his 
mother died. After that event his father settled on 
a tract of land in Crawford Co., Ohio. There were 
five children in the family, of whom Mr. Haish is 
the youngest. In 1850 the family came to De Kalb 
County, and settled on a farm in Pierce Township. 

Mr. Haish made his home with his parents until 
1856, when he made a purchase of 40 acres of prairie 
land at $5 per acre. Two years later he sold the 
same for three times the original price. He then 
purchased 80 acres of wholly unimproved land on 
section 35, and has now 40 acres on section 36, 
which he bought at $15 per acre, and later bought 
40 acres additional for which he paid at the rate of 
$4.4 per acre. In 1877 he bought the Eberly farm, 
comprising 160 acres, paying therefor $8,000. In 
1883 he bought the place known as the Lintner farm, 
containing 82 acres, at $50.60 per acre. These farms 
are all supplied with excellent buildings. 

Mr. Haish was married May 17, 1853, to Lydia 
Kuter, and they had five children, — Lucy Ann, 
Henry, William and Jacob G. Jeremiah died in in- 
fancy. Mrs. Haish was born Feb. 9, 1828, and is 
the daughter of John and Lydia Kuter. 

Mr. Haish is one of the substantial citizens of 
Pierce Township, and is a fine sample of what a man 



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of foreign birth may accomplish in contrast with the 
possibilities open to him in his own country, where 
every foot of soil is crowded, and all opportunities of 
advancement closed long before they reached to the 
class to which he belonged. In the United States 
all he needs is energy, perseverance and under- 
standing. 

In October, 1884, Mrs. Haish was attacked by a 
painful disease which proved to be cancer of the 
stomach, from which she suffered for 24 weeks. Her 
death occurred Feb. 23, 1885. In calm resignation 
she arranged the details of her burial, and her fu- 
neral sermon was preached from Isaiah, 35th chap- 
ter, 10th verse, which she selected herself. 



-K3- 



"ohn Palm, retired farmer, residing at Shab- 
bona, was born in Austin Township, Trum- 
bull Co., Ohio, Dec. 4, 1812, and is a son 
of David and Mary (Shivley) Palm. His 
father followed the vocation of a farmer, and 
Mr. Palm grew to manhood on the farm, re- 
ceiving the advantages afforded by the common 
schools. 

He was united in marriage to Miss Catharine 
Flick, daughter of George and Margaret (Randolph) 
Flick, Oct. 13, 1831. She was born in Bald Eagle, 
Center Co., Pa., Aug. 31, 181 1. Four years after 
marriage, in 1835, Mr. Palm moved with his family 
to Southington, same county, and engaged in farm- 
ing, which vocation he followed in that county for 
some years. He then removed to Middlefield, 
Geauga County, State of Ohio, remaining there until 
the spring of 1845, when he removed to Shabbona 
Grove, this county, and entered 160 acres of Govern- 
ment land on section 14, township 38 north, of range 
3 east. In 1850 he went by the overland route to 
California, where he was engaged in placer-mining; 
but, contracting typhoid fever, he was not able to 
work for about three months, jet afterwards accumu- 
lated a moderate amount of means before returning. 
He came home in a little less than two years and 
paid for his land and made some substantial im- 
provements on it. In 1862 he leased his farm and 
moved to Leland, La Salle Cj., this State. He re- 
mained seven years at the latter place, and then, in 
1869, he returned to his farm, which he continued to 





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cultivate until 1877. At this time he was afflicted 
with the partial loss of his eye-sight, and again 
rented his farm and moved into Shabbona, soon af- *- 
ter commencing treatment for his eyes, having built 
a fine residence before moving to the village. Noth- v^ 
ing that money could procure or skill accomplish 
did him any good, and about 1879 he was hopelessly 
deprived of one of the greatest gifts to man, his 
power of vision. 

At this writing (1885) Mr. Palm is in full posses- 
sion of all his other faculties. He is cheerful in dis- 
position and vigorous and clear in his mental faculties. 
He still owns an extensive farm of 236 acres in 
Shabbona Township, which he rents, besides a com- 
fortable residence and 13 lots in the village of Shab- 
bona. 

Mr. and Mrs. Palm are the parents of six children, 
three sons and three daughters, only two of whom 
are living. The eldest, Margaret, was born Aug. 13, 1 
1832, married Alonzo Olmstead and died in her 25th 
year. The second child, Adam, was born Jan. 7, 
1834, lived to maturity, married Miss Almina Fuller, 
is a farmer by vocation and resides at Shabbona. > 
Mary J., born Sept. 3, 1837, lived to maturity and * 
became the wife of Henry Husk, a farmer of Shab- 
bona Township. Hannah, born July 30, 1839, grew 
to womanhood, became the wife of William Husk, 
Postmaster at Shabbona, and died in August, 1865. 
David, fifth child, was born May 3, 1842. He grew 
to manhood under the parental roof-tree, and on the 
breaking out of the late Civil War, enlisted in Co. E, 
105th 111. Vol. Inf., and died in November, 1862, in 
the hospital at Bowling Green, Warren Co., Ky., from 
disease contracted in the army. John, sixth and 
youngest child, was born Jan. 2t, 1S45, and died 
when five and one-half years of age. 

While a resident of Leland, La Salle County, Mr. 
Palm held the office of Trustee four seasons in suc- 
cession. On coming to Shabbona he was elected a 
member of the first Board of Village Trustees, and 
at the expiration of his term was re-elected and held X 
the office four years. It was largely due to his lib- 
erality and public enterprise that the railwa) station 
was established at this place. He generousl) gave 
the undivided one-half interest in 40 acres of land 
for a village plat, besides giving the right of way 
through 1 60 acres to the railroad company. 1 le also 
gave away quite a number of lots to encourage the " 



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growth and settlement of the village. His gift to 
the railroad company was double thai ol anj single 
individual, and was the means of inducing others to 
give. Truly, he is entitled to the honor of being 
credited as one of the founders of the village of 
Shabbona, as well as one of her most respected citi- 
zens. 

A lithographic portrait of the venerable subject of 
the foregoing sketch is given on the page opposite the 
beginning, and doubtless will be pleasurably appre- 
ciated by a very large circle of acquaintances. It 
was engraved from a photograph taken in 1870. 



--:: -■ 




Toseph Henry Denton, Clerk of Pierce 
If Township, wasjaorn Aug. 25, 1S37, in the 
town of Stockton, Chautauqua Co., N. Y. 
His earliest traceable paternal ancestor, Solo- 
mon Denton, was horn in Greenwich, Conn., in 
the year 1700, and from him Mr. Denton is the 
fifth in the line of descent. Solomon Denton (3d), 
great-grandson of the first Solomon Denton and 
grandfather of J. H. Denton, was born Aug. 4, 1754. 
He entered the Colonial service during the Revolu- 
tionary War and was connected with the Federal 
army until the expiration of the term for which he 
enlisted. On obtaining his discharge he made an 
attempt to ■ cross Long Island Sound, was captured 
by the British soldiery and held prisoner of war about 
18 months. On obtaining his liberty he went to Nova 
Scotia, where he became acquainted with and mar- 
ried Clara Anderson. She was born in a town on the 
banks of the Hudson River, near New York city. 
After marriage they settled (about 1792), in the town 
of Beekman, Dutchess Co., N. Y., where Fowler 
Denton, father of J. H., was born, April 10, 1803. 
The latter was twice married. Sophia Caldwell, his 
first wife, was the daughter of Joseph and Anna 
Caldwell and granddaughter of Col. Henry Luding- 
ton, who became distinguished in the War of 1776. 
To them were born four sons and three daughters. 
The second wife was Amy G., daughter of Oliver and 
Zilpha (Guild) Arnold, and granddaughter of Nathan 
Morgan, who lived during the Revolutionary War at 
Royalton, Vermont. On becoming his "own man," 
Fowler Denton was employed for a short time as a 
clerk in a store, and in the spring of 1824 he entered 



the Hudson River service and conducted a sailing 
vessel in the transportation of freight from Cold 
■Spring, Putnam Co., N. Y. In the spring of 1831 he 
embarked in a mercantile enterprise at Carmel in the 
same county, which he prosecuted until the winter of 
1833, when he sold his business and its appurten- 
ances. In the fall of 1834 he purchased a farm in 
the town of Stockton, Chautauqua Co., N. Y., where 
he resided until his death, which occurred March 30, 
1874. Three of his children are now living: Julia 
A., wife of J. M. Hardenburg, resides at Brockton, 
Chautauqua Co., N. Y. Cecilia, widow of Norman 
Safford, lb/es at Rockford, Winnebago Co., 111. 

Mr. Demon is the youngest surviving child of his 
parents and is the fifth in order of birth. He was 
brought up to a knowledge of the methods of farm- 
ing, and was educated in the common schools. When 
he was 18 years of age he entered the employment of 
a seed house in his native county, for whom he trav- 
eled five years, and subsequently engaged in farm- 
ing. In 1864 he came to De Kalb County and 
settled on section 14, Pierce Township, where he lias 
since operated as a practical farmer. All his land is 
well improved and he has built a commodious frame 
house, with other large and well constructed farm 
buildings, and has set out an orchard and a number 
of shade and ornamental trees. The farm is drained 
by 900 rods of tile. 

Mr. Denton was married Dec. 9, 1862, to Maria 
McCoul. She was born in Allegany Co., N. Y., and 
is the daughter of James and Triphena (Arnold) 
McCoul. Their five surviving children are named 
Maty, Alta, Frank, Blanche and Solomon. George, 
oldest child, was born July 13, 1865, and died Dec. 
9. 1877. 



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f] hineas Joslyn, deceased, a pioneer of De 
Kalb County, and formerly a resident on 
section 16, Cortland Township, was born 
in 1791, in Westmoreland, Oneida Co., N. V. 
i^ His parents removed in his youth to Genesee 
County, where they were pioneers of Western New 
York, and where they improved a farm and estab- 
lished a home. His father died there. 

Mr. Joslyn was married in Genesee County, to 
Lorinda Woodworth, a native of Bennington, Vt., and 




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after marriage they settled in a portion of Pembroke 
Township, now included in the township of Darien, 
buying a farm lying within the tract of land in the 
State of New York, sold by Robert Morris, first 
Secretary of the Treasurer of the Colonial Govern- 
ment of America to an Amsterdam company and 
known for a long term of years as the " Holland 
Purchase." In 1830 he sold the property and re- 
moved to Erie County, locating on a farm in the 
township of Alden. In 1838 he severed all his busi- 
ness relations with his native State and set out for 
De Kalb County with a team of horses and a wagon, 
accompanied by his wife and nine children. He 
drove to Buffalo, where he embarked on a steamer 
for Detroit. Arriving at the City of the Straits, he 
again set out as originally, and drove to De Kalb 
County. They carried with them their domestic im- 
plements and lived enfamille, as a Frenchman would 
say, on the route, which was thereby converted into 
a picnic of some days' duration. On reaching Cort- 
land, Mr. Joslyn secured a claim of land on section 

9, in Cortland Township. The land was still un- 
surveyed and was not yet in market, but the proprie- 
tor resided thereon some years and improved a fine 
farm, which he sold later on and went to Sycamore 
to pass the last years of his life, and died there in 
1868. The mother died Nov. 1, 1881. 

Harry A. Joslyn, the oldest son, was born Dec. 

10, 1816, in the township of Darien, Genesee Co., 
N. Y., and when he was 14 years of age removed 
thence with his parents to Erie County. He obtained 
a common-school education, and in the winter of 
1837-8 he engaged in teaching in Alden Township. 
In the spring of 1838 he came to De Kalb County, 
reaching Chicago by the lake route, and thence on 
foot to Cortland Township. He secured a claim of 
land and returned to the State of New York. In the 
fall of the same year he came back to Cortland, ac- 
companied by the entire family of his parents, as has 
been stated. He lived at home and engaged alter- 
nately in the labors of the farm and in teaching. 

He was married May it, 1841,10 Lucy A., daugh- 
ter of John and Deborah (Aldrich) Waterman, a 
native of Perry, Genesee Co., N. Y. Her parents 
were natives of Rhode Island, and located in 1837 
in De Kalb County, in what is now Cortland Town- 
ship. Her father first operated as a renter of land, 
but later bought a claim on section 4, in the same 




township. After " entering "the land he built a log 
house and improved the farm, which he conducted 
four years. Subsequently he sold his place and 
bought another on section 3, where he was resident 
seven years. At the end of that time he moved to 
Sycamore and there passed three years in trade. At 
the close of the war in 1865, he bought a farm on 
section 16, where he was a resident until 1883, when 
he sold again and bought the farm on which he now 
resides, on section 5, situated one-fourth of a mile 
from Cortland village. 

Mr. and Mrs. Joslyn have had five children : John 
P., second son, was born March 24, 1850, and died 
Sept. 2, 1878. Louisa A., Frank M., William L. and 
James C. are the four who survive. 



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enjamin F. Atherton, farmer, section 31, 
Shabbona Township, owning 180 acres of 
land (postoflice, Paw Paw, Lee County), is 
a son of Joseph and Phebe (Vosburg) Ather- 
ton. The former was born in Luzerne Co., 
Pa., Feb. 17, 1800. The latter was born in 
New York about 18 10. They both died in Penn- 
sylvania, she in 1836, and he in 1^45. 

Mr. Atherton, the subject of this sketch, was born 
in Luzerne Co., Pa., Oct. 24, 1828, and was brought 
up on a farm, alternating his labors thereon by at- 
tendance at the common schools. He was married 
Oct. 26, 1858, in Factoryville, Wyoming Co., Pa., to 
Miss Mira, daughter of Thomas J. and Susan (Cap- 
well) Maynard. She was born in Factoryville, Wy- 
oming Co., Pa., Feb. 20, 1835. Her father was born 
in Marlboro, Mass., March 29, 1802, and moved 
to Factoryville, Pa. He was married July 16, 
1829, to Susan Capwell. They had four sons, all of 
whom were Union soldiers in the late Civil War. 
Stephen H. was in the 57th Pa. Vol. Inf., and was 
killed at Fair Oaks, Va., May 31, 1S62. James G. 
was in Co. L, 3d Pa. Heavy Artillery, and was 
drowned July 7, 1864, in the James River, at Fort 
Powhatlan, Va. Thomas was a member of the 57th 
Pa. Vol. Inf.; and Garrick M. was assistant engineer 
on the steamer " Baltic." The mother was born at 
Factoryville, March 12, 1S04, and died in the same 
place Aug. 12, 1876; the father came to Illinois in 



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1SS0 and passed his remaining days with his daugh- 
ter. He died May 21, 1884. 

Mr. and Mrs Atherton have had four children, .is 
follow-,: Maude E., born March 26, 1S60; Blanch, 
born Jan. 17, [864, died Oct. 5 same year. Thomas 
M., born July 22, 1865, died Oct. 14, 1880; and 
Joseph E., born Oct. 17, 1S70. 

Mr. Atherton came to this county in the spring 
and located with his brother Charles, on the land on 
which he is at present residing. The brothers have 
been in partnership in the farm and the cultivation 
of it ever since coining to the county in 1855. 

Politically, Mr. Atherton is identified with the 
issues and principles of the Republican party. 



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-Jk dwin H. Fay, farmer, section 27, Squaw 
MU Grove 'Township, is the son of Horace W. 
and Roxana (Eaton) Fay. The latter died 
J>J*- in December, 1835, ' n New York State, where 
she was born. About the year 1838 the father 
came to De Kalb County, and, in company 
with Wells A. Taw purchased a farm. Subsequently 
he went to Will Co., 111.; after a residence there of 
three years he returned to Squaw Grove. During 
the course of the war he enlisted in the Union ser- 
vice, and died at Vicksburg, Miss., in the spring of 
1863. For several years prior to enlistment he offi- 
ciated as Surveyor of De Kalb County. His children 
were, Edwin H., Maliala P., Mary I., Rhoda H. and 
Frances C. 

Mr. Fay was born Aug. 4, 1826, in Manlius, Onon- 
daga Co., N. Y. His mother died when lie was nine 
years old, and he went to Michigan with his uncle, 
making the route there through Canada with a wagon. 
He remained there between two and three years, and 
then came to De Kalb County, where he has sin< e 
resided with the exception of about 16 months, 
which he spent in the Mexican war, as a volunteer in 
the 1 6th Ky. Inf. He owns 160 acres of land, of 
v£> which [2i acres are tillable. Mr. Fay endorses and 
supports the principles of the Republican party. He- 
has held the office of School Inspector and other 
. public situations of less importance. 
i<%. He was married in April, 1855, in Will Co., 111., to 
® Ann W. Haywood, and they had four children, — 
Arthur II., Herbert W., Oscar H. and Orpha A. The 

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last named child died in infancy. Mr. Fay died in 
Squaw Grove, Nov. it, 1884. She was born May 
21, 1830, in Waterville, Maine, and was the daughter 
of Timothy and Eleanor Haywood. 




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eorge Ramer, farmer, section 22, Pierce 
Township, was born April 21, 1844, in 
Kic hland Co., Ohio, and came thence with 
his parents, Henry and Susanna ('Troup) 
Ramer. He was reared on his father's farm, 
and there made his home until after his mar- 
He was educated in the common schools. 
Jan. 8, 1863, he was married to Anna, daughter of 
Timothy Haley. 

In 1S71 he purchased a farm on section 22, Pierce 
Township, and has erected a good dwelling-house, 
barn and granary. He has also set out an apple 
orchard of 1S0 trees and a variety of small fruits. He 
is a Republican in political opinion and he and his 
wife are members of the Evangelical Association. 

'There are seven children in the family, — Oscar, 
Nora, Mina, Viola, Rosa, Robert and [van. 



I .ff CnJ^aniel Pierce, banker at Sycamore, was born 
) i^MlJ'., in the town of Neversink, Sullivan Co., N. 
.' 'jjy ■* Y., July 18, 1814, and is the sonof Joseph 

vjfc and Elizabeth (Corgill) Pierce. Win. Pierce, 
■fe the paternal grandsire, lived and died in West- 

* Chester Co., N. Y. On his mother's side Mr. 
Pierce is of Scotch lineage. Joseph Pierce was born 
in Westchester County and went to Sullivan County 
when 15 years of age. He died in March, 18 19, 
aged 31 years, leaving a wife and six children — Wil- 
liam, Polly, John, Daniel, Nellie and Catherine. In 
1822 the widow married Edward Porter. Mr. Pierce 
senior had owned what was called a ''lease faun " in 
the town of Neversink, and this the family occupied 
some years. 

At the age of 12 years Mr. Pierce of this sketch 
his thrown upon his own resources for maintenam e, 
and he went to work at $3 per month for the first 
seven months. He continued in the occupation of a 
farm laborer until he obtained his title to the home- 
stead and operated agriculturally on his own account. 

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He was married Dec. 17, 1835, to Phebe J., daugh- 
ter of Abijah and Sarah (Lane) Brundige. She was 
born Aug. 17, 1818, in Orange Co., N. Y. They 
lived on the homestead until 1839, when Mr. Pierce 
purchased another lease of a farm in a different 
locality, where he operated five years, buying a third 
farm under similar circumstances. On this he re- 
mained until 1848, when he bought three farms, his 
purchase including the homestead. He lived in 
Sullivan County, with the exception of two years, 
until 1855. He passed the two years referred to in 
Ulster County, where he owned and managed a tan- 
nery associated with his brother. 

In 1855 he sold the major portion of his land in his 
native county, and came to Sycamore Township, 
where he rented a farm one year. In 1856 he re- 
moved to the city of Sycamore, where he lived until 
1865. In that year he took possession of a farm on 
section 6, Cortland Township, where he is still re- 
siding. 

On his removal to Sycamore in 1856, he engaged 
in land speculation, trafficking in real estate, and im- 
proving land. In 1867 the banking house of Pierce, 
Dean & Co. was established, which in 187 1 became 
Pierce & Dean. In 1883 another change instituted 
the banking firm of Daniel Pierce & Co., the existing 
style. Mr. Pierce is still dealing in real estate and is 
the proprietor of several farms. 

His family includes two daughters : Eleanor P. 
married A. W. Townsend. Sarah P. is the wife of 
G P. Wild. The first-born child died in infancy. 
The mother died Oct. 4, 1876. 



-S«- 



!ipltfi[ ugust Bastian, farmer, section 20, Squaw 
' ^sJLW a Grove Township, is a son of Jacob P. and 
llfll Mar y C - (Thomas) Bastian, who were na- 
S)a tives of Nassau, Germany. They had a fam- 
J£ ily of six children, of whom August was the 
j fourth in order of birth. He was born in Ger- 
many Dec. 22, 1822, and when 29 years of age he 
came to America, and after a year's residence at 
Louisville, Ky., he came to this county and first lived 
two years in Somonauk Township, then a year in 
Kendall County, and finally he settled upon his 
present place of residence. At first he bought 120 




acres, but he now has double that acreage. He has 
served the community as Overseer of Highways and 
as School Director. In his political views he is a 
Democrat. 

He was married in Oswego, Kendall Co., 111., Oct. 
11, 1855, to Miss Louisa C. Thomas, daughter of 
Gost H. and Mary C. (Post) Thomas, who were na- 
tives of Germany. She also was born in that coun- 
try Dec. 14, 1829. Mr. and Mrs. Bastian have eight 
children, — Lewis, Peter, Mary C, Gustave W., Ber- 
tha, Frank, Anna and Charlie A. 







(ijSeDJamin Gurler, farmer and stpck-raiser, 
S3IE located on section 32, De Kalb Township, 
was born Oct. 25, 1807, in Nelson, N. H., 
and is the son of Thomas and Susan (Far- 
well) Gurler. His father was born in Mar- 
blehead, Mass., and married a lady who was 
a native of New Hampshire, where they settled and 
where both died. They had 10 children. 

Mr. Gurler is their eldest son, and he continued to 
reside in his native State until 1856. He was there 
interested in farming, and passed 13 years in the 
manufacture of cast-steel augers and bits. He set- 
tled in De Kalb County in the fall of the year named, 
purchasing 160 acres of land in De Kalb Township, 
and eight acres in the township of Afton. He lo- 
cated on the quarter-section which he owned in De 
Kalb Township, and there established his home- 
stead. He owns 288 acres of improved and valu- 
uable land, stocked with 70 head of cattle, 6 horses 
and about 100 hogs. 

Politically, Mr. Gurler is a Republican. While 
a resident in New Hampshire, he was a Captain in 
the old State Militia seven years. 

He was married May 9, 1839, in Chesterfield, N. 
H., to* Harriet F. Hopkins, and they became the 
parents of five children : Henry B. was born May 
21, 1840, in Chesterfield. Sarah M. was born Oct. 
13, 1841, in Keene, N. H., which was the birthplace 
of George H., born March 29, 1844. Mary J. was 
born Sept. 6, 1848, in Chesterfield, and died in De 
Kalb, Nov. 20, 1859. Lizzie T. was born in De 
Kalb, Feb. 8, 1S61. Mrs. Gurler was born Oct. 29, 
1817, in Colerain, Mass., and is the daughter of 
Richard and Emmeline (Lewis) Hopkins. Her par 



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ents were natives of New Hampshire, where they re- 
sided nearly all their lives with the exception of six 
years, when the) lived at Colerain, Mass. They died 
in the State of their nativity. 

As a man eminently worthy a place among the 
leading men of l>e Kail) County, we place Mr. Cur- 
ler's portrait in this work. It is engraved from a 
picture taken in 1874. 




I illiam P. Wheeler, farmer, section 23, 
Clinton Township, is a son of Nathan and 
Abigail (King) Wheeler, natives of Ver- 
i> mont. The senior Wheeler died in his 
native State, and Mrs. W. in Clinton Town- 
ship, this county. 
Mr. Wheeler, whose name heads this sketch, was 
born in Colchester, Vt., Aug. 1, 1810; learned the 
trade of carpenter and joiner; followed it till 1845, 
then for six years worked in a saw-mill, and then, in 
185 1, he came to this county and purchased a quar- 
ter of section 33, where he has since resided, and 14 
acres in Shabbona Township. He now owns 84 
acres, most of which is in good cultivation. 

In political matters he is identified with the Demo- 
cratic party. He has held the office of Justice of the 
Peace four years, Township Clerk, one year, etc. 

He was married in Rutland Co., Vt., Oct. 15, 
1834, to Miss Mary A., daughter of William and 
Lucy (King) Ambler, natives also of the Green 
Mountain State. She was born in Lyons, Wayne 
Co., N. Y., Oct. 10, 1810, the youngest of five chil- 
dren. Mr. and Mrs. W. are the parents of Lucy, 
William, Wallace, Julia F. and Henry K. 

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saae Kirkpatrick, manufacturer and miller 
at Waterman, is a native of the Keystone 
State. His parents, Jesse and Ruth 
(Smiley) Kirkpatrick, natives also of Pennsyl- 
vania, emigrated to De Kalb County, 111., 
in the spring of 1855, where they spent the 
remainder of their lives. He died in the spring of 
1858, and she Oct. 8, 1879. They had six chil- 
dren, named Ann, Isaac, Smiley, Hiram, Margaret 
and KUen. 

Mr. Kirkpatrick was born in Perry Co., Pa., Oct. 

— *&* — r^< ; 




20, 1822: followed farming and lumbering in his 
youth till 1855, when he came and settled in Clinton 
Township, on a farm which he had bought two years 
previously. Here he followed agricultural pursuits 
for 17 years, when he sold his place and removed to 
the village "I Waterman, and began the milling busi- 
ness and afterwards the manufacture of bee-hives 
and water and stock tanks and cisterns. He had 
formed a partnership with his son-in-law, W. S. 
Andrews, under the firm name of Kirkpatrick & 
Andrews, before he began the manufacture of bee- 
hives, water and stock tanks, etc., and they are man- 
aging a good business. In his political views Mr. K. 
is a Republican. Officially he has been Overseer of 
Highways in his township and Street Commissioner 
in Waterman. Both himself and wife belong to the 
Presbyterian Church. 

He was married in Perry Co., Pa., Oct. 28, 1848, 
to Catherine McCord, who was born in that county, 
Oct. 17, 1 8 1 7 . Mr. and Mrs. Kirkpatrick are the 
parents of four children — Lizzie, Inda, Ida S. and 
one who died in infancy. Mrs. K.'s parents, Benj. 
and Elizabeth (Smiley) McCord, were also natives of 
Pennsylvania, where they passed their entire lives. 



4 H > 





$f^£- 



athew W. Olmstead, retired farmer, re- 
siding in the village of Shabbona, was 

l§^?^ one of the very first pioneers of Shabbona 

yLx^ \ Township, being the fourth person to effect 

: V' a settlement in it. He was born in Wilton, 

I Fairfield Co., Conn., Nov. 22, 1804, and is the 

son of David and Rebecca (Jackson) Olmstead. 

When about 13 years of age he removed with his 
parents to Tompkins Co., N. Y. He attended the 
common schools in that county, learned the black- 
smith's trade, and removed to Chemung County, 
that State, where he worked at his trade until 1837. 
During this year he, in company with his brothers, 
Lewis and Nathan, came to La Salle County, this 
State; one year and two months later he came to 
Shabbona, locating there in September, 1S38. On 
arrival at Shabbona, he found EdmondTowne, Oliver 
P. Johnson, Nathan Olmstead and David Smith. 

Mr. Olmstead selected his claim prior to the Gov- 
ernment survey, and after the survey was made he 
found his land comprised a portion of sections 25 

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Z>£ KALB COUNTY. 



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and 36, his house being located on section 25. His 
farm comprised 207 acres, which he sold some years 
later and removed to section 36, same township. In 
1878 he removed to the village of Shabbona, where 
he has a fine residence and three and a half acres in- 
side the village corporation. 

Mr. Olmstead was married in Chemung Co., N. Y., 
June 28, r828, to Catharine, daughter of Benajah 
and Agnes Lockerby. She was born in Veteran 
Township, Chemung Co., N. Y., April 6, 1801, and 
was the mother, by Mr. Olmstead, of five children, 
— two boys and three girls. The eldest, Robert L., 
was married to Louisa Clapsaddle, was a member of 
an Iowa Inf. Reg., was wounded in the Red River 
expedition, taken prisoner, and died from the effects 
of his wound, in Texas. Hannah was the wife of 
Howell Leyson, and died in June, 18S1. Araminta 
is the wife of Lewis Larkin, a resident of Iowa. Re- 
becca is the wife of William Van Vlack. William 
W. married Ellen Walker, was a member of the same 
regiment as his brother, was taken prisoner, ex- 
changed and died soon after from disease contracted 
while in service. 

Mrs. Olmstead died Jan. 8, 1857, and June 28, 
1858, Mr. Olmstead married Mary Walker, at Syca- 
more, this county. She died in 1863, without issue. 
Mr. Olmstead was a third time married Jan. 2, T882, 
at Northfield, Minn., to Miss Armina, daughter of 
Benjamin and Elizabeth Lockerby. She was born in 
Washtenaw Co., Mich., March 15, 1836, and accom- 
panied her parents to Northfield in 1855. They 
were pioneers of that place and she resided there 
until her marriage. 

Politically, Mr. Olmstead is a Republican. He 
has held the office of School Treasurer some 10 
years. 



3 — ¥-*t-- 




homas B. Holbrook, a retired farmer at 
Waterman, is from New England. His 
parents, Jacob and Dorothy (Blanchard) 
Holbrook, were natives of Weymouth, Mass., 
where they also terminated their lives. Their 
three children were Ruth VV., Thomas B. and 
Jacob, Jr. 

The second born, the subject of this sketch, was 
born also in Weymouth, July 22, 1813, learned the 
trade of shoemaker of his father, and followed it until 




he came West in 1856. He bought 88 acres of land 
in Clinton Township, this county, and lived there 
until January, 1882; then, after spending nearly a 
year in Michigan, he settled in the village of Water- 
man, where he now has his residence. He is the 
owner of 167 acres of land in this county. Publicly, 
he has been a School Director, and in his views of 
national affairs he sympathizes with the Republican 
party. 

He was married in Weymouth, Mass., June 28, 
1843, to Miss Mary A., daughter of Isaac and Cyn- 
thia (Pratt) Reed, who also were natives of Wey- 
mouth, where they passed their entire lives. They 
had a family of eight children — Eliza, Cynthia, Mary 
A., Asa, Isaac, Frederick and Stephen. One died in 
infancy. Mrs. H. was born in Weymouth, Jan. 4, 
1824, and has become the mother of five children. 
Ann and Andrew died in infancy, and the surviving 
children are T. Frank, Ruth W. and Cynthia R. 
Ruth W. is the wife of George C. Pratt and resides 
in Jackson, Mich. Cynthia R. is the wife of Hum- 
phrey Roberts, Jr., and resides in Waterman. T. 
Frank is settled near Fergus Falls, Minn. 



jfjKacob Wirick, deceased, was the second 
WMf[ settler of East Paw Paw, coming here in 



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1842. He was born in Cumberland Val- 
ley, Pa., May 22, 1789, and during his life was 
a farmer by occupation. He was married in 
181 1, to Mary McCoy, who was born in the 
same county with him, Dec. 12, 1795. 

They first emigrated to Ohio and thence to a Mor- 
mon settlement in Missouri called the "Far West;" 
but, becoming dissatisfied there, they changed their 
residence to Adams Co., 111., and later to Nauvoo, 
111., where Mr. W. was still identified with the Mor- 
mons, but opposed to polygamy. In 1842 he moved 
to East Paw Paw, this county, and bought out the 
only white settler at that point, Win, Rogers, who 
kept a hotel. Mr. Wirick bought also 80 acres of 
land of Mr. Rogers, and added to it by subsequent ', 
purchases until he had a total of 240 acres. He 
also increased the capacity of the hotel, which he *^'; 
named the " Paw Paw House," where he dispensed 
with a liberal hand the substantial fare of the fron- 
tier. He was a man of sterling qualities, remark- 
able for his positive opinions and force of character. 








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In early life lie was a Democrat in his political views, 

but toward his latter days he became independent 
in his voting. 

1 1 1 had 14 children, 1 1 of whom grew up, namely : 
John, born Dec. 9, [812, died after he had attained 
the aye of manhood: Harriet, born Feb. 25, 1815, 
died in California; Cornilla, born Oct. 13, r8l6, is 
ik.u the wife of Justin Merrill, of Utah; William, 
born May 13, 1818, married Phebe 1'otts and lives 
at Princeton, 111.; Cringe, bom Feb. m, 1S20. mar- 
ried Juliette Atwood and lives in Aurora, 111.; James, 
born Aug. 29, 1S23, lives in Adrian, Mich.; Ed- 
mond, born June 25, 1825, married Mary Ley son 
and lives at Storm Lake, Iowa; Rebecca, bom 
March 13, 1827, is now the widow of J. H. Breese 
and resides at Aurora, III.; Mary, born April 23, 
1829, is the wife of D. A. Baxter, of Rochelle, 111., 
Valentine, bom March 25, 1831, first married Eliza- 
beth Hildebrand, and afterward Jennet Quothera, 
and now is a resident of Rochelle, 111. ; and Nancy 
S., bom March 5, 1839, is the wife of II. S. Dickin- 

s, Ml nl I''. 1 ,| I'.IU I'.IW. 



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~~ t A. Schermerhorn, farmer, section 30, Clin- 
ton Township, is a son of Henry and Mi- 
'...>"" randa (Mattison) Schermerhorn, natives of 
i j New York. They came to this county in 1846 
f and settled on section 30, Clinton Township, 

where the son now resides. His mother died 
on the old homestead Aug. 20, 1861. His father still 
survives and resides in Clinton Township. Their 
family comprised eight children, namely: Myron 
B., Herschel A., Lorenzo, George H., Ossian l>., 
Mary E., William M. and Hannah J. 

Herschel A. Schermerhorn, subject of this bio- 
graphical notice, was born in Jefferson Co., N. Y., 
Feb. 22, 1S45, and was only two years old when his 
parents moved to this county. He has lived in this 
county since 1846, except seven years which he 
spent in Kane County during the early period of his 
life. He lived at home assisting on the farm and at- 
tending the common school until he attained the 
age of 16 years. On arriving at this age, he en- 
gaged to learn the trade of a carpenter and joiner, 
which he completed, and which trade he has fol- 
lowed in connection with farming ever since. He is 





the owner of 100 acres of land in Clinton Township, 
all of which is in a good condition of cultivation. 

Mr. Schermerhorn was united in marriage to Miss 
Emily A. Hall, Dec. 18, 1866, in Somanauk Town- 
ship. She is a (laughter of Win. and Susan (Sim- 
mons) Hall, natives of " York State." They had a 
family of four children, namely : Mary E., Susan 
A . Emily A. and George B. 

Emily A., wife of Mr. Schermerhorn, was born in 
Clinton Township, Jan. 10, 1S49. She resided with 
her parents, assisting in the household duties and 
embracing the opportunities afforded by the common 
schools of the county, until her marriage to Mr. S. 
She has borne him five children, four of whom are 
yet living, namel) ; Ettie, Charles II., Estella and 
Ralph E. Effiie died when three years of age. 

Politically Mr. Schermerhorn is a believer in and 
supporter of the doctrines and principles of the Re- 
publican party. 



sa Bailey, residing with his son Cyrenius, 
in section 23, Shabbona Township, was 
URsT born in Schoharie Co., N. Y., June 19, 
797, the son of Asa and Lucy Bailey, and was 
reared in the vocations of milling and farming. 
He has been married twice, — first, in early 
manhood, to Anna McNeil, by whom he had six 
'children, four of whom are living. Mrs. B. died in 
1852, and Mr. Bailey, in November, 1854, married 
Mrs. Esther Shauber, who was born in Saratoga Co., 
N. Y., Feb. 24, 181 1. 

In 1861 Mr. Bailey came to Illinois, settling in 
Scott Township, ( )gle County, where lie was engaged 
in agricultural pursuits until 1876, when he came to 
Shabbona to make his home with his sen. He is 
now 88 years of age, and begins to feel the weight of 
his many years. 



homas Shoop, farmer, section 25, Pierce 



Township, was born Jan. 1, 1S46, in 

~ * Holmes Township, Crawford Co., Ohio, and 

was but one year old when John and Sarah 

(Schultz) Shoop came to Illinois, and they 

were among the pioneer settlers of Kane 

County. He was brought up to the vocation of his 





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father — that of farming — and attended the pioneer 
schools. After his marriage he bought a farm in 
Kane Township, which he conducted until 1882, 
when he bought his present farm, which is located on 
section 25 of Pierce Township. 

Mr. Shoop was married May 9, 1871,10 Kate 
Gusler, who died Sept. 31, 1877, aged 33 years, 
leaving two children, Charles H. and Glen Edward. 
Her parents were early settlers of Du Page County. 
The second wife of Mr. Shoop, to whom he was 
married April 30, 1878, was Emma, daughter of 
Jacob and Jane Harter. She was born in Center 
Co., Pa. Mr. and Mrs. Shoop have one child, 
Jessie. Mr. Shoop's mother died in Pierce Town- 
ship, Feb. 20, 1885, aged 69 years. She was bom 
in Columbia Co., Pa. 



J<JOOfe 




i oseph Bartlett, deceased, one of the pioneer 
settlers of Paw Paw, was born in North- 
W*^> ampton, Mass., Jan. 27, 1790. His parents 
were Joseph and Lucy (Post) Bartlett. When 
19 years of age he moved from Massachusetts 
to Geauga Co., Ohio, in which county, in Hamp- 
den, March 23, 1810, he married Miss Temperance 
Pomeroy, daughter of Ichabod Pomeroy. They had 
five sons and five daughters, viz.: Wealthy, born Dec. 
18, 1810, is the wife of Shadrach Bosley and resides 
in Iowa; Sally (1st), born May 7, 1812, died Dec. 
12 following; Sally (2d), born March 15, 1813, is the 
wife of Lorenzo Fitch, of Ohio ; Marcus A., born 
Dec. 25, 18 16, married Mary A. Fowler and resides 
in Paw Paw Township; Roxana, born April 22, 1818, 
is now the widow of Charles Firkins, and resides in 
Paw Paw Township; Lucy, born April 9, 1820, be- 
came the wife of Cyrus Bosley, and died April 20, 
1S79; Moses, born Oct. 11, 1825, first married Miss 
Martha Harper and afterwards Mrs. Mary-Christy, 
and now is a resident of Paw Paw Township ; Joseph, 
born Aug. 17, 1827, married Ann Graves and resides 
in Colorado; Lester A., born Oct. 3, 1829, died Aug. 
n, 1842 ; and Eli O., born March 17, 1831, married 
Harriet Wales, and is a resident of Paw Paw Town- 
ship. 

Mr. Bartlett maintained positive and strict princi- 
ples in regard to morality, religion and governmental 
policy. He was an enthusiastic and practical tern- 




perance and anti-slavery man. He " harbored " and 
assisted many a fugitive slave making his 
Egypt to Canaan, that is, from the land of bond 
ignorance and misery to the land of freedom, < Ian ad a, 
on the " under-ground railway." . In his religious his- 
tory he, as well as his wife, was in early life a Pn 
byterian, but after coming to Paw Paw he joined the 
Congregational Church. 






~W&M* 



^enry Cristman, deceased, formerly a resi- 
'ent on section 8, South Grove Township, 
S||p was for many years a leading agrii ulturist 
4v and a prominent citizen of De Kalb County. 
He was born Feb. 1, 1830, in Herkimer Co., 
N. Y. His parents were of German extraction, 
and are deceased. Mr. Cristman grew to manhood 
in his native county and obtained his education in 
the common schools. On attaining his majority he 
began to operate as a common laborer, and soon re- 
alized 'the reward of thrift and industry. He was 
married Dec. 29, 1853, when he was 23 years of age, 
to Louisa Pooler. She was born Feb. 6, 1837, on 
the German Flats, in Herkimer County, and is the 
daughter of Henry Pooler (see sketch), who was a 
prominent actor in the history of that county. He 
was extensively interested in agriculture, acquiring 
considerable property in that business. He came 
to Illinois and settled on a tract of 300 acres of land, 
which he purchased in the township of Cortland and 
where he has since resided, on one of the most valu- 
able farms in the county. The mother of Mrs. 
Cristman, Margaret (Shoemaker) Pooler, was born 
in New York, and is still living. Mrs. Cristman is 
the mother of three children: Emma is the wife of 
Amos Willis, of Kingston, and has had two children : 
Ida, who married Fred Goodrich, a farmer in South 
Grove Township, and has had two children; and 
Mary (Mrs. Schram) has one child. 

About one year subsequent to marriage, Mr. and 
Mrs. Cristman came to Illinois and pun based 12S 
acres of improved land. The proprietor exercised 
the same proclivities which had proved efficacious in 
his early experience, and made additions to his 
estate until it aggregated 600 acres. He engaged in 
general farming and in raising stock, also entering 
largely into the manufacture of cheese. Later on, 



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DE KALB COUNTY. 




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he became interested in traffic in horses, and en- 
g iged to a considerable extent in buying and ship- 
ping to Eastern markets. He had a wide reputation 
as a judge of horses and stock generally, and his 
herds on his farm made a good exhibit of cattle, sheep 
and swine of excellent grades. 

Mr. Cristman died Jan 4, 1883, in the prime of 
his manhood and at the height of his success and 
popularity as a man and citizen of De Kalb County. 
He was a Republican in politics and had held the 
in. is) responsible local official positions. His estate is 
managed by his heirs, who conduct its affairs on the 
same basis as formerly. 

Among the many valuable portraits of prominent 
citizens of De Kalb County included in this valuable 
volume, will be found those of Mr. and Mrs. Crist- 
man, made from photographs taken in 1874. 



' ^yf^than A. Pritchard, deceased, was former- 
k Ms(? 1 ly a lawyer, and a farmer on section 29, in 
' Clinton Township. His parents, Reuben 
JJik. and Maria (Mason) Pritchard, natives of New 
I York State, had four children, who in order of 
j birth were Reuben M., Ethan A., Ira and Maria. 
He was born in Malone, N. Y., Nov. 8, 1832, and 
came in 1845 to this county with his parents, who 
settled in Clinton Township. In the fall of 1857 
Ethan A. moved to Aurora, 111. In April, 1861, he 
enlisted for the war in defense of his country, in the 
13th III. Vol. Inf., and served three years, participat- 
ing in the sieges of Vicksburg and Jackson, Miss., 
and other heavy engagements, as well as in many 
skirmishes, etc. He was promoted from the private 
ranks to the position of First Lieutenant. After his 
term of enlistment expired he returned to Aurora, 
and in March, 1865, to Clinton Township, and died 
the following 29th of July, of consumption. When 
about 24 years of age he took up the study of law, 
and practiced that profession with marked success. 
A.1 the time of his death he owned 353 acres of land 
in Clinton Township. In religion he was a member 
of the Congregational Church, and in politics a Re- 
publican, and at the date of his death he was a nom- 
inee for County Treasurer. 

He was married July 20, 1856, at Li 11 wood, Benton 
< '>., Iowa, to Miss Sarah E., daughter of Josiah and 



Locena (Hodges) Wilkins. Her parents were natives 
of the State of New York, had a family of 1 3 chil- 
dren : Elizabeth, Anson T., Dayton, Alfred T., Josiah, 
Sarah E., Araminta, Ursula, Newton J., Mary A., 
Hannah J., and two who died in infancy. Mrs. 
Pritchard was born in Ontario Co., N. Y., Jan. 24, 
1833, and is the mother of three children,— Ethan 
A., who was drowned when about seven years old at 
Aurora on Fox River, Elotia A. and Elliott A. Mrs. 
Pritchard is a member of the Congregational Church. 



f fetw4 . 

"Vffiflf^ ra ^ ar ' l > retired farmer, residing at Earlville, 
: wLM l I, a Salle Co., 111., was a pioneer of Shabbona 
UWt Township, De Kalb Co., having located 
Ky~ here in 1838. He was born in Massachusetts, 
in 1812, and is a son of Jonathan and Patience 
(Fox) Park. His parents moved to Ohio when 
the son was four years of age, where he grew to man- 
hood. He followed the vocation of a farmer while in 
that State. He was married in Marion Co., Ohio, to 
Matilda McNeal, daughter of Thomas and Elizabeth 
(Finley) McNeal. She was born March 2, 1815, in 
Ireland, and came to America with her parents when 
she was two years old. 

Mr. and Mrs. Park were the parents of six chil- 
dren, as follows : Elizabeth was born in Marion Co., 
Ohio, Aug. 13, 1832, and died Dec. 18, 1876; John 
B. was born in Marion Co., Ohio, Oct. 26, 1834; 
Sarah A. was born at Holderman Grove, 111., Feb. 
10, 1838, and died Dec. 15, 1865 ; Levi W. was born 
in Shabbona Township, June 12, 1841, and died May 
7, 1869; George F. was born June 17, 1849,111 Shab- 
bona Township ; and one child died in infancy. 

Politically, Mr. Park is a Republican ; and himself 
and wife are members of the Methodist Episcopal 
Church. 



I ^'Q^l* umphrey Roberts, a prominent pioneer of 

rSAtyjs' Clinton Township, is a native of Wales. 

y Ifs*** j^j s p aren t Sj Humphrey and Mary (Owens) 
Roberts, natives also of that county, emigrated 
to America in 1832 and settled in Oneida Co., 
N. Y., where his father died, in June, 1854 ; his 

mother died in Wyoming Co., N. Y., Dec. 28, 1867. 

They had a family of eight children, namely, Mary, 



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Owen, Griffith, Robert, John, Thomas, Ellen and 
Humphrey. 

The youngest.above mentioned, the subject of this 
brief biographical outline, was born Dec. 22, 1823, 
and was ten years old when he came with his par- 
ents to America. Remaining at the paternal home 
until 23 years of age, he married, and a year after- 
ward he came to Kane County, this State, where he 
followed farming for ten years. In 1857 he came to 
De Kalb County and settled upon a quarter-section 
of land in Clinton Township, which he had bought 
some six years previously. After successfully prose- 
cuting agricultural pursuits there about 25 years, he 
built a fine residence in Waterman, into which he 
moved in 1882. He is the possessor of 340 acres of 
land in Clinton Township, besides 100 acres in Lee 
County. The village of Waterman, which he platted, 
is located upon what was once his land. He has 
held the office of Highway Commissioner two terms, 
and has had minor official trusts. In his political 
views he is a Republican, and in religion a Baptist. 

Mr. Roberts was married in Oneida Co., N. Y., 
Jan. 7, 1846, to Miss Catherine, daughter of Wm. G. 
and Grace (Williams) Jones. Her parents were 
natives of Wales, and emigrated (before marriage) to 
the above mentioned county, where her parents died. 
Her mother died June 6, 1830. Their two children 
were — Catherine and Wm. G., Jr. Mrs. Roberts was 
born in that county, July 23, 1824. Mr. and Mrs. R. 
have had six children, namely: William W., born 
Oct. 16, 1846; John Q., March 12, 1849; J. Delos, 
July 7, 185 1 ; Helena W., Jan. 28, 1853; Grace A., 
Nov. 30, 1855 ; Humphrey, Jr., April 28, 1858. John 
Q. died Aug. 31, 1851, and Helena W., Aug. 21, 
1857- 

="j L 't ■■ A* le A. Hommorsand, of the firm of Eide & 
t.QAl I lommersand, dealers in general merchan- 

Jl m * "" ' ? 

IfSP^ dise, at Lee, was born near the city of 
Stavanger, Norway, Aug. 16, 1858, and is the 
son of Andreas and Lena (Irubs) Hommers- 
and. He emigrated from Norway to the 
United States in the spring of 187 1, and until De- 
cember, 1874, made his home on a farm near Lee, 
in De Kalb County. Returning then to his native 
country, he was employed as a merchant's clerk until 




- cJiLK) ^ Waterman, Clinton Township, is a son of 
" Abijah, Sr., and Elizabeth (Bean) Little, na- 
tives of New Hampshire. His father's family 



1 88 1, when he came again to the land of greater 
opportunity, engaging the next year as a clerk in the 
general store of Berlizheimer & Stensland at Lee, 
this county. On the 1 6th of October, 1883, he 
formed the present partnership with T. Eide, and 
their business is in a prosperous condition. 

In his political views, Mr. H. is a Republican, and 
>n religion he is a member of the Lutheran Church. 

\ 

—- *■ — "\.^§§--f|^'v* 5 

— ^ 

bijah Little, Jr., retired farmer, residing at 



comprised 10 children, of which Abijah, Jr., is 
the fifth in order of birth. He was born in 
Canada June 9, 1809. His early years were spent 
on his father's farm, assisting in its cultivation and 
attending the common schools in Canada. June 20, 
1S48, he came to this State and purchased an entire 
section of land (section 8) in Clinton Township, this 
county. He subsequently disposed of a part of the 
land, and continued to reside on the remainder until 
the spring of 1875. At that date he retired from the 
farm and erected a fine residence at Waterman, 
where he is at present residing. He learned the car- 
penter and joiner's trade in his younger days, and did 
the larger portion of the work on his residence at 
Waterman himself. His present arable possessions 
comprise about 170 acres in Clinton and Shabbona 
Townships, most of which is in a tillable condition. 
Mr. Little has been twice married. He was first 
united in marriage Sept. 20, 1830, in Canada, to Miss 
Eleanor McNorton, who was a native of New Hamp- 
shire, of Scotch parentage. The union was blessed 
with seven children, namely : William, born Aug. 20, 
183c; John, born in September, 1832; Elizabeth, 
born in November, 1834; Edwin, born July 7, 1835 
Jennette, born in August, 1838; Edgar and Ellen, 
twins, born in April, 1841. 

The wife and mother died in Clinton Township, in 
August, i860. His second marriage occurred April 
27, 1867, at De Kalb. Mrs. Lucy Fearon, widow of 
Alfred Fearon, was the bride. Her husband died in 
Canada Nov. 29, 1857. Her maiden name was East- 
man and she is a daughter of Peter and Thankful 
(Powley) Eastman, and was eighth in order of birth ot 



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o children born to them. She was horn in Canada 
May 24, 1829, and is the mother by Mr. Fearon of 
two children, namely: Ida A., horn Nov. 9, 1852, and 
Alfred J., born April 21, 1854. 

Mr. Little was the first Mayor of Waterman. In 
l>olities he is a Democrat and has held many of the 
minor offices of his township. 






awling A. Morey, farmer, section 30, Paw 
Paw Township, was bom in Ballston, Sara- 

|sRS toga Co., N. Y., Dec. 14, 1829, and was 

(*J brought up on the farm. His parents were 
'\ Jesse and Amanda (Pawling) Morey. On 
coming to Illinois in 1853, he spent a short 
time in prospecting in La Salle and De Kalb Coun- 
ties, and returned East. 

In the spring of 1855 he came to De Kalb County 
and located in Shabbona Township, where he pur- 
chased a quarter of section 33, in partnership with 
Cyrenius Bailey. After a residence of four years 
there he purchased a place on section 3, Paw Paw 
Township. In 1869 he bought his present farm of 
160 acres, on section 30, where he prosperously man- 
ages a comfortable home. In his political views he 
is independent. 

He was married in Paw Paw Township Feb. 22, 
1S59, to Miss Sallie A., daughter of Peter and Maria 
(Wilkison) Hagadorn. She was bom in Albany, N. 
Y., Aug. 1, 1827. Mr. and Mrs. Morey have two 
children, namely: David C, born in Shabbona 
Township, Dec. 18, 1860; and Jessie A., in Paw Paw 
Township, Dec. 20, 1865. 

fr-H»f»f» h- 1 - ■ 

foseph Dyas, proprietor of the Sandwich 
House at Sandwich, is the son of Joseph 
and Abigail (Abbey) Dyas, and was born 
Jan. i, 1825, in Albany, N. Y. In early life he 
l|T passed some years as a saw-mill assistant, and 
\ later went to Wisconsin, buying 160 acres of 
land in the township of Harris, Marquette County, 
where he was engaged eight years in farming. He 
went thence to Green, Lake County, in the same 
State, where he passed two years on 80 acres of 
prairie farm land. He went in 1861 to Minnesota, 




where he had previously purchased a farm about 30 
mile i mtheast of St. Peter's, and not long after went 
to Cedar Falls, Iowa, and in company with a brother- 
in-law, G. N. Miner, entered into the manufacture of 
lumber and also of flour barrels, heading and staves, 
in which line of business he was interested two years. 
He exchanged his property for 160 acres of land in 
De Kalb County, township of Shabbona, which he 
managed three years. In the fall of 1865 he came 
Sandwich and bought the hotel which he has since 
conducted. The house is the leading place of public 
entertainment at Sandwich, and can accommodate 
about 40 guests. 

Mr. Dyas was married in Pirn, Berkshire Co., 
Mass., May 9, 1847, to Mary Ann Miner, and they 
have three sons: Joseph P., born June 4, 1848. He 
married Carmina, daughter of Carmi and Mercy 
(Phelps) Wells'. Webster M. was born Sept. 28, 
1852, and married Caroline Gertrude Sedgwick, 
daughter of Hon. W. \V. Sedgwick. He is a druggist 
at Arlington Heights, 111. Charles De Witt Clinton, 
born Dec. 14, 1857, is a traveling salesman. 




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I' miley Kirkpatriek, farmer, section 22, 
Clinton Township, is a son of Jesse and 
- ''*' Ruth (Smiley) Kirkpatriek, natives of Penn- 
sylvania, who in 1855 settled in the above 
mentioned township, where they spent the re- 
mainder of their life : he died Dec. 19, 1857, 
and she Oct. 8, 1880. They had six children, 
namely, Ann, Isaac, Smiley, Hiram, Margaret and 
Eleanor. 

The subject of this sketch was born in Perry Co., 
Pa., March 31, 1825. He received his education at 
the common school and at New Bloomfield Academy 
in his native county, attending the latter about two 
years. His father had a saw-mill, and he assisted 
in the operation of the mill and also of the farm, un- 
til 20 years of age, when for seven months he taught 
school. He followed clerking in a store for a time 
and traveled a period. In 1S55, when 30 years of 
age, he came to this county, settling upon 80 acres 
of land in Clinton Township, which he had bought 
in 1853. At the same time he purchased a quarter- 
section of Government land in Milan Township. 
Since that date he has resided in Clinton Township, 



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and is now the owner of 320 acres, all in good till- 
able condition. At the present time he has his two 
sons, Marvin H. and I. Frank, associated with him 
in the management of his farm. He keeps about 
135 head of live stock. 

Mr. Kirkpatrick has held the office of Justice of 
the Peace one term, that of Township Clerk two 
terms, and other offices. He is a Republican in his 
political views, and in religion a member of the Pres- 
byterian Church, as is also Mrs. K. 

He was married in his native county, Sept. 15, 
1853, to Anna M. Hippie, daughter of Lawrence 
and Sarah (Heafy) Hippie, who were also natives of 
the Keystone State, of Holland ancestry. They had 
a family of 1 1 children. Mrs. K. was born in Carl- 
isle, Cumberland Co., Pa., March 27, 1831, and she 
has had 10 children : Marvin H., Elmer H., I. 
Frank, Emma S., Mary E., Jesse L., William L., 
Albert O. and a pair of twins who died in infancy. 



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ate pafford Smith, whose portrait appears on 

ssJi the page opposite, is a retired farmer, and 
j|5 is resident at Sycamore. He was born 
May 18, 1809, in Windsor, Vt. He is the son 
of Asahel and Elizabeth (Kendall) Smith, and 
his father was the son of one of the pioneer 
settlers of Windsor, who died therein 1810. The 
family originated in Connecticut, and Asahel Smith 
was born in Farmington in that State, Oct. 15, 1756. 
He was nine years of age when his parents joined 
the pioneers of the Green Mountain State, then 
known as the New Hampshire Grants. He became 
a soldier of the Revolution and saw much active ser- 
vice in the course of that struggle. He was present 
at the surrender of Burgoyne at the battle of Sara- 
toga. He died in Windsor, in 1848. 

The father of Mr. Smith was a farmer and reared 
the son to habits of thrift and industry, giving him 
what was then considered a fair education. He was 
apprenticed at T7 years of age to learn the business 
of a carpenter, and after obtaining a thorough knowl- 
edge of all its details he pursued it as a vocation 
summers and taught school winters. Later, he oper- 



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ated as a contractor and builder, and managed a 
considerable business until 1839, when he came to 
De Kalb County. He became the proprietor of 300 
acres of land in Mayfield Township, and for a period 
of seven years worked as a carpenter and managed 
his farm. At the expiration of that time he found 
the twofold duties inconvenient and injurious, and 
he relinquished the pursuit of his trade as a builder. 
At the time of his arrival in De Kalb County the 
homes of the few settlers were built of logs; there 
were no roads, and the nearest market place was 
Chicago. When he built a house a pound of nails 
was worth a pound of butter. There was one hotel 
at Sycamore and three small houses, and he has been 
the witness of the entire growth and progress of the 
place. There was no school at Sycamore for several 
years, and for nearly two years after he came here 
there was no meeting held, the community being too 
small in number to form a respectably sized congre- /- > 
gation. 

Mr. Smith has been a resident of the city of Syca- 
more since 1870, and has been actively interested in 
whatever enterprises have promised permanent ben- 
efit to the place. He is a sincere friend of morality 
in every phase and has been a substantial promoter 
of religious interests, aiding with his means in the 
building of the various church edifices, and has been 
a stockholder in the different manufacturing interests 
of the place. He is a member of the Baptist Church 
in which he is an official, and has also done effective 
service in the temperance ranks. He has served his 
generation in official capacities, has been Assessor 
several times, and has taken an active interest in 
school matters, discharging the duties of the several 
official positions. 

Mr. Smith has traveled considerably in his own 
country, visited the Centennial Exposition and spent 
ten days in the City of Brotherly Love. He has 
journeyed through New England and in the West, 
particularly in Nebraska. He has suffered from ac- 
cident more than most men in the ordinary walks of 
life, sustaining at one time a fracture of four rib--. ' 
At another he had a shoulder broken, and afterwards 
the other shoulder, and is still in unbroken health, 
and sound in constitution. 

He was married June 9, 1835, to Eliza Sholes, and 
they had three children, — Louisa, Eliza Ann and 
Edwin 1'. They also had an adopted daughter, 



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Jennie. The mother died in 1880, and Mr. Smith 
was a second time married in Dei ember, 1882, to 
Mrs. Marcia Van Horn. 




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acob F. Plapp, deceased, was one of the 

- earliest of the permanent pioneer settlers 

of the township of Pierce, where lie located 

n 1848. He was a native of YVurtemburg, 

German), where lie was born June 29, 18 16. 

According to the law of that country lie was 
placed at school at the age of six years and continued 
there until he was 14 years old. He was then em- 
ployed in a vineyard where he spent two years, after 
which he engaged in the management of a dairy, 
which he conducted 18 months. He next passed 
six months at home, and then re-entered the service 
of his first employer, with whom he continued about 
one year and was subsequently engaged in agricul- 
tural labor until he decided to cross the ocean and 
cast his fate in another land and among another 
people. In 1838 he set out for the Western Conti- 
nent on a sailing vessel, and after a passage of 42 
days' duration landed at Baltimore. He found him- 
self in the beautiful Monumental City without money, 
but his readiness to work soon obtained employment, 
and a month later he had sufficient means to set out 
for Pennsylvania. He left Baltimore on foot, and 
14 miles from the city he obtained employment on 
a farm at $6 a month. He worked at that point five 
months, and then made his way to his uncle's in 
Erie Co., Pa. He remained there engaged in farm- 
ing and chopping wood until 1844, when he located 
in Kane Co., 111. He was there employed by the 
Howard Mill Company and assisted in erecting the 
mills at Geneva, after which he engaged in farming. 
When he came to De Kalb County, in 1848, he 
settled on the east half of the northeast quarter of 
section 24, township No. 39, range 5 east, now in- 
cluded in Pierce Township. He had saved his 
earnings, and at once proceeded to the land office at 
Chicago, and had a sufficient sum to pay the re- 
quired amount in full. He worked the first year for 
a Mr. Churchill in Kane County, and in 1849 built a 
small frame house on his land and began the im- 
provement of his property. He owned at the time 
of his death 80 acres, all under good improvement, 

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with a fine frame house and fruit and shade trees. 
I [e was also the owner of 50 acres of land in Kane 
County, situated across the road from his homestead. 
This is devoted to the growth of grain and stock- 
raising. 

Mr. Plapp was married in 1850, to Elizabeth Lipp, 
She was born Sept. 25, 1820, in Wurtemburg, Ger- 
many. Nine of their children are living, — Mary, Re- 
becca, Jacob, David, Philip. Elizabeth, Jonathan, 
Catherine and Aaron. The father and mother are 
members of the Evangelical Association. 

When he first fixed his residence in Pierce Town- 
ship, Mr. Plapp was obliged to go to Geneva, 16 
miles distant, for mill privileges, and he took his first 
crops to Chicago, — 60 miles, — with an ox team. The 
condition of the roads, sloughs not being bridged, re- 
tarded progress to such extent that four days were 
commonly consumed in going there. 

Mr. Plapp died at his residence in Pierce Town- 
ship, Jan. 25, 1885, loved and respected by all who 
knew him. 



jtorace Root, farmer, section 7, Clinton Town- 
ship, is a son of Lawrence and Rocksa 
(Pratt) Root, natives of New York. They 
came to this county in 1856 and settled in De 
Kalb Township, where they resided until their 
death. Of 14 children born of their union 11 
survive, namely, Icy, Fanny, Jerome, Rocksa, Caro- 
line, Horace (2d), Cynthia, Philo J., Lewis A., Ger- 
main (2d), and James M. Germain (1st), Horace D. 
(1st) and an infant are deceased. 

Horace Root was born in Herkimer Co., N. Y., 
Feb. 24, 1833. He resided on his father's farm, as- 
sisting in the cultivation of the same, and attending 
the common schools during his early years, until he 
was 28 years old. At that age he accompanied his 
father to this county, in 1S56, and located. Soon 
thereafter, Mr. Root rented a farm in Sycamore 
Township, which he cultivated one year, and then 
rented a farm in De Kalb Township. He cultivated 
the latter farm two years, then moved to Muskegon, 
Mich., and engaged in carpentering, which trade he 
had mastered in York State. He followed his trade 
at the latter place for two and one-half years, then 
returned to this county and from his savings pur- 




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chased 99 acres of land situated on section 7, Clin- 
ton Township, on which he moved and is at present 
residing. His land is all in a tillable condition. 

Mr. Root was married in De Kalb, Dec. 20, i860, 
A. to Miss Mary A. De Long. She is a daughter of 
Hiram and Eliza (Post) De Long, natives of New 
York. They came to this county in 1855 and set- 
tled in the village of De Kalb. To them were born 
six children, namely : Mary A., Elizabeth, James, 
Matilda A., Elinor and Hiram A. 

Mrs. Root was boyi in Herkimer Co., N. Y., Oct. 
11, 1837. They have one daughter, adopted, Nora 
A., born Dec. 29, 1869. 

Politically, Mr. Root is a Republican. He has 
held the office of Road Commissioner, School Di- 
rector and others of minor impoit. 




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eorge R. Holmes, farmer, section 25, Paw 

Paw Township, is a son of Richard and 

TyK^~" K Lucretia (Smith) Holmes, and was born in 

^ Oneida Co., N. Y., June 11, 1840. His father 
was a farmer by occupation and during the.in- 
fancy of his son George, moved his family to 
Jefferson Co., N. Y. He left that county in 1846 and 
came with his family to this county, settling in Paw 
Paw Township. 

George Holmes consequently came to tiiis county 
with his parents when in his sixth year, and has re- 
sided here ever since. He was brought up on his 
father's farm, in Paw Paw Township, and received an 
academic education. 

Mr. Holmes was married at Leland, La Salle 
County, this State, Dec. 24, 1861, to Miss Frances 
M., daughter of Dr. Darwin and Martha C. (Smith) 
Hinckley, of Leland. She was born in Mercer, Som- 
erset Co., Me., July 24, 1844, and came to Hardin, 
this State, with her parents when four years of age. 
Seven children constituted the issue of their union, 
namely: Ella M., born Oct. 6, 1863, in Leland. 
Mary C, Oct. 23, 1865. S. Wright, July 17, 1868. 
George H.,Aug. 11,1871, Frances L. (called "Tot "), 
Oct. 31, 1877. Bert D, Feb. 8, 1881. Clyde R., 
July 13, 1883. 

Mr. Holmes has a welt improved farm of 240 




acres, and is one of the active, energetic farmers of 
the county. Politically, he votes and acts with the 
Democratic party. 





ohn Kuter, deceased, a former resident of 
- Pierce Township, was born in 1792 in 
Brooks Co., Pa. His parents were both 
natives of Pennsylvania, and his father was a 
Revolutionary patriot. He died at the age of 
91 years. In early life, John Kuter bought a 
farm in Schuykill Co., Pa. Previous to that he had 
learned the trade of carpenter, which he followed 
but a few years. He married Lydia Kahler, also a 
native of Pennsylvania, and in 1850 sold his farm in 
the Keystone State, and, accompanied by his son, 
Israel, came to De Kalb County and bought 400 
acres of land on section 25, of township 39, range 
5. He secured his claim by payment of part of the 
Government demand and stipulated for the payment 
of the remainder in the spring of the year to follow. 
He returned to Pennsylvania and spent the winter, 
and set out for his farm in Illinois in the spring, car- 
rying with him $4,000 in gold and silver coin. It 
was too heavy to be carried like any other baggage, 
and was placed in a wooden box and strapped with 
iron and wooden hoops. It was missent from Harris- 
burg, and he was delayed at Detroit while awaiting 
its return from St. Louis. He wished to take the 
box with him in the car in which he traveled West- 
ward, but the railroad officials decided against him, 
and it was placed in a freight car, from which it was 
stolen. Through an attorney of Chicago he brought 
suit against the railroad company for the recovery of 
the value of his property, and won the case, which 
was sent to the Appellate Court and the judgment 
sustained. He recovered a portion of his loss. 
After remaining a year on the land for which he had 
bargained, he relinquished his claim, and purchased 
the southeast quarter of section 24 in the same 
township, where he resided until death. He became 
the father of 12 children, nine of whom are living. 

Israel Kuter, eldest son, was born June 23, iSj 4 , 
in Schuykill Co., Pa. He was reared on the farm 
and tauglit in the public schools. At tin- age of 15 
years he connected himself with the Evangelical 
Association, and as sooivas practicable began to pre- 



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pare tor the ministry. He entered upon the duties 
Hi a preacher in the Naperville circuit of the Evan- 
I Church, and continued his efforts in ministe- 
rial labors until [878, preaching at Chicago, Milwau- 
kee, Racine, Winona, and other places. He was 
stationed at the place last named seven \ ears ; in all, 
he officiated as Presiding Elder eight years. Some 
years previous he had purchased the family home- 
stead in Pierce Township, and of this he took pos- 
iitiiii 1878. Since that date he has put the place 
in excellent condition, erected good farm buildings 
and set out fruit, shade and ornamental trees. 

He has been twice married. Elizabeth Louter- 
mich, to whom he was married May 6, 1849, was 
born June 4, 1830. and died Dee. 20, 1 86 1 . Of this 
union three children were born named Henry, 
George and Sarah. The last named was born Dec. 
r 7' 1859, and died July 25, 1881. Mr. Kuter was 
married again Oct. 16, 1862, to Margaretta Schweit- 
zer, a native of Freeport, Stephenson Co., 111. She 
is the daughter of John and Barbara (Kaercher) 
Sc hweitzer, and her parents were pioneers of Free- 
port. Her father went to California, and her mother, 
during his absence, settled at Preston, Fillmore Co., 
Minn., where she bought a claim of land. On this 
land now stands the beautiful village of Preston, the 
present county seal of Fillmore County. Mrs. 
Schweitzer proved to be a better financier than her 
husband, for, during his absence she made more 
money in Minnesota than he did in California! 
Mr. and Mrs. Kuter have six children, — Albert H., 
Luella I., Charles E., Daniel M., Ida M. and Ruth- 
erford L. 

ichael J. O'Connor, farmer, section 7, 

Clinton Township, is from the State of 

v New York. His parents, John and Mary 

(Joyce) O'Connor, natives of Ireland, emi- 

grated to America in 1S25, settling in the State 

of New York, where they spent the remainder 

of their lives. 

The subject of this sketch, the youngest of a 
family of 10 children, was born in Franklin Co., N. 
Y., Feb. 12, 1844. Lived at home till about 17 
years old, when he entered service on the lakes, 
which he followed for rr summer seasons, in differ- 






ent relations. He first came to De Kalb County in 
the summer of 1865, but did not settle permanently 
in the county until 1872. In 1874 he purchased 160 
acres of land in Clinton Township, on section 7, 
where he has since lived. He is now the owner of 
240 acres, 200 of which is in a good state of cultiva- 
tion. In polities he is a Democrat, and in religion 
both himself and wife are members of the Catholic 
Church. 

Mr. O'Connor was married in Chicago, 111., July 5, 
1873, to Maria Lynch, daughter of Thomas and 
Margaret (Feeney) Lynch, natives of Ireland, and 
came to La Salle Co., 111., about 1856; in 1866 they 
removed to this county, settling in the township of 
Paw Paw. Mrs. O'Connor, the second child in a 
family of seven children, was born in Columbia Co., 
N. Y., March 17, 185 1. She has become the mother 
of four children, named Minnie, Thomas, John and 
Margaret P. Thomas died when two and a half 
years of age. 



antes B. Harper, farmer, section 35, Paw 
h- Paw Township, was born in Argvle, Wash- 
^ rt ^* ington Co., N. Y., June 19, 18 19. His 
father, James Harper, was of Irish descent, 
and his mother, nee Elizabeth Black, of Scotch. 
He came to Paw Paw Township Dec. 3, 1853, 
locating at Ross Grove, where he engaged in farm- 
ing until i860, when he removed to his present farm, 
which comprises 240 acres. 

Politically Mr. H. is ah earnest Democrat. 
He was married in Sterling. Cayuga Co., N. Y., 
Nov. 18, 1S44, to Miss Elizabeth, daughter of James 
and Mary (Brown) Smiley. She was born at Lyons, 
Wayne Co., N. Y., Nov. 20, 1S26. By this marriage 
there were five children, namely : Mary E., born 
Sept. 26, 1845, died aged eight years; Andrew G., 
born March 25, 1847, married Emma Wallace and 
resides in Aurora, 111.; Dewitt C, born Dec. 18, 
1848, married Cora Rice and is a resident of Sedg- 
wick Co., Kan.; Thomas A., born Dec. 18, 1S50, 
married Carrie Gorton and lives also in Sedgwick 
Co., Kan.; and Alanson C, born Oct. 14, 1852, died 
at the age of five years. 

Mrs. Harper died Oct. 20, 1852, and Mr. Harper 
was again married, March 18, 1854,111 Oswego Co., 




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to Miss Elizabeth, daughter of Chancy and 
(Scott) Comins. She was born in Steuben Co., 
'., Nov. 15, 1833, and by this marriage there 
been seven children, viz. : James H., born 
22, 1854, married Jennett Hubbel, and lives in 
La Salle Co., 111. ; Alice E., born Dec. 7, 1855, is the 
wife of Reuben Baxter, of Paw Paw Township ; 
William, born April 7, 1857 ; Robert, Aug. 10, 1862, 
died Dec. 5, 1864; Mary J., born Feb. 13, 1864; 
Margaret A., Nov. 29, 1S65 ; and Charles, April 15, 
1867. 

Mrs. H. is a member of the Methodist Episcopal 
Church. 



rank O. Van Galder, associate editor and 

junior member of the firm of Hix & Van 

Galder, publishers of the City Weekly, 

camore, 111., was born in La Prairie Tow n- 

3R ship, near Janesville, Wis., on the 6th day of 

{ January, 1855, and is the son of Truman W. and 
Mary (Phelps) Van Galder. The father was a native 
of Niagara Co., N. Y., and was born July 3, 1822. 
The mother is a native of Mt. Morris, Livingston Co., 
N. Y., and was born March 9, 1822. The parents 
of the former were natives of Vermont, and those of 
the latter of Pennsylvania. The Van Galders came 
originally from Holland. 

Truman W. Van Galder and Mary Phelps were 
united in marriage at Montville, Ohio, Jan. 29,' 1843, 
and were the parents of nine children, four sons and 
five daughters, all of whom survive with the excep- 
tion of the youngest daughter. From Ohio they 
removed to Michigan at quite an early day, and from 
the latter State to Wisconsin in 185 1. Mr. Van Gal- 
der was a cooper by trade and carried on the busi- 
ness extensively in the city of Janesville. His 
establishment, in fact, was the first of the kind in the 
place. While a citizen of Wisconsin, during a large 
portion of which time he was engaged in agricultural 
pursuits, he held several offices of trust, having 
served as a Justice of the Peace and Supervisor of 
his town. In 1868 the family removed to Sycamore, 
where he became a manufacturer of brick on a large' 
scale, a business which he followed until his death, 
Jan. 24, 1882, and is continued by his sons, Philo H. 
and Fred W. While a resident of New York, Mr. 




-^<pr- — — < :; ii!i 



Van Galder was engaged in operating a number of 
salt wells. He was a man of great industry and en- 
ergy, and a citizen of sterling worth. He was a 
member of Lodge No. 105, I. O. O. F., and of the 
Patriarchal Circle, No. 2. Truman Temple was 
organized in 1882, and was named in honor of Mr. 
Van Galder. The subject of this sketch is also a 
member of Lodge No. 105, I. O. O. F., and of the 
Good Templars' Lodge. 

The educational advantages enjoyed by him were 
those of the common school. In 1874 he entered 
the office of the Free Methodist, with a view of 
learning the printing trade. He also worked for a 
time in the office of the Netvs, at De Kalb, and the 
True Republican, at Sycamore. As local editor of 
the Daily News he was employed a few months. 
On the 14th of January, 1878, the firm of Van Gal- 
der & Davis commenced the publication of the Daily 
Free Press, Mr. Van Galder retiring in August 
following. In September, 1878, he became associ- 
ated with V. Hix in the publication of the Sycamore 
City Weekly, the partnership then formed continuing 
to the present time. From 1881 to 1883 the firm 
also was engaged in the publication of the Daily Re- 
corder. He is at present the Sycamore representa- 
tive of the Chicago Titties. Frank O. Van Galder 
and Florence M. Talbot, daughter of Charles and 
Harriet Talbot, of Cortland, early settlers of this 
county, were united in marriage March 17. 1881. She 
was born in Cortland, Jan. 17, 1861. They have 
two children, — Annie Claire and Cora May. 



I ■','.' '.: -it'. 

P3 eptimus Storey, farmer, owning 400 acres 
( pQ<, "~ of prairie land and four and one-half acres 
r V « f timber in Shabbona Grove, and residing 
\\£ on section 17, Shabbona Township, was born 
I in the parish of Harthill, Yorkshire, England, 

Feb. 10, 1829. 
He fs a son of Barnabas and Sarah Storey, natives 
of England. He was reared under the parental roof- 
tree and attended the schools of his native country, 
alternating his study therein by learning the trade of 
a wrought-nail maker until he attained his majority. 
His forefathers were wrought-nail makers, and after 
learning the trade he continued to follow it until 16 
years of age. He emigrated to the United States in 



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\f 1850, spent one year ip Kendal] County, this Si 
] then « ame to t lii -^ 1 ount) . 
He was one of the four emigrants from England 
who iri the fall of 1851 selected the western parts of 
Shabbona Township for their future homes, while the 
land was in its original natural condition, and thus 
established the foundation for what lias since been 
known as the "English Settlement." His com- 
panions « err ( reorge Glossup, Thomas Wright, Joseph 
Billam and William Cutis. Mr. Store) located on 
the land 00 which he is at present residing, in the 
fall of 1851. He procured it from the Government 
in its wild state, and entered vigorously upon the 
laborious task of cultivating and improving it. Ib>u 
well he has succeeded, the splendid condition of his 
farm will testify. 

Mi. Storey was married in Shabbona Township 
I ' -'3, 1856,10 Miss Mary, daughter of Robert and 
Sarah Mullins. She was born in Sheffield, England, 
June 10, 1839, and came to the United States with 
her parents in 1S52. Nine children, six sons and 
three daughters, have been born of their union: 

i=a Robert ML, Jan. 1, 1857, died Jan. 5, 1S61 ; Sarah S. 

,'•'. Aug. 3, i860, is the wife of Harvey Greene, a resident 
3 of Victor Township, this county; Annie M., born 

O' Sept. 14, 1862, died April 24, 1865; John L., born 
* April 3, 1865; Charles E., May 14, 1867; William 
II., \ug. 3, 1869; George T., Aug. 14, 1871; Lillian 
M .. Nov. 22, 1873 ; De Forrest L. C, April 19, 1876. 
Mr. Storey, politic ally, is a Republican. He has 
held the office of Overseer of Highways, School 
Director and Trustee, and Supervisor, which latter 
office he is at present holding. Religiously, he and 
his wife, together with his two oldest ( hildren, are 
members of the Methodist Episcopal Church. 

A portrait of Mr. Storey, printed from a line stone 
engraving, appropriately accompanies this sketch and 
embellishes this work. 

*-«<4$43W-| — 







saac Potter, farmer, section 17, Clinton 

Township, is a son of James and Margaret 

(Thome) Potter, who were natives of New 

York State. They came to Illinois in i853 ) 

jjj^ rp settling in Kane County, and a year afterward 

in the above named township, where they 

spent the remainder of their days. In their family 



were the following children : Silas, William, Theron, 
Isaac, Seneca and Fanny. 

The subject of this sketch was born in Dutchess 
Co., N. Y., May 7, [831. When about 15 years of 
age he moved to Wyoming County, that State, where 
he lived until the spring of 1867. He then came to 
Kane Co., 111., and in 1876 to this county, purchas- 
ing 169 acres of land, on which he now resides. He 
has held the office of Justice of the Peace four years, 
and other official positions. In his political views he 
prefers the principles of the Republican party. 

He was married in Allegany Co., N. Y., May 30, 
1S55, to Miss Mary, daughter of Moses and Polly 
(Lebrett) Robinson, natives of Massachusetts, who 
passed the latter portion of their lives in the Empire 
State. Mr. R. died April 2, 1852, and Mrs. R. Dec. 
27, 1 86 1. Mr. and Mrs. Robinson have had ten 
children, namely, Sally, Rufus, Joseph, Hubbard, 
Philena, Hosea, Harvey, Matilda, Cordelia and 
Mary. Mrs. Potter was born in Hume, Allegany 
Co., N. Y., Feb. 18, 1834. She is the mother of one 
child, Florence E., who was born July 3, 1858. She 
became the wife of Henry B. Bridge, Feb. 6, 1884. 
He is a farmer residing in Clinton Township. 



sher Downer, farmer, in section 32, Milan 
Jfj Township, is the son of Abel and Lucinda 
' '/ °* (Loomer) Downer, and was born in the vil- 




■? :■ 



%$? lage of Naperville, Ontario, Canada, Aug. 30, 
832. His mother was born July 4, 1799, 
on Grand Isle, in Lake Champlain, belonging 
to Vermont. His father was born in Windsor Co., 
Vt., in February, 1789. Their ancestral lineage orig- 
inated in Connecticut. The family came to Illinois 
in 1840 and located in Aurora, then a small village 
having but two stores, and there the parents passed 
the remainder of their lives. The father died in 
June, 1S64, when 73 years of age. The demise of 
the mother occurred May 27, 1884, she being at the 
time nearly 85 years of age. They had nine chil- 
dren, seven of whom were born previous to their 
removal to Illinois. Six of the number are yet living. 
With one exception they are residents of the State of 
Illinois. One son is a farmer in Nebraska. 

Mr. Downer acquired a good education and 
attended school at odd times until he was 25 years 
of age. He was married March 27, 1858, in 






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Batavia, Kane Co., 111., to Elizabeth Curtis. Mrs. 
Downer was born Dec. g, 1828, in Lee, Oneida Co., 
N. Y. When she was 22 years of age she accompanied 
her father, Ephraim Curtis, to Illinois. He was born 
in Lee, Oneida Co., N. Y., July 3, 1802. He came to 
Aurora, 111., in 1852, where he remained until 1857, 
when he moved to Clinton Co., Iowa, where he died, 
Jan. 29, 1866. His first marriage was to Miss Sybil 
M. Brooks, by whom he had three children. She 
died in New York, in 1836. Mr. Curtis was again 
married, his second wife being Miss Sarah Wickwire. 
Mrs. Downer continued the occupation of teaching, 
in which she had previously engaged in her native 
State. The children of Mr. and Mrs. Downer are 
Fred C, born July 21, 1859; H. Curtis, Aug. 22, 
i860, and Mary S., June 27, 1862. 

Mr. Downer removed to Milan Township in August, 
1858, and located on a piece of property of which he 
became proprietor through inheritance from his 
father. To this he has added until he owns 360 
acres of fine land, all of winch is situated in the same 
township. The improvements, buildings and stock 
are all of creditable character, and the owner is con- 
sidered one of the leading farmers of Milan Town- 
ship. He is a Republican, and is actively engaged 
in promoting educational interests, and has for a long 
time been connected therewith in an official capacity. 
Mrs. Downer is a member of the Methodist Episco- 
pal Church. 

IMC 

!:| i lfl1'!- acob Kunes, ,111 early settler in Pierce 
^JliC Township was born Dec. 18, 1825, in 
' Lebanon Co., Pa., and is the son of Law- 



JL 

rence and Eve (Meyer) Kunes. He grew to 
manhood in the Keystone State and learned 
the trade of carpenter, besides passing one 
year as a coal miner. He was married Nov. 14, 
1849, to Eve, daughter of John and Lydia (Keler) 
Kuter, and in 185 1 they accompanied her parents to 
the township of Pierce. The two families lived 
together one year after their arrival, when Mr. Kunes 
bought 80 acres of prairie land on section 25 and 
began the career of an independent farmer. He has 
reaped the reward common to industry and good 
judgment, and his fine farm of 240 acres is all under 
excellent improvements and devoted to the cultiva- 

cm 



tion of grain and raising of stock. When he bought 
the place, Mr. Kunes paid $3 per acre fo] n and 
borrowed the money to buy the claim, at 10 per cent; 
but, being delayed in his plans by sickness and heavy 
expenses, by the time the place was paid for it had 
cost $70 an acre. 

Mr. and Mrs. Kunes have six children living — 
John, William, Wilhelmina (Mrs. Alfred Phillips, of 
Aurora), George, Adam and Ella. Mr. Kunes is a 
Republican in political belief, and belongs to the 
Evangelical Church, of which his wife is also a mem- 
ber. 



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illiam Bowers, farmer, section 5, Clinton 
Township, is a son of John and Ursula 
*, n * (Brooks) Bowers, natives of New Hamp- 
^SSw shire. They removed from that State to 
Vermont and thence to " York State," where 
1 they resided until their death. They were the 
parents of 12 children, namely, Elizabeth, John, Abi- 
gail, William, Isaac, Ursula A., George, Loren, 
Mary, Charles, Sanford and Charlotte. 

William Bowers, the subject of this biographical 
notice, was born in Hancock, Hillsborough Co., N. 
H., Jan. 18, 1814. He was united in marriage to 
Miss Sarah Field, Feb. 6, 1836, in Jefferson Co., N. 
N. She bore him two children, namely : Helen and 
Corinne. Helen is the wife of Albert Dickey and 
resides near Columbus, Ohio. Corinne is deceased. 

Mr. Bowers came to this county in 1848, bringing 
his wife and two children. He purchased roS ai res 
of land in Clinton Township, on which he moved and 
resided three years, until 1 851, when, Nov. 16 of that 
year, his wife died. He then sold his land and 
returned on a visit to "York State." While in this 
county, for about two years, he followed " trafficking 
in produce." 

Mr. Bowers purchased two farms, and in the 
spring of 1S65 purchased 220 acres of land on sec- 
tion 5, where he at present resides. He is at pres- 
ent the owner of 225 acres, nearly all of which is in 
a first-class state of cultivation. 

On his return from New York, Dec. 7, 1853, Mr. 
Bowers was again married, the lady of his choice 
being Miss Laura E. Allen, daughter of Reuben and 
Nancy (Andrews) Allen, natives of New England. 

Mt^^S ~' ra ^ -t>tSi 






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DE KALB COUNTY. 






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They moved to this county in 1845 and located in 
Shabbona, where the) resided until their death, They 
were the parents of si\ children, namely. B. F., 
Henry E., Elmira M., Hiram P., Laura E. and 
Martin V. 

Laura E. Bowers was born in St. Lawrence Co., N. 
Y., April 11, 1830. She lived at home with her par- 
ents, assisting the mother in the household duties 
and attending the common schools, and at companied 
her parents to this county in 1045 and continued 
to reside with them until her marriage. She is 
the mother of seven children by Mr. Bowers, namely : 
Lillian A., Ada L., Herbert W., Nancy C, Albert A., 
Mmi E. and Grant H. Ada L. died in Clinton 
Township, Nov. 16, 1869, when 13 years of age. 

Mr. Bowers is a believer in the principles advo- 
cated by the Republican party, has held the office 
of Assessor of his township and other minor positions 
of public trust. 



ravid Hughes, baker and grocer at Sand- 
wich, was born Oct. 24, 1839, in Ayrshire 
"""^ Scotland, the cottage of his parents being 
situated on the road where the home of 
Robert Burns was located, and about one-fourth 
a mile from the birth-place of the poet. His 
father, James Hughes, after his birth went to Glas- 
gow, the capital city, where he was employed on the 
municipal detective force, and he died in his native 
country. The mother, Margaret (Hendry) Hughes, 
is also deceased. 

Mr. Hughes learned the business of pastry baker 
and confectioner in the city of Glasgow, and in 1866 
he came to the city of New York. After a brief tarry 
there, he came to Chicago, where he lingered a short 
time, going thence to Elgin. He next proceeded to 
Aurora, 111., and conducted a steam bakery there until 
June, 1874, the date of his coming to Sandwich. He 
became possessor of the bakery and confectionery 
business already established, and has since contin- 
ued its management with the exception of one year. 
He is conducting a prosperous and profitable busi- 
ness. He is interested in local politics, and is a 
member of the fraternities of Masons and Odd 
Fellows. 

He was married April 12, 1865, in Glasgow, Scot- 





land, to Isabella M. Shaw, and they have had seven 
children, born in the following order: James (de- 
d), Margaret, David, Samuel (deceased), Alex- 
ander (deceased), Maude and Raymond. Mrs. 
Hughes is the daughter of James and Margaret Shaw, 
aixl was born in Scotland. 



' l' 



jMsj^avid Gerlaeh, deceased, was a pioneer of 

MA ). De Kalb County. He was born March 






27, 1796, in Wurtemburg, Germany, where 
he was brought up under the personal super- 

■ vision of his parents. He was married there to 
Wilhelmina Oover, a native of the same State. 
They left their native country in 1830 and came to 
the United States, landing at the port of New York, 
after a passage of 57 days on a sail vessel. They 
made their way to Erie Co., Pa., where Mr. Gerlaeh 
bought 80 acres of timber land ; but owing to the 
hard times and advanced price, he was obliged to 
surrender his claim from inability to pay for it. After 
a struggle of nine years, the family came to Naper- 
ville, 111., traveling with their own teams and camp- 
ing nights in their wagons. On arrival at the latter 
place the father rented land about one and a half 
years, subsequently going to Geneva, Kane County, 
where he rented farms until 1849. In that year 
he came to De Kalb County and entered a ( laim 
on the northwest quarter of section 24, in township 
39, range 5, now Pierce Township. On this he es- 
tablished his homestead and vigorously prosecuted 
the improvements until his death, Feb. 8, 1873. 
Mrs. Gerlaeh died April 27, 1883. Their children, 
eight in number, are all living, and are recorded as 
follows: Henrietta is the widow of Gotlieb Buerer, 
of Pierce Township. Amanda is the widow of 
Nathaniel Lintner, of Naperville. Elizabeth married 
Peter Ramer (see sketch). Sarah survives her 
husband, Jacob Eberly, and resides at Hinckley, 
Caroline is the >vife of James Boston, of Pawnee Co., 
Neb. Samuel is the manager of the homestead. 
Regina married John Lintner, of Sibley, Osceola Co., 
Iowa. Andrew is the youngest child. 

Samuel Gerlaeh was burn April 9, 1836, in Erie 
Co., Pa., and accompanied his parents to Illinois. 
He was married in 1857 to Catherine, daughter of 
John and Sarah (Shultz) Shoop, and they have six 



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children living: Lucy, wife of Henry Zeigler; Mary, 
wife of Louis Zeigler; Elizabeth (Mrs. Oliver 
Snyder); Frances, Carrie and Mattie. 

Andrew Gerlach was born in Erie Co., Pa., July 7, 
1 84 1. He was less than two years of age when his 
parents came to Naperville, 111., and but eight years 
of age when they came to Pierce Township, where 
he has since resided. His marriage ta Mary J. Har- 
ter took place Oct. 5, 1862. She was born in Center 
Co., Pa., and her parents afterward removed to 
Naperville, Du Page County, where they are now 
resident. When he was married he located for life 
on the farm on which he now resides, situated on the 
southeast quarter of section 14. He owns 240 acres 
of land, a large proportion of which is under improve- 
ments, with excellent farm buildings. He is chiefly 
engaged in raising grain and stock. Franklin E. and 
Harrison G. are the names of his children. He is a 
Republican, and, with his wife, belongs to the Evan- 
gelical Association. 




|p. habbona, the celebrated Indian Chief and 
friend of the whites, was born near the 
Maumee River, in Ohio, about the year 
1775. Some published accounts differ as to 
the place of his birth, but he gave to the late 
William Hickling, formerly of Ottawa, but later 
of Chicago, and who was a warm personal friend of 
his, the above as correct. The fatner of Shabbona 
belonged to the Ottawa tribe, and was one of that 
numerous band of Ottawas who fought with the 
great Ottawa Chieftain, Pontiac, throughout his wars, 
and upon his defeat returned with him to the Illinois 
country in the year 1764. 

In early manhood Shabbona married the daughter 
of a Pottawatomie chief, whose village was on the 
Illinois River bottom, near Ottawa. He lived at this 
village a few years, when he moved with his family, 
or band, to Shabbona Grove, De Kalb County. Here 
he and his band had their village and council-house, 
and resided until the fall of 1837, at which time they 
numbered some 130 souls. 

Shabbona was a great admirer of Tecumseh, and 
in the war of 181 2, with his warriors, he joined the 
great chief and stood by his side when he fell at the 
battle of the Thames. He was a warm friend of "the 





Sauganash," Billy Caldwell, whom he probably knew 
as early as 1800. At the memorable battle of the 
Thames and the defeat of the Indians and the En- 
glish, both Shabbona and Caldwell lost all faith in 
the power and promises of their British allies. A short 
time afterward they visited Gen. Cass, at Detroit, and 
to him gave their submission to the United States. 
At the time of the Winnebago war, in 1827, he visited 
almost every village among the Pottawatomies, and 
by his persuasive arguments prevented them from 
taking part in the war. By request of the citizens of 
Chicago, Shabbona, accompanied by Billy Caldwell 
(Sauganash), visited Big Foot's village at Geneva 
Lake, in order to pacify the warriors, as fears were 
entertained that they were about to raise the toma- 
hawk against the whites. Here Shabbona was taken 
prisoner by Big Foot, and his life threatened, but on 
the following day was set at liberty. From that time 
the Indians (through reproach) styled him ." the 
white man's friend," and many times his life was 
endangered. The next and last attempt made to 
embroil the Pottawatomies and Ottawas in a war 
with the " pale faces," was that made by Black Hawk 
and the Prophet, in 1832. These two chiefs, repre- 
senting the Sauk and Fox nations, met the Pottawat- 
omies and Ottawas in council at Indian town, in 
February of that year, and eloquently pointed out to 
the large number of Indians assembled there, the 
necessity of co-operation, in order to save their na- 
tions from the further encroachments of the white 
men upon their hunting grounds. In that large as- 
semblage the voice of but one Pottawatomie chief 
was raised in favor of war and union with Black 
Hawk, and that was given by old Wau-pan-seh. In 
that council, Shabbona, in answer to that fervent ap- 
peal of Black Hawk for union, and his figurative as- 
sertion that such an union would give them an army 
of warriors equal in number to the trees of the forest, 
replied: "Yes, and the army of the pale faces you 
will have to encounter will be as numerous as the 
leases on those trees." At the period of this confer- 
ence, probably no other chief, excepting Caldwell, 
possessed greater influence witli the tribe-; assembled 
than did Shabbona, and ihese two leaders so well 
knew the power and military resources of the white 
race, and how futile it would be to engage in another 
war with them. 

Subsequently, when Black Hawk and his band 
crossed over to the east side of the Mississippi, and 

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just before the commencement of his foray on the 

white its, he made one more attempt to se- 

i union with the Pottawatomies, and sent liis 
runners or emissaries to visit Shabbona. who, .it this 
time, with his band, were encamped and on a hunt- 
ing expedition in the Bureau timber. Shabbona here 
again rejected all offers of alliance made by Black 
Hawk. Seeing that hostilities must soon commence, 
Shabbona broke up his hunting camp and returned 
home to his grove. Shortly afterwards, the defeat of 
Major Stillman's forces followed, and opened a clear 
path for the hostile Indians to make a foray upon the 
settlements. This Shabbona foresaw ; and here the 
goodness Of Ins heart, his humanity, and desire to 
avert the horrors of savage warfare, are shown in the 
arduous and disinterested efforts made bj him in be- 
half of the few white settlers so soon to be exposed to 
savage fury. Immediately he sent his son and 
nephew to notify the scattered settlers on the Fox 
River and at Holderman's Grove, of their great 
danger, urging them in all haste to leave their homes 
and seek the sheltering walls of the fort at Ottawa. 
The old Chief himself undertook the task on Ins 
mission of mere) to warn the settlers of Bureau and 
Indian Creek of their great danger. His appearance 
on that 1 6th day of May, riding at full speed, bare- 
headed, his pony heated and jaded by the long ride 
through the scattered settlements, has been well 
described by other writers. Nearly all the persons 
interested followed Shabbona's advice and fled in 
haste to Ottawa, leaving their homes but a few hours 
in advance of the entry of the hostile Sauk. A few 
persons, however, in the Indian Creek settlement, 
took no heed of Shabbona's warning, and paid in a feu- 
hours afterwards the penalty of their rashness, by all 
their party, excepting four persons, being massacred 
in the one log house in which they had sought refuge, 
and which the)' so heroically defended. 

At a treaty made at Prairie Du Chien, July 29, 
1829, Shabbona's old home at the Grove, consisting of 
two sections, was reserved for him. This consisted 
of all of section 23, the east half section 26 and the 
west half of section 25. By direction of Major 
Langham, then Surveyor-General of Illinois and 
Missouri, a survey and plat of the reservation was 
made by a deputy surveyor, and Shabbona fondly 
hoped that the house which he and his family had 
occupied for so man) years was secured to him and 
them forever. Upon this subject William Hie kling, 

$<§®ft« :s $& t: — ^-^nii 




in his address upon the life of Shabbona before the 
• 'In. igo Historical Society, says: 

" 1 believe that in all the other reservations of 
land granted by the aforementioned treat)-, all the 
parties thereto having such reservations enjoyed 
them in fee, ami only required the consent and 
signature of the President of the United States, in 
order to pass a good title to parties purchasing sin h 
reserved lands. Why Shabbona's case should differ 
from all the rest I could never determine. At any 
rate, when the survey of the public lands, lying north 
of the old Indian boundary line was ordered by the 
Land Department to be made, the Deputy Surveyor 
had instructions to ignore the previous survey of the 
reservations, and include the lands thereon contained 
in the regular section lines of the United States sur- 
vey; and during the absence of poor old Shabbona 
and his family in Kansas, these lands were sold by 
public sale at Dixon. The home of the old Chief and 
his family passed into other hands, strangers to him, 
and in answer to an appeal made at Washington in 
Shabbona's behalf, the Commissioner of the General 
Land Department, in answer, said that Shabbona had 
forfeited and lost his title to the lands by removing 
away from them." 

In 1 837, Shabbona was notified by the Indian Agent, 
that by the terms of the late treaty, all members of 
his band, with the exception of those of his own 
family, must remove to their new reservation in 
Western Missouri. The parting with so many of 
those with whom he so Ion- had been associated, he 
could not endure; so he resolved, with all his family, 
to accompany them to their new homes. But no 
sooner had Shabbona and his family reached their 
lodges in their new homes than new troubles began. 
The Sauks and Foxes, unfortunately, had their new 
reservation in close proximity to that of the Potta- 
watomies and Ottawas. The well-known hostility, 
a few years previous, of Shabbona to Black Hawk, 
and the part which the Ottawas took against him and 
his followers in the war which followed, were still 
fresh in the mind of the individual Sauk leader 
and made enemies of two noted braves. The war- 
fare against Shabbona and his family resulted in 
the murder of his eldest son, Pypeogee, and a nephew, 
Pyps. Theold Chief Shabbona narrowly esc aped with 
his life from the vengeance of his foes. This caused 
him and his family to return to Illinois, in about one 
year after having left it. From this time until in 



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DE KALB COUNTY. 



*«a*@v$fe 



535 



1849, Shabbona and his family, some 20 to 25 in num- 
ber, lived at the Grove in peace and quietness with 
the white neighbors surrounding them. By this time, 
the Pottawatomies and Ottawas had been again re- 
moved to a new reservation granted them in Kansas, 
and Shabbona again, with his family, left their old 
homes in Illinois, to join their red brethren in the 
new one to be occupied. He remained there with 
his old friends and tribe some three years, then 
again with his family retraced their steps back to 
their old home in the Illinois grove, only to find his 
village and lands in the possession of strangers; the 
old home he and his family had occupied for more 
than 40 years, was lost to him forever! When he 
fully realized his forlorn situation, it is said that the 
old warrior, who probably had scarcely ever before 
shed a tear, here "wept like a child." But his cup 
of misery was not yet full. An unfeeling brute, the 
new owner of the land, upon which, on his return, 
) Shabbona and his family encamped, cursed the poor 
> old man for having cut a few lodge poles on what he 
^^ thought was his own property, and peremptorily 
° ordered him and his family to leave the Grove. This 
*■<§ they did, and it is said that Shabbona never visited it 
again. 

Mr. Tracy -Scott, an old pioneer of this section, re- 
lated the following incident of Shabbona, which 
vj ) occurred at this time : He was returning from 
Aurora, and, coming through Big Rock timber, saw 
the Indians encamped. Shabbona seemed utterly 
cast down; and, in reply to Scott's inquiry as to why 
he left and where he was going, said he had always 
been a friend to the wdiites; that he had treated them 
well ; that his wife and some of his children were 
buried in the Grove; that he had lived there, and 
wanted to die there; that he had lost all; was very 
poor; then he told that, because his band had burned 
a few sticks of wood, "big white man call me damn 
Indian! Shabbona never damn white man!" and 
pointing upwards, while the tears ran down his old 
cheeks, he continued, " No big white man — no damn 
Indian up there — all 'like; all 'like!" 

A few friends realizing the destitute situation in 
which the poor old Chief and his family were placed, 
purchased for him a small tract of 20 acres of timber 
land on the Illinois River, being the north half of 
the northwest quarter of the southeast quarter of 
section 20, township 33 north, range 6 east of the 3d 






W> 



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Principal Meridian (Norman Township), Grundv 
Co., 111. The title of this land was vested in the 
Judge of the Cir< uit Court of La Salle County, 111., 
for the use of Shabbona and his heirs. Here, in a 
semi-state of poverty and wretchedness, the old Chief 
and part of his family lived, mosl of the time in 
wigwams, or tents, using the house for storage 
purposes and as a barn. Shabbona died at his wig- 
wam, July 17, 1859, aged about 84 years. He was 
buried in the cemetery at Morris; and be it said to 
the shame of the white men, no memorial stone, 
nothing but a piece of board stuck in the ground, 
shows the spot where lies the remains of the best and 
truest Indian friend which the early settlers of 
Northern Illinois had in the day of their tribulation! 
Shabbona's first wife was buried at the Grove. His 
second wife, Pokanoka, a large and decrepid old 
woman, weighing some 400 pounds, and two of her 
daughters, came back to their old home at Shabbona 
Grove, July 5, 1864, took quiet possession of a thi< ket 
near their old home and remained three days. Soon 
after this, Nov. 30, 1864, while crossing Mazon Creek, 
Grundy County, with her grandchild, they were 
thrown from her wagon and drowned in about six 
inches of water, and both were buried by the side of 
Shabbona. 

Shabbona was not by birth an hereditary chief 
and in fact only became one over his band by their 
t 11 it consent, after the death of his first wife's father. 
In his personal appearance, he was a model of phys- 
ical strength, — one of the finest specimens of the 
American Indian. Tall in stature, straight as an 
arrow, large head and face, with pleasant features 
and an agreeable expression of countenance. He 
was not much of an orator, yet his words of wisdom 
always had their weight in council deliberations. 
Until quite late in life (after his return from the West 
in 1838), he was remarkably temperate in his habits, 
scarcely ever tasting of the "fire-water," that great 
enemy of his race. No doubt his long association 
with Tecumseh, who also was remarkably temperate in 
his habits, had its influence upon the mind and char- 
acter of Shabbona. 

The name and memory of Shabbona should be ever 
dear to the old settlers of this section of the West : 
the prompt action he took to thwart the schemes of 
that wily old savage, Black Hawk, and ^ave from his 
savage fury the lives of so many of our early pio- 







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neers, many of whom would certainly have been 
sacrificed had it not been for his disinterested efforts 
in their behalf, deserve greatest praise from the 
whites. 

Shabbona's name is variously spelled. In a cer- 
tificate of character given him by Billy Caldwell, 
Ann. i, 1816, and which is now in the archives of 
the Chicago Historical Society, it is spelled Cham- 
blee. Others in early time spelled it Chab-o-neh 
and Shau-be-na. John H. Kinzie and G. S. Hubbard, 
both of whom knew him, spelled his name with a 
"('" instead of "S." Even at present it is frequently 
spelled as follows: Shabonee, Shau-be-nay and 
Shab-eh-ney. The meaning of his name is, " head 
and shoulders like a bear." 

The portrait of Shabbona which we present in 
connection with this sketch was made from a portrait 
by F. B. Young, of Rome, N. Y., painted about 1840. 
Bj those who knew Shabbona personally, it is pro- 
) nounced a splendid likeness of the good old Chief. 




-o<-o- 



ev. William Brown, farmer, resident on 
section ri, Milan Township, was born 
March 13. r S3 1 , in Countv Donegal, Irc- 
l^'land. John Brown,his father, was also a native 
of Ireland, of Scotch extraction and ancestry. 
belonging to the race known as Scotch-Irish, 
and was an active and zealous member of society 
and of the Presbyterian Church. Mary (Johnson) 
Brown, the mother was born in Ireland, of English 
parentage, and was a member of the Church of Eng- 
land, as was her parents before her, and in whose 
tenets she was brought up. They had five sons and 
a single daughter. Nathaniel is a farmer in the 
township of Milan. John is a Presbyterian minister 
in the South of Ireland, at a military station com- 
manding the entrance to Waterford Harbor. James 
studied for the ministry, but owing to failing health 
abandoned hi-- intentions in that direction, and is now 
a farmer on the family homestead. William is the 
nexl in order of birth. Thomas died when nine 
ye irs of age. Elizabeth married Mr. Campbell and 
lives in Ireland. It was the ambition of the father 
that his sons should enter the ministry, and Mr. 
Brown was taught at home with that end in view 

The latter had from his bo\ hood an overwhelming 
conviction of the attractions and merits of the New 




World, and when he was about 19 years of age he 
to the United States, settling at first near 
Sandusky, Ohio; after a tarry there of four years he 
returned to his native land, finding home and its in- 
mates .is he had left them. In 1S55 he returned to 
the 1 nited States, accompanied by his sister and old- 
esl brother. After some prospecting they settled 
Men Sycamore, De Kalb Co., 111., fixing their resi 
dime there, May i, 1855. The oldest brother and 
siMcr soon returned to Ireland, where the former re- 
mained until the nexl year, when he came back to 
De Kalb County and located in Milan Township. 

In 1853, during his first stay in America, Mr. 
Brown bought 353 acres of land on section ti, Milan 
Township, which was in an entirely uncultivated and 
unimproved condition. He accumulated sufficient 
means during the four years referred to, to make his 
title sec ure. After his marriage he took possession 
of his estate where he has since pursued the career 
of a skilled and prosperous farmer. He his at pres- 
ent the owner of 560 acres of finely located and valu- 
able land, all under the plow, and the place in point 
of management and equipments is one of the most 
valuable in the township. 

Mr. Brown was one of the pioneer preachers of 
Methodism in Malta, and he has been active in the 
interest of that denomination since 1S56. He has 
been also actively interested in educational matters. 
He is a zealous adherent of the Republican party. 

Dec. 18, 1859, he was united in marriage, in Jeffer- 
son Township, Hillsdale Co., Mich., to Sarah, daugh- 
ter of Theron 15. and Sarah (Edgerly) Seely. The 
former was of Irish descent, and the latter was of 
German lineage. They were pioneers of Hillsdale 
Co., Mich., and were among the first permanent 
settlers of Pittsford Township in that county. They 
removed later to Jefferson, where they became exten- 
sive landholders. The mother died there in October, 
1878; the father in January, 1879. Mrs. Brown is 
the seventh child and fourth daughter in a family of 
nine children. She was educated in the common 
schools, and has reared her five children in a credit- 
able manner. Theron is a teacher at Morgan Park, 
near Chicago; Grace M. is an accomplished musician, 
and is engaged in teaching instrumental music; 
Sarah Iv has finished a preparatory teachers' course 
at Aurora. Ill ; William J. and Pearl A. are the 
youngest. 

The parents of Mr. Brown died in their native 




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land, after long and useful lives. The demise of his 
father occurred in June, 1859; that of his mother, 
Jan. 26, 1865. 



> lijah Curtis, farmer, section 8, Afton 
Township, was born in Douglass, YVorces- 
1 ter Co., Mass., Nov. 23, 1836. His father, 
!^ Bryant Curtis, was born in the same county, 
Dec. 4, 1803, and died in Afton Township, Dec. 
8, 1SS0. His mother, Patience, nee Powers, 
was born June n, 1803, in Croydon, Sullivan Co., 
N. H., and died March 12, 1876, in Afton Township, 
this county. She was twice married, the issue of her 
first marriage being one son, and of her second, four 
sons and four daughters. Her first son was Harvey 
Powers Robbins. The names of her other children 
are Joanna Maria, Mary E., Elijah, Sarah, Martha 
A., Stephen, David B. and Nathan S. 

Elijah Curtis, subject of this notice, was reared on 
a farm in Worcester Co., Mass. He assisted in the 
farm labors and attended the common schools until 
the age of 19 years, then came to this county, arriv- 
ing here in 1856. He engaged in farm labor by the 
month, and continued in that vocation until 1859. 
He then began working land on shares and followed 
that until 1861. 

At this period in his life's history, the nation be- 
came imperiled, and he went forth to aid in her de- 
fense. He enlisted in Co. C, 58th 111. Vol. Inf., 
Capt. G. W. Kittell and Col. VV. F. Lynch, of the 
1 6th Corps, 2d Division. His regiment was in ac- 
tive service at Fort Donelson. He also participated 
in the battle of Shiloh, and was wounded, April 6, 
1S62. He then came home on a furlough, the hos- 
pital being full, and spent three months, after which 
he returned to his regiment at Camp Danville, Miss. 
He was in the battle of Corinth and received a 
wound in the right ankle Oct. 4, 1862. The wound 
was made by what was supposed to be a sharp- 
shooter's ball, a piece of which was found in his 
stocking. He was taken to the hospital, where he 
remained two weeks, and was then sent to the hos- 
pital at St. Louis ; was there a month, received a 
furlough, came home and remained two months, then 
went to the hospital at Chicago and was there four 
months, when he returned to his regiment at Spring- 




field, 111. His regiment was recruiting at Springfield, 
and two months later moved to Cairo, 111., where it 
was encamped during the fall and winter of 1863-4. 
The regiment then joined Sherman's army at Vicks- 
burg, and participated in a raid through Mississippi, 
after which it returned to Vicksburg. He then par- 
ticipated in the Red River expedition and during the 
same was wounded in the left thigh, May 18, 1863, 
and was sent to Jefferson Barracks, Mo. He remained 
there two months, received a furlough for a month 
and then joined his regiment at Jefferson Barracks. 
The regiment " were after" Price and had a battle 
with him near Kansas City, after which it returned to 
St. Louis and shipped on board a steamer for Nashville 
to join Gen. Thomas in time to participate in the bat- 
tle of Nashville. The regiment then went to Eastport, 
Tenn. Mr. Curtis then left the regiment to be mus- 
tered out, his time having expired, and was dis- 
charged Feb. 7, 1865, at Chicago. He enlisted as 
a private, and at the time of his muster out he was 
Sergeant. 

On receiving his discharge from the army, Mr. 
Curtis came to this county and engaged in farm la- 
bor by the month, which he followed for a year, and 
then traded 40 acres of land for an 80-acre tract in 
Clinton Twonship, on which he moved. 

Mr. Curtis was first married July 2, 1865, to Miss 
Candace E. Bovee. She was a daughter of Richard 
and Orpha (Parks) Bovee, and was born in Erie Co., 
N. Y., Sept. 14, 1836, and died June 22, 1875. She 
was the mother of one child, David G., born Feb. 9, 
1868. He. was married a second time, April 3, 1879, 
to Miss Juliette E. Hurd, a daughter of Alanson and 
Jerusha A. (Springer) Hurd, both natives of" York " 
State, the former born April 4, 18 12, and the latter 
Dec. 25, 1820. Both her parents are living in Dakota, 
and their children comprised five sons and four 
daughters, namely: Robert F., Juliette E., Susan P., 
Harriet M., Mary S., Durfy S., Millie M. and Samuel 
A. By the last marriage of Mr. Curtis there are two 
children, namely: Hortense, born Sept. 9, 1880, died 
Oct. 10, 1884, and Sarah E., born Jan. 10, 1883. 

The grandfather of Mr. Curtis was a Revolutionary 
soldier and participated in the capture of Burgo\ ne's 
army; and Mr. Curtis still retains in his possession 
the old musket that his grandfather used during 
those dark days. The family of Mr. Curtis, his 
father's family, and his grandfather's family all lived 
on a piece of land that was deeded to his great- 

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grandfather, Beriah Curtis, by the King of England. 

Mi. Curtis also has in his possession a cutlass his 
great-grand fathei captured at Cape Town, West In- 
dies. The mother of our subject had four uncles 
who participated in the battle of Hunker Hill, and 
were among the fortunate ones to escape unhurt. A 
brother of Mr. Curtis died in a rebel prison at Dan- 
ville, Vt., and a brother of Mrs. Curtis died in a hos- 
pital at 1 lelena, Ark 

Mrs. Curtis, present wife of the subject of this 
notice, was horn in Marion Co., Ind. Aug. 14, 1844. 
Her parents were farmers and of German descent. 

Mr. Curtis added 80 acres to his original 80, and 
in 1873 exchanged the 160 for his present farm of 
200 acres. He is at present Highway Commissioner 
and Town Clerk, and also a member of the Board of 
School Directors, of which he is Clerk. Politically 
he is a Republican. Socially, he is a member of 
Merritt Simonds Post, No. 283,0. A. R., of which he 
is Sergeant Major. 

The subject of the foregoing biographical notice 
being a representative man and a prominent citizen 
of De Kalb County, the publishers place a portrait of 
his features in this work. 



-i— 






*~* 



>arshall Miller, of Squaw Grove Township, 
has been a resident therein since the fall 
,fx of 1836, having come here when about 18 
!< \ months old. His parents, Samuel and Gil- 
'V" ley M. (Sebree) Miller, were natives of Kentucky 
I and Indiana, and on coming to Illinois settled in 
Squaw Grove Township. Their only child at that 
time is the subject of this sketch. They passed their 
after lives in and near the village of Hinckley. The 
death of the mother occurred about 1849; that of the 
father took place Feb. 2, 1880. Mr. Miller had five 
brothers and sisters, — John, William, Charles, Melissa 
and Augusta. 

Mr. Miller obtained a common-school education of 
the kind common to pioneers. He was an inmate of 
the paternal homestead until he was 27 years of age, 
when he married and settled down to an independent 
career. He is now the owner of no acres of land, 
the chief proportion of which is under tillage. 

He was married Dec. 31, i860, to Maria L., daugh- 
ter of Alexander and Miranda (Nicho!) Coster, in 




Milan Township, De Kalb County. Her parents re- 
moved from New York, their native State, to Milan 
Township, De Kalb County, in the spring of 1855. 
Her mother died Dec. 28, 1866, and her father is 
now a resident of Sandwich. Their nine children 
were named Millicent P., Philander C, Rachel E., 
Maria L., Richard L., John B., Emily N., Cornelia 
A. and Peter E. Mrs. Miller was born June 25, 
1840, in Erie Co., Pa., and was about 15 years of age 
when her parents removed to De Kalb County. Two 
children have been born of her marriage, — Alice L. 
and Sammy E. The daughter died Dec. 20, 188 r. 



'ohn Wedlake, farmer, section 2, Milan 
Township, was born May 10, 1828, in 
Somersetshire, England. Henry Wedlake. 

his father, was an English farm laborer, and 
jt was born, lived and died in the native shire of 

his son. His death occurred in April, 1879. 
Betty (Pierce) Wedlake, the wife and mother, was 
also a native of the same place, where she died, in 
June, 1876. 

Seven children were born to Henry and Betty 
Wedlake, John being the oldest. The first important 
event in his life was his marriage. He was born to 
poverty, and according to the customs of the class to 
which his parents belonged was early made acquain- 
ted with labor. He was compelled to work when 
only six years of age, receiving for his remuneration 
six cents a day, which was increased to eight cents 
daily when he became eight years old. His marriage 
to Harriet Orchett took place April 5, 185 1. She 
was the daughter of George and Mary (Bardford) 
Orchett, and her parents lived in the same house in 
which they were born in Somersetshire, and where 
three families of three successive generations had 
lived before them. Mrs. Wedlake was born Sept. 14, 
1827. She was in service until she was married. 
She has been the mother of two children, — Henry 
and George. The latter died in England when four 
years of age. Some years after marriage Mr. Wed- 
lake determined to seek the promised opportunities 
of the New World, and leaving his family in comfort 
he set out alone to examine the feasibility of the 
claims of which such glowing accounts came across 
the sea to the homes of the English peasantry. He 



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located for a time in Onondaga Co., N. Y., where he 
operated as a common laborer on a farm. After two 
years he had accumulated sufficient means to return 
for his wife and only child, one having died. They 
returned to Onondaga County and remained there 
two years. In 1861 they came to the township of 
Milan, and were tenants on the farm of James Mc- 
Carroll, which he worked one summer and then 
rented of William Brawn six years. In 1868 Mr. 
Wedlake bought 80 acres of land, to which he after- 
ward added extensively by purchase, and is now the 
owner of 240 acres, which he has finely improved 
and augmented in value. Politically he is a Repub- 
lican. He is a zealous member of the Methodist 
Episcopal Church, as is also his wife. 




^oooe 



harles Hallam, retired fanner, at Shab- 
bona village, was born in Nottingham, 
England, Sept. 14, 1836, and is a son of 
William and Mary (Burton) Hallam. He 
received an academic education, and by pro- 
fession became an accountant. 
He emigrated to America in May, 1855, and was 
first engaged as an accountant in New York city for 
nine years; then spent about two years in various 
States, and finally settled down on a farm, in 1866, 
on section 28, Shabbona Township, where he con- 
tinued farming until January, 1885, when he removed 
to his present residence in Shabbona village. He 
still retains possession of his farm, which consists of 
160 acres. Since coming to this country, Mr. Hal- 
lam has visited his native land five times, and thus 
has crossed the Atlantic Ocean 1 1 times. 

He was first married Jan. 7, 1864, in New York 
city, to Miss Emily Millington, and Nov. 16 follow- 
ing they had a daughter, Emily E. Mrs. H. died 
April 16, 1865, and Mr. Hallam was again married 
July 28, 1866, at Jacksonville, 111., to Miss Elizabeth 
Challand, daughter of Reuben and Rebecca Chal- 
land. She was born in England, Aug. n, 1845, and 
was brought by her parents to America in 185 1. By 
this marriage there have been one son and two 
daughters, namely : Charles P., born Jan. 29, 1877; 
Winnie L., Feb. 26, 1879, and Millie R., Dec. 15, 
1883. 

Mr. Hallam, in his political action, votes the 
Democratic ticket. 



./■~- ■ 



:;fipCly arvey L. Fuller, farmer, section 9, Clinton 
; itejjs Township, is a native of New York. His 
'■*""" parents, Norman and Sophronia (Buck) 
Fuller, were also natives of that State, and 
came to Kane Co., 111., in 1851, where he, the 
father, died in September, 1854. They had 
five children, namely : Harvey L., Rosetta L., Mary, 
Antoinette, Edwin A. and Adelbert U. 

The eldest, the subject of this sketch, was born in 
Orleans Co., N. Y., Sept. 22, 1835, and came with his 
father to Kane Co., 111., in 1851, and the spring of 
1855 to this county. He has since lived here, and 
now owns 400 acres of land, most of which is good 
farming land. Politically, he is identified with the 
Republican party, and he has held several positions 
of public trust. 

Mr. Fuller was married in Rochester, N. Y., Oct. 
15, 1863, to Sarah Brady, daughter of Stephen and 
Lydia (Gordon) Brady. The children of Mr. and 
Mrs. Fuller are five in number, namely: Carrie L. 
was born July 15, 1864; Lewis G., July 4, 1868; 
Dwight A., April 4, 1870; Mary E., April 1, 1875 ; 
and James G., Sept. 12, 1880. 

-OS— 



dolphus G. Smith, Supervisor of Pierce 
|Jj Township, and a farmer on section 23, was 





born in the township of Lykins, Crawford Co., 
Ohio, Sept. 2, 1842. His parents, John Fred- 
erick and Christlieba (Lippman) Smith, were 
both born in Germany. They had come early 
in life from their native land and remained all their 
subsequent lives in Ohio. The mother died in 1848, 
and the husband married again not long after her 
death. 

Mr. Smith acquired a fair education in the public 
schools and was thoroughly trained in a knowledge 
of agricultural pursuits. He came to Illinois when 
he was 20 years of age, and became a farm laborer 
in Kane County one year. He then rented and 
worked on a farm five years, and returned to Ohio 
and worked four years with his brother, who was a 
carpenter and builder by trade. He then returned 
to Illinois to establish a permanent home on a farm 



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on section 23 in Pierce, which he liad bought two 
years previously. The place now boasts of a good 
dwelling-house, fruit and shade trees and commodi- 
ousfarm buildings. In political sentiment Mr. Smith 
is independent of any organized party. He votes 
according to his judgment irrespective of party or 
politics. His wife is a member of the Evangelical 
Association. He lias tilled various township offices, 
among them School Trus.tee, Assessor and Collector, 
and in 1S83 was appointed to fill a vacancy as Su- 
pervisor, and he was elected to the incumbency in 

1884. 

lie has continued resident on his farm, but has 
devoted his attention to his trade of contractor and 
builder, in which he has operated successfully 15 
years. Among the dwellings he has constructed are 
the residences of John Pooler and Nicholas Klemm 
in Afton Township, P.W.Gallagher, Thomas Gal- 
lagher, George Scliule and William Van ( Ihlen, in 
Squaw Grove Township. 

He was married in March, 1S63, to Mary Ann 
Shoop. Three of their children are living, — Harvey 
\V., Sarah Alice and Alta G. Ella, second child in 
order of birth, died when about three years of age. 
Mrs. Smith is the daughter of John and Sarah 
(Shultz) Shoop. Her parents were born in Pennsyl- 
vania and were among the earliest permanent settlers 
in Kane Co., 111. 



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eorge N. Maxwell, Principal of the Shab- 

bona schools since Jan. 1, 1883, was born 

K in Assonnett, Bristol Co., Mass., Oct. 30, 

1847, and is a son of Rev. John S. and Lucy 

(Babcock) Maxwell, and removed with his 

parents to La Salle County, this State, in 1S68, 

settling near Leland. He was educated in Giundy 

Co., 111., at the common school. 

In the winter of 186S-9 he commenced teaching 

school, and continued in that profession during the 

(S>^ winter seasons for ten years, alternating with farm 

labor during the intervening summers; but since his 

*|» removal to Shabbona his only occupation has been 

§ teaching. He was married in Highland, Grundy 
Co., 111., Oct. 4, 1871, to Miss Emma, daughter of 
Alonzo and Maria (Andrews) Spink, who was born at 
^» Blackberry, Kane Co., 111. They have had three 



children, namely: Alice, who died aged one year, 
Charles E., and Arthur \V. 

\li. and Mrs. Maxwell are members of the Con- 
gregational Church of Shabbona. 





* 



eorge Easter-brook, deceased, was a farm- 
er on section 14, Pierce Township, and 
" K had been a landholder in De Kalb County 
from 1856 to the date of his death. In that 
year he purchased 80 acres of unimproved 
land on the northeast quarter of section 14, 
and four years later he purchased an additional 80 
acres on section 14. In 1883 his wife made a third 
purchase, of 80 acres on the section last named, and 
the estate now includes 300 acres of land, under good 
improvements, provided with suitable farm buildings 
and a good orchard. 

Mr. Easterbrook was born Dec. 29, 1825, in Sack- 
ville, Westmoreland Co., New Brunswick, where he 
was reared to the pursuits of agriculture and also in- 
structed in the vocation of stonemason. In 1847 
he came to Freeport, 111., and there worked as a 
farm assistant and also as a mason, alternating be- 
tween the two callings for two years. Subsequently he 
went to Kane Co., 111. He was there married Feb. 
17, 1853, to Priscilla, daughter of James and Eliza- 
beth (Reed) Outhouse. Her parents were both born 
in the province of New Brunswick, and were pioneers 
of Kane County, whither they removed in 1834. 
They are of Holland descent and are, at present 
dale (1885), residents in Blackberry. The parents 
of Mr. Easterbrook were of English birth, and his 
paternal grandfather was for many years a member 
of the House of Commons in England, and his father 
served as a member of the Canadian House of Par- 
liament. 

Soon after his marriage, Mr. Easterbrook went to 
Iowa and purchased 200 acres of land in Black I lawk 
County. He made no location for a home, but re- 
turned to Kane County, where he remained until the 
yeai named, in which he settled in Pierce Township, 
lie died Dec. 9, 1864, leaving five children, — Isa- 
bella, James George, Susan Emma, Wilso^E. and 
Alvin W. After his decease, his wife rented the 
farm and returned to Kane County. She bought a 
farm, where she resided until 1 S75, when she re- 



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turned to the homestead in Pierce Township. Her 
sons are continuing the management of the estate in 
a highly creditable manner. Isabella married John 
Vosburgh, of Kingston; Susan E. is the wife . of 
William l'ostle, and lives in Virgil Township, Kane 
County. James G. Easterbrook is the Assessor of 
Pierce Township. 



-~D- 



-e-o- 



HTiOv^avid Orr, hardware merchant at Water- 

pks'V.. man, Clinton Township, is a son of Samuel 

^(Sff^ and Mary (Burnett) Orr, natives of Ireland 

yj* and New Jersey. The record of their family 

^ is as follows : Jane, David, Thomas B., 

i Smith, Samuel, Levi and William. Three 

children are dead — James, Alfred and one child that 

died in infancy. 

(\ ) David was born in Ohio, May 10, 1818. He 

^ lived on the farm, assisted in the support of the 

SS family and attended the common schools until he 

° attained the age of 21 years. 

*■$) For one year after attaining his majority, Mr. Orr 
1=3 was engaged in clearing land, and then hired to 
SX learn the carpenter's trade. He soon mastered the 

V same and was engaged in following it for 13 years. 
<(-\ In 1852 Mr. Orr came to this county and settled 
in Somonauk Township. He remained there only a 
short time and rented a farm in Clinton Township, 
which he cultivated one season. Previous to this, 
when he first came to the county, Mr. Orr entered a 
quarter section of land in Clinton Township. After 
managing a rented farm one year, he moved on his 
homestead, and at once entered vigorously upon its 
improvement. He lived on this farm for 20 years, 
with the exception of about two years, which he spent 
working at his trade, and succeeded in placing it in 
a good tillable condition. 

In 1872 Mr. Orr sold his farm and moved to 
Waterman.. His son, J. D., had engaged in the hard- 
ware business a year previous, and Mr. Orr formed a 
partnership with him, which only continued a short 
time, as the son died in December, 1872. Mr. Orr 
carried on the business for three years alone, when 
another son, Levi R., was admitted to the firm part- 
nership, and the business is now conducted under 
the firm name of David Orr & Sons, David E. hav- 
ing been admitted to the firm in 1S84. The busi- 




ness is a progressive and successful one, and their 
sales approximate annually to $65,000. 

Mr. Orr was united in marriage to Miss Elizabeth 
McCleery, in Wayne Co., Ohio, Jan. 14, 1845. She 
was born in " York State " about 18 17 , and was the 
mother, by Mr. Orr, of six children, namely, Mary A., 
James D., Ellen, John S., William and Smith. John 
S. and Ellen are the only ones surviving. Ellen is 
the wife of Charles A. Low, and resides in Iowa. 
Mrs. Orr died Feb. 25, 1858. Mr. Orr was again mar- 
ried, March 1, i860, to Miss Martha J. McAffee, 
daughter of William and Martha (Ray) McAffee. 
She was born in Ireland, in February, 1825, and emi- 
grated to the United States in 1837. 

Four children were born of his second union, two 
of whom are deceased. The living are, Levi R., 
born Dec. 3, i860; and David E., Feb. 13, 1865, 
both of whom are associated with their father in busi- 
ness. 

Mr. Orr affiliates with the Republican party ; has 
held the offices of School Director and Highway 
Commissioner, and has been one of the village Trus- 
tees for several years. 



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i^phraim Depue, farmer, section 13. Genoa 
Township, is the son of Samuel and Eliza- 
beth (Ogden) Depue, and is one of a family 
°4^P- °f IO children. Ose, Sarah, Benjamin, Jesse, 
Phebe and Theo C. are the names of his broth- 
ers and sisters who reached mature life. Three 
children died in infancy. 

Mr. Depue was born Oct. 11, 18 16, in Sussex Co., 
N. J. At the age of 18 years he was apprenticed to 
acquire a knowledge of the wagon-making trade, and 
served an indentureship of three years. He em- 
barked independently in the business, in which he 
operated about 20 years. In 184S he became a citi- 
zen of Illinois, taking up his residence at Elgin, Kane 
County. He passed three years there in the pursuit 
of his trade, and about 185 1 entered the employment 
of the old Galena, Chicago & Illinois Central Rail- 
road Company, his loute extending from Chicago to 
Freeport and from Dubuque to Centralia. 

He came to De Kalb County in 1861 and bought 
90 acres of land in Genoa Township, moving his 
family hither in the autumn of the same year. His 



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homestead farm now comprises 360 acres, with 230 
acres under improvement, supplied with suitable 
and creditable farm buildings and well stocked. In 
political faith and connections Mr. Depue is identi- 
fied with the Republican party ; he has officiated as 
School Director and in other locil offices. 

He was married April 21, 1838, in New Jersey, to 
Catherine M. Dennis, and they have five surviving 
children, — Lucy, Elizabeth, Henry C., Allen and 
Emma. Anna M., Catherine M. and Caroline A. 
and a child unnamed died in infancy. Mrs. Depue 
was horn Sept. 26, 181 3, in New Jersey, and is the 
daughter of John and Lucy Dennis. She had two 
brothers and two sisters, born in the following order: 
Elizabeth, Henry C, Allen and Emma. She is the 
oldest of her parents' children, and is a member of 
the Congregational Church. 

The publishers of this Album take pleasure in 
presenting to the public of De Kalb County a litho- 
graphic portrait of Mr. Depue, as one of the worthy 
and representative farmers of Northern Illinois. 

L 



ohn H. Merritt, farmer, section 5, Clinton 
■ Township, is from the State of New York. 
His parents, Joseph and Esther (Dean) 
Merritt, were also natives of that common- 
wealth, and passed their lives there. 

The subject of this sketch, who was the 
third in order of birth of ten children, was born in 
Dutchess Co., N. Y., Oct. 6, 1828, and when about 
seven years old went to live with a family by the 
name of Hanford, in Westchester Co., N. Y. He 
lived there until 1849, when he came to De Kalb 
County, this State, and purchased 80 acres in Somo- 
nauk Township. He remained in that township un- 
til the summer of r852, when he moved to the place 
where he now resides, and where he owns 100 acres 
of good land, and five acres of timber in Shabbona 
Township. Mr. Merritt has held the office of Road 
Commissioner, Overseer of Highways, School Direc- 
tor, etc., and politically is identified with the Repub- 
lican party. 

He was first married at Freeland's Corners, this 
county, Oct. n, 1854, to Rhoda S. Fay, a native of 
the State of New York, who died Nov. 12, 1862, in 
Clinton Township. She was the mother of two chil- 




dren, — Charles II. and Fred F. Mr. Merritt was 
again married Oct. 10, 1865, to Mrs. Betsey (nee 
Simpson), widow of Ira Chamberlain, who died in 
Orleans Co., N. Y., Feb. 8, 1857. She had had by 
her first marriage two children, — Clara V. and Kate. 
Mrs. M. was born in Clarendon, Orleans Co., N. Y., 
Dec. 20, 1830, her parents being Ira and Fanny 
(( «>\) Simpson, natives of that State. Mr. and Mrs. 
M., by their present marriage relation, have had two 
children, namely, George and Emma. George died 
when about one year and three months old. 



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j/dam Palm, retired farmer, residing in the 
|l village of Shabbona, is the son of John and 





* Catharine (Flick) Palm (see sketch of John 
Palm), and was born Jan. 7, 1832, in Trumbull 
Co., Ohio. He came to Illinois in 1S46, one 
year later than his father, and began farming 
on section 14, Shabbona Township. He has since 
exchanged this for one on section 22, of 120 acres. 
Besides this, he is at present the owner of three vil- 
lage lots in Shabbona. He retired from the active 
duties of farming life in 1884, moving into the vil- 
lage. In political matters he votes with the Repub- 
lican party. 

He was married at Paw Paw, Jan. 1, 1857, to Miss 
Elmina, adopted daughter of David R. and Angeline 
Fuller. Mrs. Palm was born in Geauga Co., Ohio, 
Aug. 14, 1839, and came to this State in 1853. Mr. 
and Mrs. Palm have had one child, a daughter, now 
the wife of Ira E. Stevens and residing in the town- 
ship of Shabbona. 

a*< 

ohn Cain, farmer, section 27, Squaw Grove 
Township, is a son of John and Mary 
ft (McElwain) Cain, who were natives of Ire- 
land and had a family of six children, namely: 
Samuel, John, Eliza J., Margaret, James and 
Joseph H. The subject of this sketch was 
born in Ireland, March 17, 1832, and was about 
eight years old when his parents emigrated with their 
family to America. He lived at home until about 
26 years of age, and in 1856 came to De Kalb 




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County, first settling in Paw Paw Township, next in 
Somonauk Township, and in 1865 in Squaw Grove 
Township, where he now has 119 acres of land, all 
of which is in cultivation. 

He was married in Paw Paw Township Dec. 23, 
1858, to Elizabeth McElwain, a native of Ireland. 
The have five children, — Charles A., Hattie L., 
Mary A , Margaret R. and Fanny J. Mrs. Cain died 
June 21, 1872, in Squaw Grove Township. Mr. Cain 
was again married Feb. 19, 1874, in the same town- 
ship, to Miss Mary J., daughter of Gerrit and Mary 
Brower, and born in Dutchess Co., N. Y., Jan. 28, 
1845. 

Mr. Cain, in his political views, is a Republican, 
and in his district he has held the office of School 
Director. 



J* Christopher, of the firm of Christopher & 
pF^P Jorgensen, dealers in grain, lumber, coal 



and live stock at Lee (on the county line be- 
tween this and Lee Counties), their business 
'J^ house being located in this county, was born 
in Norway, April 7, 1832, and is a son of 
Chris, and Juliane Christopher, natives of that 
country. 

He was reared and educated in his native country, 
where lie learned the carpenter's trade and followed 
it, in Norway and Sweden, until 1855. July 1, of that 
year he emigrated from the latter country to the 
United States, came direct to this State and located 
in Bradford Township, Lee County. He worked at 
his trade and farming until 1S63, when he purchased 
a farm located on section 1, Willow Creek Township, 
that county, and with his family moved on it, and at 
once entered on its improvement and cultivation. 
He subsequently purchased additional land in Alto 
Township, that county, and at present is the owner 
of 200 acres. 

In r867 Mr. Christopher visited his native country, 
where he remained enjoying the hospitality and 
company of his relatives and friends for almost a 
year. He then returned to this country and contin- 
ued his labors on the farm. In 1871, in company 
with Ole Jorgensen Prestegard, he opened the first 
busines house at Lee station under the firm name of 
Christopher & Jorgensen, which relation still exists. 
The firm is widaly and favorably known as enter- 




prising and fair-dealing, and to be composed of men 
of unquestioned integrity, and their business is a 
steady, increasing and prosperous one. Mr. Chris- 
topher was prominently identified with the growth 
and development of the village of Lee, and, his resi- 
dence being in the village, is at the present time one 
of its enterprising business men. 

Mr. Christopher was married in Bradford Town- 
ship, Lee County, Oct. 17, 1857, to Miss Betsy, 
daughter of A. and Annie Aadson. She was born in 
Norway, March 16, 1838, and emigrated to the 
United States in 1854. Of their union, six children 
were born, namely : Juliane, May 23, 1858, married 
Holden L. Reisetter Nov. ir, 1875, and resides in 
Willow Creek Township, Lee County ; Annie, born 
Nov. 13, i860, married Wm. K. Reisetter March 29, 
18S0, also a resident of Willow Creek Township; 
Betsy, born July 26, 1862, married Ole Solomonsen 
June 9, 1881, and resides in the same township; 
Lena, born Aug. 25, 1864; Christina, Feb. 10, 1869, 
and Maria, Oct. 24, 1876. The latter three reside 
at home. Politically, Mr. C. is, and always has been 
since the formation of the party, a Republican. He 
has served as School Director many years, and Trus- 
tee of the village of Lee several years. Religiously, 
he and his family are members of the Lutheran 
Church. 



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•'/(Slfe dward Boyland, farmer, section 4, Clinton 

-•p'sSfV Township, was burn in Ireland, June 14, 

: , T -\' r '8 2 3- His parents, Patrick and Sarah 

Pit (Robinson) Boyland, natives also of that coun- 

I try, passed their entire lives there. 

J When 25 years of age, Edward emigrated to 

the "land of the free and the home of the brave," 

landing in New Orleans, La., and coming soon after 

to Chicago, Ilk In the fall of 1S51 he came to De 

Kalb County and purchased 162 acres of land in 

Clinton Township, on section 4, where he has since 

resided. He now owns 242 acres, most of which is 

good farming land. In politics he is a Democrat. 

and in religion both himself and wife are members of 

the Catholic Church. 

He was married in Chicago, Sept. 17, 1851, to 
Mary A. O'Brien, a native also of " Erin's green isle." 

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The living children of Mr. and Mrs. Boyland are 
three in number, namely, Sarah, James and Cather- 
ine. They have lost to the other world Patrick, Jane, 
E Iward and Mary. 




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arcusA. Bartlett, farmer, residing on sec- 
tion 8, Paw Paw Township, is the owner 
of 80 acres of land. He is a native of 
\ the State of Ohio, and was born in Thomp- 
son Township, Geauga County, Dec 25, 1816. 
His parents, Joseph and Temperance (Pome- 
roy) Bartlett, were residents of Geauga County, 
where the father followed the occupation of a farmer. 

Marcus was brought up on his father's farm in 
Geauga County. He attended the common schools, 
and assisted in clearing 300 acres of land (of the 
timber that grew thereon), and aided in the cultiva- 
tion of the same. 

He was married Jan. 1, 1839, to Miss Mary A., 
daughter of Capt. John and Nancy (Crane) Fowler. 
She was born in Westfield, Hampden Co., Mass., 
Oct, 10, 1S11. In 1840 he and his family emigrated 
from Ohio to this State and located in Bureau 
County, where he was engaged in farming until Feb- 
ruary, 1844. At that time he came to Paw Paw 
Township, this county, and made a claim on section 
9 of that township. He sold his claim the following 
year and purchased the property on section 8, same 
township, on which he has constantly resided to the 
present time. 

Mr. and Mrs. Bartlett have been blessed with five 
children, four girls and one boy. Their record is 
given as follows: Cora was born June 17, 1840, in 
Ohio, is the widow of Joseph Haslett and resides in 
West Paw Paw. Louisa was born in Bureau County, 
this State, Oct. 6, 1842, and died Feb. 24, 1S65. 
The three younger were born in Paw Paw, namely: 
Alice, Oct. ro, 1S46, is the wife of A. E. Garnet, of 
Chicago; Kmma J., May 17, 1849; Albert F., Sept. 
9, 1852. The two youngest are single and reside on 
the homestead. 

Politically, Mr. 15. was a member of the old Whig 
party, but on the organization of the Republican 
party joined it and has always been identified and 
voted with it. He was elected one of the first Hoard 






of Trustees of Paw Paw Township, and has also 
served as Road Commissioner and held various 
school offices. 

Mr. and Mrs. Bartlett united with the Methodist 
Episcopal Church in early lite, ami have been con- 
no led with that denomination at Fast Paw Paw fur 
many years, of which Mr. B. has served as Class- 
I. c.ulcr and Steward for over 30 years. 



ames Fulton, merchant at Waterman, Clin- 
;,- ton Township, is a son of Thomas .md 
Elizabeth (Thompson) Fulton, natives of 
Scotland. They emigrated to Canada in 1842, 
where his father died. His mother still resides 
there. They were the parents of six children. 
The mother was married a second time, to a Mr. 
Cole, by whom she had two children, — Robert J. 
Cole, a farmer of Vinton Township, and Mrs. J. A. 
Armstrong, of Somonauk Township. 

J nnes Fulton was the youngest of his father's 
family arid was born in Haldimand Co., Ont., May 
12, 1846. He resided at home, took advantage of 
the opportunities afforded by the common schools, 
attended the High School at Seneca and the Normal 
School at Toronto, and developed into manhood. 
Alter obtaining his majority and leaving school, he 
engaged in tea< fling, which vocation he followed for 
six years, meeting with success. Leaving the 1 hair 
of the teacher, Mr. Fulton turned his attention to 
mercantile pursuits, and engaged in business at Lang- 
ton, Ont. He continued in his business at that 
place for three years, then sold out and came to 
Sandwich, this county. On arriving at the latter 
place he engaged as a clerk and followed tint voca- 
tion for seven months. 

In the winter of 18S1 Mr. Fulton removed to 
Waterman and engaged in general mercantile busi- 
, which he has continued to the present time. 
When he first came to Waterman, he formed a part- 
nership with J. A. Armstrong, which relation existed 
until September, 1884, when Mr. Fulton purchased 
his partner's interest and has since conducted it 
alone. His business is a progressive and successful 
one, and his Stock ample to meet the wants of his 
customers. His annual sales approximate $40,000. 

Mr. Fulton was married Nov. 14, 187 1, in 



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Canada, to Miss Jane E. Gray. She is a daughter 
of George and Jane (Charlton) Gray, natives of 
New York and England respectively. 

Mis. Fulton was born in Portage, N. Y., May 
19, 1X46, and is the mother of eight children by Mr. 
Fulton, namely : George T., horn Aug. t8, 1S72; 
William [., Jan. [4, 1874; Annie E., Oct. 19, 1875; 
Robert I'.., M.i\ 13, 1877 ; Walter S., March 23, 
1879; James T., Sept. 26, 1880; Frederick G., Sept. 
30, 1882, and Ella C, Aug. 25, 1S84. 

The husband and wife are both members of the 
Presbyterian Church. Politically Mr. Fujton is a 
Republican. 

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A. Kellogg, liveryman at Sycamore, was 
born July 10, 1853, in the township of 
Genoa, De Kalb County. His father, Le- 
ander P. Kellogg, was born in the State of Ver- 
mont and came to De Kalb County when a 
young man. He is a pioneer of De Kalb 
County, and married Melissa Hutchinson subsequent 
to his removal to Illinois. He settled where he still 
resides in Genoa Township, and is the proprietor of 
a large and valuable farm, containing more than 200 
acres of finely improved land. 

Mr. Kellogg is the fourth of seven children born 
to his parents. He passed his minority under the 
authority of his parents on the farm, and at the age 
of 21 he made a contract for the control of the stage 
and mail route between Sycamore and Marengo, 
which he managed seven years. In the fall of 1SS1 
he purchased 300 acres of land, two miles east 
of Genoa, in the township of the same name, and 
was a resident there. He is now the owner of 194 
acres, which he rents. After residing on his farm 
two years, he bought a livery stable at Sycamore and 
rented another, situated immediately adjoining, 
where he is engaged in the traffic common to livery 
establishments, keeping about a score of horses, with 
an excellent quality of equipments, and also man- 
ages a feed and sale stable. He also conducts a 
considerable trade in carriages, dealing chiefly in the 
Lewis Cook manufacture, of acknowledged repute. 
During the summer seasons he keeps a hack line in 
operation between Sycamore and Genoa, a distance 
of eight miles, making three daily trips. 

Mi. Kellogg was married Oct. n, 1876, in Genoa, 





to Ida M. Wager; they are the parents of one child, 
Flossie Pearl, born Feb. 10, 1884. Mrs. Kellogg was 
bom Aug. 13, 1858, and is the daughter of Henry 
and Deborah Wager. Her father was born April 19, 
18 19, at Davenport, Delaware Co., N. Y. He be- 
came a pioneer of the State of Illinois in 1837, and 
died in Genoa in 1S75. 

He lived at Genoa for more than 30 years, well 
known throughout the ^county and universally re- 
spected. In the City Weekly, of Sycamore, there 
appeared at the time of his death a sketch of his life, 
in which were mentioned some of his characteristics 
of mind and heart. The following is the tribute re- 
ferred to: 

He successfully battled with the difficulties con- 
nected with a new country, and by diligence and 
economy succeeded in gathering around him an 
abundance of this world's goods. Mr. Wager was 
possessed of fine business ability, and by strict at- 
tention to his own business was enabled to possess 
and enjoy the large property he has left behind him. 
He was a man of sterling integrity, fine tact and no- 
ble sentiment. He died as he had lived (as far as 
we know), without an ememy. Mourned by many 
friends, he passed slowly and gently away, the victim 
of the cruel disease, consumption. Liberal, but un- 
ostentatious, kind, manly and upright, death had no 
terror for him, nor the life across the river nothing 
but anticipated happiness and everlasting rest. To 
the last he lived the golden rule, thinking more for 
others than for himself. Death did not come unan- 
ticipated. Before the cold hand had been placed upon 
him', he had said, calmly and peacefully, "I am 
ready to die." In his death, as in his life, there was 
an example and a lesson. The funeral service was 
held in the M. E. Church, of which he was a mem- 
ber for over 25 years. Rev. Joseph Caldwell preached 
the funeral sermon. A large and sympathetic con- 
gregation assembled in the church to pay their last 
tribute of respect to their friend and neighbor. The 
family circle has lost a husband and father; the 
Church, a brother and friend; the community, an 
honest and faithful citizen. He leaves a widow and 
ten children, some of whom are married and settled 
in life. His happy soul is at rest in the heaven of 
eternal peace. Among his friends and relations 

There is weeping on earth for the lost, 

'1' lie re i- bowing iii grief to the ground, 
15ut rejoicing and praise 'mid the sanctified host, 

Pen- ;i spirit in Paradise found ! 
Though brightness has passed from the earth, 

Yet a star i- new born in the sky, 
And :i soul hath gone home to the land < > f it- birth, 

\\ here are pleasures and fullness of joy. 
And a new harp is strung, and a m-w song is given, 

To the breezes thai float o'er the gardens ofHeaven. 

Mr. Wager was married in 1846 to Miss Mehita- 



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be! Brown, oi Sycamore. She died in 1852, and in 
[856 he married Miss Debora Brown, oi Sycamore, 
sister of his firs) wife, He left a farm of 860 acres, 
improved, and a large amount of personal 
property. His wife and ten children arc living .11 
this date (1885). 

The portraits of Mr. and Mrs. Kellogg appear in 
connection with this sketch. 



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'<fi{ lonzo M. Laport, tanner, residing on sec. 

y 1 1, Paw Paw Township, and owner of 780 

;' acres of land, was born at Sacketl's Harbor, 

^:)a Jefferson Co., N. Y., April 27, 1827. He is a 

J£ son of Narcis and Minerva (Gardner) Laport, 

I of French descent on the father's side. His 

mother traces her descent from the English pilgrims 

who crossed the ocean in the Mayflower. 

Mr. Laport emigrated to this State with his par- 
cuts in 1838. They came by way of the lakes, ar- 
riving in Chicago in June of that year. From the 
latter place they moved to Sugar Grove, Kane 
County, where they remained until 1845, and in 
March of that year came to this county and located 
in Paw Paw Township, on the same section on which 
Mr. Laport at present resides. The country at that 
time was so sparsely settled and markets so remote 
that money was scarce and hard to procure. Split- 
ting rails at 50 cents a hundred, or cutting cord-wood 
at 25 cents a cord, was accepted as a generous re- 
muneration by many hungry applicants. 

Young Laport, in hopes of finding a better remune- 
ration for his labors, went to Racine, Wis., but found 
work scarce in that neighborhood ; and, to satisfy a 
hungry appetite, was compelled to go to work chop- 
ping wood at thirty-seven and a half cents a cord, 
and board himself. Not being able to more than 
make his board at those figures, he moved on to 
Milwaukee. He soon after returned to Paw Paw, 
better contented with a prairie country for a home. 

Mr. Laport enlisted in Co. I, First Regt. 111. 
Vol. Inf., in 1848, to serve in the Mexican War. 
He served in Mexico under Gen. Price, and was 
honorably discharged in October of the same year. 
He then returned to Paw Paw, and in April, 1850, 
he started overland for California. Arriving in that 
State, he spent three years in mining and returned 



tip Paw Paw in 1853, and again engaged in fanning, 
and has continuously followed that vocation until 
the present time. 

The marriage of Mr. Laport to Miss Thirs.i A, 
Hyde occurred Nov. 22. 1855. She is a daughter ol 
James and Ruth (Corbin) Hyde, and was born in 
Brazier Township, Franklin Co., N. Y., Nov. 2, 1 8 3 S . 
They have six children, four girls and two boys, 
whose record is as follows : Eva H. was born Nov. 
4, 1856, and is the wile of Win. Edwards, resident of 
West Paw Paw, Lee County. Thirsa L., born Sept. 
28, 1858, is the wife of Win. Nesbitt, a resident of 
Paw Paw Township. Frank A. L. was born Nov. 5, 
i860; Maggie E., Oct. t2, 1862; Lucia M., March 
3, r866; James IL, July n, 1873. 

Mr. Laport, by industry and good management, 
has act umulated a competency. His push and 
pluck, together with his good judgment, has accom- 
plished a determination formed in early years; arid, 
looking back over the trials of the past and compar- 
ing them with the present, he has the satisfaction of 
knowing that he and his good help-meet overcame 
adversity, and to-day enjoy the fruits of honest, 
energetic endeavor. He and his wife (lot Mr. 
Laport is one who believes in attributing to the 
good wile her share in the honors won) have accu- 
mulated a luge property. He has one of the lai 
and best stocked farms in De Kalb" County, with 
good residence and outbuildings, and to-day they sit 
by the fireside of content surrounded with plenty. 

Mr. L., politically, has voted with the Republican 
party ever since its organization in 1856. He has 
never sought an office, but accepted the office of 
Road Commissioner and held the same four terms. 




ohn A. McCormick, proprietor of the Shab- 
£ bona House and dealer in live stock, is a 
native of Ireland. He was born in the 
county of Tipperary, Max- 7, 1842. His par- 
ents, Daniel and Mary (Farrell) McCormick, 
emigrated with their family to Upper Canada 
1853; in 1855 they removed to Chicago; in the 
spring of 1S59 to Paw Paw Township, this county ; 
and the following year John A. went to Texas, where 
he was employed at railroading, at Galveston and 
near Houston. 

In the spring of 1861, after the breaking out of 



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the late war, lie made his escape to the North, re- 
turning to his home. In August, 1862, at Shabbona, 
he enlisted as a private in Co. E, 105th 111. Vol. Inf., 
which was attached to the Army of the Cumberland 
under Gen. Thomas, and was in all the engagements 
participated in by his company till he was dis- 
charged, at the expiration "f his term of enlistment, 
in June, 1S65. 

He then engaged in firming, in Clinton Township, 
this county, until December, [872, when he came to 
Shabbona and erected the " Shabbona House," which 
he has conducted as a hotel to this date. Although 
it is the onlv hotel in the place, it is well kept, and 
the proprietor succeeds well in his business as land- 
lord. 

Mr. McCormick was married at Aurora, 111., April 
24, 1870, to Miss Julia Cargan, daughter of James 
and Bridget (Lalway) Cargan. She was born in the 
county of Meath, Ireland, Aug. 23, 1845, and emi- 
grated to America with her uncle, Peter Lalway, in 
iS=;S. They have a family of six children living, all 
girls, viz. : Mary Elizabeth, born in Clinton, 111., 
Feb. r6, 187 1; Nellie, same place, Sept. 12, 1872; 
Treasa, born May 13, 1874, died five days afterward ; 
Eva, born Feb. 9, 1876, at Shabbona; Lucy, born 
March 10, 1879, died Aug. 31, following ; Kate, born 
May 10, 1SS0; Martha, Dec. 23, 1882, at Shabbona ; 
and Julia, same place, Feb. 3, 1884. 

Mr. McCormick is a member of the Village Hoard 
of Trustees, and an officer of T. S. Terry Post, No. 
463, G. A. R. In politics he is a Democrat, and in 
religion both himself and wife are members of the 
< latholic Church. 




illiam Colton, farmer, section 17, Clinton 
Township, is a son of Reuben and Rhoda 
Jltfefn " (Law) Colton, who were natives of Massa- 
vlr^cA c ' ulselts and Connecticut respectively, and 
settled in New York State, where they reared 
a family of 1 1 children, — Eunice, Flavia, Timo- 
thy, Orrel, Clinton, Oramel, Betsey, Martin, Laura, 
William and Daniel. 

The tenth in the above family, the subject of this 

sketi h, was bom in Tompkins Co.,N. Y., Oct. 4, t8i I. 

lie was educated at tin- common school, and he 

continued to live in his native count] till [846, when 



he came to Kane Co., 111., and resided in Sugar 
Grove Township three years. In 1S49 he can 
this county and purchased 50 acres of land in Clin- 
ton and Shabbona. Townships, settling where lie still 
makes his residence. At present he is the owner of 
88 acres in this county, eight of which is in timber. 

In regard to political issues Mr. Colton acts with 
the Republican party. He has been Ovcrsci ol 
Highways and School Director. Both himself and 
wife aremembers ol the s t id-Advent Chun h. 

He was married in Dryden, Tompkins Co., N. Y., 
Aug. 3, 1837, to Lucinda, daughter of Aimer and 
Mary (Todd) Emery, natives of New England. She- 
was born in Tompkins Co., N. Y., Aug 16, 1S18. Mr. 
and Mrs. C. have had nine children, namely : Lovina, 
Lucretia (deceased), Sarah A., Maria, Franklin, W. 
Luther, Samuel C. (deceased), Carrie L. and Charles 
Wesley. Mr. and Mrs. Emery have also had nine 
children, — Stephen, Lucinda, Lucretia, Mary A., 
Franklin, Frederick, Hiram, Sarah and Eleazer. 



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fames L. Adams, fanner, section 7, Paw Paw 

- Township, (P. O., East Paw Paw) has 60 

^ acres of land. He was born in Boston, 

Mass., in April, 1814, and is the son of Albe-^ 

gence and Catharine Adams. He lost his 

parents in early youth; left Boston in 1824 

and removed to Otsego Co., N. Y. From the latter 

place he removed to Allegany County, and from there 

to Chicago, I'll., in 1836. He spent a few months as 

clerk in a drug-store in that city, and in the fall of 

that year removed to Aurora. He opened the first 

general store on the east side of that town, and con 

tinned in business there two years, and then he went 

to Sugar Grove, Kane County, where he was engaged 

in farming. 

He was married in Sugar Grove, in March, 1S39, 
to Martha J. Barnes, daughter of Jabez and Man 
Barnes. Nine children were born to them, — live 
sons and four daughters : Alfred, born June 16, 1840, 
married and is living in Oregon; Lucina, born A tj 
5, 1842, died aged two years; Martha J., bom April 
20, 1844, is the wife of Henry S. Griffeth,of Webster, 
Iowa; Jabez A., born 1 *< t. 24, [846, married Ellen 
Persons and resides in [owa : John Q.,born April 3, 
1848, lives in Lehigh, Iowa ; ECate.bom ^.ug. 3. 1849, 

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with her brother in Dakota; Robert A., horn 
Dei [o, 1852, married Lizzie Edwards and lives in 
\i .:: \ \., bom Feb. 1 o, 1854, « ife of Spi n< 1 1 
Griffeth, of Paw PawTownship; Douglass A., bom 
Oct. 23, 1S56, married Miss Lake and lives in 1 1 
ta; Sarah F., horn Aug. 9, 1858, resides in Milling- 
ton, 111. ; Mrs Adams died April 29, 186 

Mr. Adams moved to Shabbona Grove in 1849, 
where he was engaged in merchandising about four 
years. He then removed to East Paw Paw and con- 
tinued in the same business till 1S50, when he went 
to California. He spent three years in that State, 
during which time lie was engaged in mining and in 
using justice as a frontier 'Squire. He returned 
to De Kill' < lountj in 1862. 

He was married again March 3, 1864, -in Greens- 
town, 111., to Mrs. Harriet Firkins, widow of Asahel 
Firkins, and daughter of James H. and Hannah 
(PrestonJ Miller. Mrs. Adams was horn in Monroe 
Co., Mil h., Jan. 25, 1823. One child was horn of 
their union, March 26. 1865, a daughter named Nellie 
A. Soon alter his hist marriage Mr. Adams engaged 
in farming on his present farm. In his religious 
views he favors the Unix ersalists. In politics he is 
a Democrat. 




eorge Jackson, dealer in general hard- 
ware, stoves, tinware, farm machinery and 
barbed wire at Shabbona, was the first man 
to open a tin shop in the village named. He 
opened his shop in March, 1874, and contin- 
ued the same for about .1 year, « hen he" closed 
In ( >< tober, [876, he resumed his business at 
that point, putting in a Stock of general hardware, 
stoves and tinware, and has carried on the business 
1 ontinually ever since, covering a period oi about nine 

In 1S81, Mr. Jackson began dealing in farm 
machinery, making a specialit) of McCormick's ma- 
chines and the Bassett and Ottawa w agons. He has 
continued in the latter line until the present time. 
His stoi k on hand averages ,"ia,ooo, and his business 
is a steadily increasing and prosperous one. 

Mr. Jackson is a ion of Jonathan and \1 ary (Wilds) 
Jai kson, and was born in Si henei tady, N. V., Sept. 
22, [850. lie received a common-scl I edi 




in his native citj and early in life learned the tinner's 
trade. In r 870 he came to this count] and Id 

at Shabboi Gro He opened the | :er tin shpp 

of that place and continued the same until 1872, at 
the time the village of Shabbona was started. For 
1 vi' 1 /ears from that time he was engaged ill farming, 
and then located in Shabbona and opened a shop, as 
before stated. 

Mr. Jackson was married at Shabbona, Oct. 16, 
1X7 j, to Miss Camelia E., daughter of Nicholas and 
Maria (Quilhot) Kittle. She was bom at Shabbona 

Grove, Dec. 5, 1S50. Three children constitute the 

issue of their union, — one 50n and two daughters. 

Theii record is as follows: Bertie was bom Jan. 24, 
1874; Ethel, Oct. 14, [883; and Lizzie,July 22, 1881. 
Politically, Mr. Jackson is a believer in and sup- 
porter of the principles of the Republican party. 



'Ipfcenry W. Leifheit, " mine host " of the Clin- 
■-Jvf; ton House at Waterman, is the son of 
Henry and I'rederiea (Hartman) Leifheit. 
m They were natives of Germany and emigrated 
i to the United States in 1852, settling in York- 
ville, Kendall County, this State. The follow- 
ing spring, 1S53, they came to this county and located 
in Somonauk Township, where they resided for two 
, and then returned to Kendall County. Four 
years later they returned to Somonauk, resided there 
two years and then moved into Clinton Township, 
where they are at present residing. They were the 
parents of nine children : Henry W., August, William, 
Fred, Herman, Caroline, Alvina, Anna and Minnie. 
Henry W. Leifheit was bom in Germany Dee. 4, 
1840, and was 12 years of age when he crossed the 
01 in with his parents. He remained with them on 
the farm, assisting his father in its cultivation and 
taking advantage of the opportunities afforded by the 
common schools, until he attained the age of maturity. 
( >n reaching that age, he rented a farm in this county, 
on his own responsibility, and mccessfully cultivated 
thi one for four years. His next move was to Iro- 
quois County, this State, where he bought a farm, on 
which he resided for seven years. Selling his farm, 
he purchased a hotel in the village of Ashkum, that 
county, and for one and a half years was engaged as 
landlord, of the same. He then sold his hotel and 



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came to Clinton Township and engaged in the 
saloon business. He continued in the latter busi- 
ness for three years, until 1X77, then sold and 
purchased the hotel at Waterman, of which he is at 
present proprietor. Flis hotel is known as the "Clin- 
ton House," and is conducted in a manner entirely 
satisfactory to his guests. He is as genial and gen- 
tlemanly as one could wish to meet, and the pains 
he takes to attend to the wants of his guests and 
make their stay at his hotel pleasant is appreciated, 
as instanced by his constantly increasing business. 

Mr. Leifheit was united in marriage in Oswego, 
Kendall Co., this Slate, Nov. 25, i860, to Miss Jo- 
anna Wollenweber, daughter of Earnest and Hattie 
VVollenweber, natives of Germany, in which country 
her father died. Her mother came to this country 
with her children, in 1857. They had nine children, 
namely: Earnest, Augusta, Henry, William, Joanna, 
Charles, Minnie, Carrie and Eureka. 

Mrs. Leifheit was born in Germany Dec. 30, 1S40, 
and came to the United States with her mother in 
1857, as stated. She is the mother of 10 children 
by Mr. L., namely: Willie, born July 16, 1862; 
Emma, Dec. ir, 1863; George W., April 10, 1865; 
Albert, Aug. 26, 1867; Ida, Jan. 16, 1870; Millie, 
March 21, 1872; Emmett, Feb. 4, 1874; Delia, 
March 3, 1877; Carrie, Aug. 4, 1879; and Jessie 
M., Dec. 22, i88r. William, Emma anil Ida are 
deceased. 

Mr. Leifheit is a member of Lodge No. 580, I. O. 
O. F., and politically is identified with the Dem- 
ocratic party. 



ELharles H. Low, deceased, oldest son and 
Ig5l|r second child of William R. and Lydia 



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{(?/* "^ (Christy) Low, was born in Mariposa, Vic- 
pj& toria Co., Ont., Oct. 4, 1855. He died at 
1^ Sandwich, Jan. 10, 1SS4. Although the rec- 
{ ord of his brief career must be wholly memo- 
rial, it must also be typical, and pre-eminently valu- 
able from the traits which characterized him and 
from what he achieved. From the beginning of his 
conscious existence lie was an extraordinary 'child. 
His love for learning commenced with his under- 
standing of the existence of knowledge, and even in 
his earliest school days his intellect flashed like a 



gem in a less brilliant setting. All branches of study 
delighted him, and while he attained wonderful prog- 
ress in science and Latin, he reveled in the field of 
mathematics, which was the element of his nature, 
in the curriculum of instruction. His mind was in- 
herently systematic, and its development was self- 
constructed step by step, advancing like a mathe- 
matical series. He was the possessor of uncommon 
powers of demonstration, and the rapidity with which 
he reached his conclusions proved alike the clearness 
of his perceptions and the accurate methods of his 
mental operations. The testimonials of his teachers 
express a uniform estimate of the quality of his in- 
tellect and his remarkable precocity. Without excep- 
tion he impressed his instructors, not only with his 
superior abilities but also with the sterling worth of 
his character, even in his earliest boyhood. His 
parents, brothers, sisters and other family relatives 
were regarded by him with the tenderest considera- 
tion, and no instance is remembered by them in 
which he wavered or was recreant to the deep and 
abiding home love which was the predominating 
excellence of his character. 

He came to Illinois with his parents in 1856, and 
was then less than a year old. He lived with them 
at Shabbona Grove until the age of 1 1 years, and 
from 1866 until 1869 lived at Piano. Previous to the 
date when his father became a resident of Sandwich, 
he had only the advantages of the public schools ; 
but he waited not on opportunity. He utilized every 
privilege that presented itself, and while his waking 
hours were crowded with effort he paid grateful 
homage to all to whom he believed himself indebted 
for assistance in his march of progress. There was, 
in his composition, no room for the exercise of evil 
proclivities toward any one. He loved, trusted and 
believed in all with whom he was brought in contact, 
and he received from others measure running over 
of that which he gave. He was the object of -un- 
qualified affection and unrestricted confidence, and 
was believed in implicitly by all who came to know 
him intimately. 

When he entered the school taught .it Sandwich 
by A. J. Sawyer, now an attorney at Lincoln, Neb., 
he was less than 12 years of age, a frail lad with 
locks yet in their boyish fairness; he was found to 
possess a comprehensive understanding of Robin- 
son's Higher Arithmetic and Algebra, Greene's Eng- 
lish Grammar, of Philosophy and History and the 



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commonei English branches, in which he passed a 
satisfactory examination and was placed in the High 
ment. Mr. Sawyer says of him : "For 
four years lie was rarely, if ever, absent from his seat. 
He was not only brilliant in scholarship, mastering 
the most difficult studies with the greatest ease, but 
In- w is exemplary in deportment, manly in conduct, 
generous in impulse and kind and accommodating to 
all hi- 1 lassmates." These were the traits that char- 
acterize his whole life. 

Mentally, he was equipped for a business life at 
16, and in 1X72 he became an office hoy in the em- 
ployment of the Sandwich Manufacturing Company 
and rose by virtue of merit in si\ years to the posi- 
tion of confidential clerk. The route by which he 
attained his preferment need not be outlined The 
fact of the achievement is its own explanation. 
rhrough one year he was the assistant of J. Phelps 
Adams, Secretary of the Company ; and let it be re- 
marked in passing, that while the natural traits of 
" Charlie " were so unusual, it must still be remem- 
bered that the associations and influences in which 
his business qualities developed were of rare type and 
contributed largely to his advancement. The oppor- 
tunities he enjoyed through the years of his personal 
relations with the gentleman named were of incalcu- 
lable advantage in shaping his career. He went 
early in [883 to Kansas City as manager of the 
southwestern department of the company's interests. 
In August, 1 SS3, Inning been offered a responsible 
position by William Deering, of Chicago, which he 
thought would eventually afford him greater scope 
for work and achievement, with reluctance and re- 
gret on the part ol the 1 ompany — his employer from 
childhood— and himself, he resigned his position at 
Kansas Cit) .md entered the services of Mr. Deering 
in a responsible place in his great agricultural works 
at ( hi. ago. :\t 1. 1 Peering had the highest appreciation 
of his charac ter and abilities. Some weeks later, he 
started lor ( Iregon, California and the far West in be- 
half of his employer. He took leave of his home and 
friends with reluctance. The way seemed long and 
the burdens onerous. It was afterward remembered 
that the face, always worn with intense mental strain, 
was unusually sharpened, and that the hitherto tire- 
less, indomitable spirit faltered in view of its impend- 
ing labors and fatigues, lint no one guessed that he 
stood, even then, within the mystic shadow of the 
unseen world. He was seized with malarial illness 




at Salt Lake City, and though he received even care 
and attention from friends to whom he was as dear 
as their own, his instincts drew him resistlessly back 
to the home at Sandwich. Following are the last 
words he traced with the hand that had inscribed 
countless loving messages to the loved ones under 
the home roof tree : 

Salt l. ike City, Utah, 1 >ec, 28, 18183. 

Dear Folks: 

I am getting better, but do not get an appetite 
as I should, and I am going to wait here for it. 
The doctor says I can go homeeass enough now, but 
1 think it is too long a ride to take on an empty 
Stomach, and so shall wait until I eat better. Will 
then go to Sandwich and try your cooking. Am 
better this \. m. than any time yet, and it will only 
be a few days before 1 start. 

Yours, etc., C. II. Low. 

And he came, even though he knew thai to 
come would in all likelihood be at the risk of 
his sole chance for recover). But he took it, and he 
kept the holid.n of the opening year in the home he 
had craved to see once more with an irresistible 
longing. Hope never faltered or grew dim while 
consciousness lasted; but the remorseless fever sap- 
ped his life forces, and though the encroachments of 
the grim guest were contested inch by inch with even- 
device of science and love, the splendid intellect fell 
at last in ruin, and the brave heart became still. He 
was borne away to that house " whose curtain never 
outward swings" with decorous ceremonial; but 
neither the fragrance nor the beauty of the wealth of 
flowers, nor the sympathy of the friendly throng, could 
soften the pang of irreparable loss. 

The manhood of Charles H. Low began where his 
boyhood ended. After that he was no more a child. 
lie answered to the claims of society, morality and 
the c ustoms whic h govern the business world with an 
alacrity that finds few parallels in a generation, lie 
was a member of Meteor Lodge, No. 283, at Sand- 
wich, of Sandwich Chapter, No. 107, R, A. M., and 
of Aurora Commanders - , No. 22, Knights Templars. 
Each of the Masonic organizations to which he be- 
longed passed the usual resolutions when he died, 
and the funeral exercises were conducted b\ the 
Knights' of Aurora Commanders' and the Masonic 
societies of whi< h he was .1 member. They svere 
held in the Congregational church, where he had rent- 
ed a pew from 1877, about the time he became of age. 



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He died when a little more than 28 years old, as 
we note the succession of years, but 

[flivea be long which answer life's great ends, 
Where shall we fix the sum thai numbered thine? 

The portrait of the subject of this sketch, which 
appears on another page, is inserted in this volume 
by his parents as a perpetual monument to the 
memory of their beloved son. 



r h'fejv.oii. Robert Hampton, farmer, residing on 
'. y&cb sec lion 7, Paw Paw Township, and owner 
.,,/*' of 369 acres of land (postoffice, East Paw 
& Paw), was born in Ontario, Can., March 27, 

iiS2i, and is a son of James and Clarissa (Mi - 
Carty) Hampton. He emigrated from Canada 
and settled in Adams County, this State, in 1838, 
where he resided until 1846, and then came to this 
county, locating in Paw Paw Township. 

Mr. Hampton was married in Hancock County, 
this State, Jan. r, 1843, to Miss Lydia, daughter of 
Frederick and Catharine (Walters) Zemmer. She 
was bom in Fairfield Co., Ohio, July 16, 1818. 
Eight children constitute the issue of their union, 
and their record is as follows : Hiram D., born March 
7, 1844, died Aug. 13, 1S5S; William S., born Oct. 
12, 1846, was educated for the ministry and ordained 
by the Congregational Church: he married Celestia 
A. Wood, and is the Principal of the Congregational 
Academy at Franklin, Neb.; Joseph P., born Feb. 28, 
•1S4S, married Catharine J. Nicholson, and resides in 
Green Co., Iowa; Marietta, born Feb. 23, rS5o, is 
residing with her parents ; Robert F., born Feb. 3, 
[852, married Elizabeth C. Dienest, and resides in 
Paw Paw Township; Riley J., born Sept. 29,1854, 
married Sarah A. Henderson, and resides in Lee, 
Lee County; Lydia A., bom Sept. 7, 1857, married 
Thomas P. Dalton, of Lee ; Harriet D., born May 21, 
i860, married Samuel M. Henderson, a resident of 
Clinton Township, this county. As an item of family 
history, we mention the fact that all the children ex- 
1 epl two were teachers. They all have a good edu- 
cation, procured at the common schools and under 
parental instruction, and are well-to-do in life. 

Mr. Hampton is a gentleman possessing fine ex- 
ecutive ability, which fact the citizens of his township 
and of the county were not slow to discover and ap- 

*§s§«f« ^^ — %^'n 





predate, and have kepi him in office almost con- 
stantly since his residence in Paw Paw Township. 
He was elected Supervisorof his township at an early 
day, and at the expiration of his term was re-elected, 
has held the office 12 terms, and is the present in- 
cumbent of the same. He has served as Township 
Trustee for 16 years and Road Commissioner several 
years; was elected Justice of the Peace, served seven 
years, and is the present incumbent of that office. In 
1866 he was elected to the Illinois Legislature from 
the 57th Representative District, on the Republican 
ticket, and served on several important committees. 
In 1873 he was supported by the farmers for the 
office of Treasurer of De Kalb County, and was 
elected by a good round majority. Politically, Mr. 
Hampton is a zealous, working Republican. In 
early life he was a Democrat, but left that party in 
T854, and on the organization of the Republican 
party in 1856 he cast his vote for John C. Fremont, 
and has since been identified with that party. 

Religiously Mr. Hampton, together with several of 
his family, are members of the Methodist Episcopal 
Church. 



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•jbyrenius Bailey, farmer owning 16S acres 

jijSfc^fes on section 33, Shabbona Township and 

resident thereon, was born in Schoharie Co., 

"2l N. Y., June 21, 1S23. His parents, Asa and 

'V- Anna (Mc Neil) Bailey, moved from Schoharie 

to Saratoga County, his native State, when 

Cyrenius was about 13 years old, and in the latter 

county he was reared and educated, receiving his 

education in the common schools. 

He was married in Saratoga County, in Ballston, 
the county seat, Dec. 14, 1853, to Miss Jane A., 
daughter of Jesse and Amanda (Pawling) Morey, 
descendants from the Revolutionary patriots. She 
was born in Ballston, March 15, 1826. 

Mr. Bailey came to this State, witli his family, in 
1S56, spent one year at Paw Paw, Lee County, and, 
in 1857, moved on the land on which he is at present 
residing. The land was in its natural state, and Mr. 
Bailey entered at once upon the laborious task of im- 
proving it, confident the future development of the 
country would add greatly to the value of his prop- 
erty, and determined to establish a home for himself 



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and family. How well he has sun ceded the condi- 
tion and value "I his farm will testily. 

Mi. and Mis. Bailey an- the parents of seven chil- 
dren, two living and five deeeased. The record is 
as follows: Anna A., horn Sept. 24, 1854, is the 
wife of George B. Flinders, a resident of Cherokee 
Co., Iowa. Emma, born Aug. 3, 1856, married Byron 
Hinds, and moved to Iowa: she had two children, 
and died Jan. [2, [882. Asa, horn Oct. 30, 18518, 
lives in Cherokee Co., Iowa. Hattie M., horn May 
20, 1861, died March 14, 1SC2. Jennie, bom April 
7, 1863, died April 30, 18S4. Edwin C.,bom Man 1) 
26, 1865, died Feb. 23, 1867. Clara, horn Nov. 1, 
1X1.7. died Aug. 21, 1X68. 

Mr. Bailey, politically, is a Republican. He has 
been Assessor two years, and has held other minor 
offices. Religiously, he and his wife are both mem- 
bers of the Baptist Church. 



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^'PSm 1 - ^ P° st - farmer, section 3, Shabbona Town- 
I, ship, was born in Potsdam, St. Lawrence 
Co., NT. Y., April 20, 1826, his parents being 
John and Jerusha (Fuller) Post, and was 
reared on the farm. He emigrated to Illinois 
in the spring of 1850, passed the ensuing sum- 
mer in Kane Co., 111., and in the fall came to John- 
son's Grove, this county. In 1865 he purchased a 
farm of 90 acres and it now comprises 254 acres, in 
Shabbona Township. 

Mr. Post has been an active citizen in local inter- 
ests. He has been a member of the Masonic lodge 
at Shabbona for 20 years; was a Whig in early life, 
and has been a steadfast Republican since theorgan- 
ition of that part} ; and in religion he (as well as 
his wife) is a member of the Congregational Church 
ol Shabbpna. 

He was married April 26, 1854, in Aurora, 111., to 
Miss Mariett, daughter of Hanford and Dorcas 
(Perry) Hoselton. She was born at Lyme, Jefferson 
Co., N. Y., Nov. 10, 1833. Mr. and Mrs. Post have 
hid two sons and three daughters, as follows: Ida 
M , bom April 6, 1857, is now the wife of A. |. 
Chandler, of Plymouth Co., Iowa ; Emery A., born 
Man h 2, 1859, married Lineaetta Stimpson and lives 

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in Shabbona Township; Kddie M., born Nov. 29, 
1 861, died March 28, 1 S64 ; Elma I)., born Nov. 1, 
1 16g ; and Mabel E., Oct. 29, 1873. 




-oftiLeje/tsss-* 



K«J — »^2^3OT»« 





ewis Nelson, farmer, section 26, Squaw 
Grove Township, is a son of Nels and Ane 
(Kirstine) Jepson, who passed their lives in 
their native country, Denmark, having three 
^ children, — -Sarah, Jeppe and Lewis. The sub- 
ject of this sketch was born in Denmark, Jan. 7, 
[844, lived there till 1868, came to America and for 
two and a half years worked out on a farm in Som- 
011. ink Township; next he worked two years in 
Whiteside Co., 111., and then in 1X73. he returned to 
Denmark on a visit for about two months. He came 
again to the " land of opportunity " and first bought 
80 acres of land in Squaw Grove Township, which 
he afterward sold, and purchased i59acres, which he 
now occupies, on section 26, as above mentioned. 
Most of his place is in a good state of cultivation. 

He was married in Chicago Oct 6, 1877, to Chris- 
tiane Johnson, who was born in Denmark, March 19, 
1856, and they are the parents of two children, — 
Agnes L. and Harvey M. 

In his political views Mr. Nelson is a Republican. 

-i-««M^tew* +* 





illiam Harper, deceased, was a pioneer of 
Paw Paw Township. He was bora in Ar- 
Vfv=*p 8yl e > Washington Co., N. Y., June 19, 
"^siy 1815. When 13 years of age he removed 
with his parents, James and Elizabeth (Black) 
Harper, to Sterling, Cayuga Co., N. Y., was 
brought up on a farm and in 1844 emigrated to Illi- 
nois, arriving in Paw I'aw Township, De Kalb County, 
in September of that year. He entered 120 acres of 
Government land on section 14, and subsequently 
added to it by pun hase till he had 720 acres at the 
time of his death, which occurred July 6, 1881, at 
the old farm. 

Mr. Harper was married in Sterling, N. Y., April 

25, 1848, to Sarah Irwin, daughter of John and Jane 

I (Kirk) Irwin. Mrs. Harper was born in the town of 

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Argyle, Washington Co., N. Y., Aug. 16, 1814. Im- 
mediately after their marriage they made their home 
in Paw Paw Township, 111. There were five chil- 
dren born of their union, four hoys and one girl, 
Mary [., born April 14, 1849; William, Sept. 1,1850, 
died Jan. 11, 1857; Thomas, born June 28, 1852, 
married Katie Santee, who died Jan. 27, 1885 : he is 
a resident of Wyoming, Lee Co., 111.; James, born 
Dec. 2, 1853, married Bertha Patrick, and lives at 
East Paw Paw; John K.,born July 15, 1856, married 
Mary C. Davis, and lives at the old homestead in 
Paw Taw Township. 

Mr. Harper was a Democrat in early life, but on 
the formation of the Republican party he joined 
that organization, and continued to vote that ticket 
while he lived. He was a member of the United 
Presbyterian Church of Ross Grove, and was a very 
liberal contributor toward the building of the church, 
and subsequently to its support. The estate has 
been divided among the heirs. His estimable wife 
survives him and makes her home at the old home- 
stead. She also is a member of the United Presby- 
terian Church. 



^enry Husk, farmer, owning 157 acres lo- 
cated on sections 22, 23, 26 and 27, Shab- 
bona Township, and residing at Shabbona vil- 
lage, was born in Auburn, Cayuga Co., N. Y., 
Jan. 7, 1835. He is a son of Daniel and Cath- 
arine (Quilhot) Husk, with whom he resided 
until 1848. 

Mr. Husk received a good common-school educa- 
tion in his native State, and assisted his father until 
the year 1848. During that year he, with his 
brother William, emigrated to this State and June 9 
located at Shabbona Grove. Some time afterward 
he purchased a farm located on section 16, Shabbona 
Township. He cultivated and improved this place 
for a time, then moved on a farm located on section 
1 1, same township. He followed the occupation of 
a farmer on the latter place until 1876, during which 
time he succeeded in putting the farm in a good till- 
able condition. He then sold his farm and subse- 
quently purchased the land he owns on sections 22, 
23, 26 and 27. On Feb. 28 of that year named, he 
moved to Shabbona village. 

Politically, Mr. Husk is a Republican. He has 





held several important local offices, and is the pres- 
ent Deputy Sheriff, which office he also held in 1864. 
He was also Collector of taxes five years and Con- 
stable 12 years. 

Mr. Husk was married in Shabbona Grove, Jan. r, 
1855, to Miss Mary J., daughter of John and Cath- 
arine Palm. She was born in Southington, Trum- 
bull Co., Ohio, Sept. 3,1838, and is the mother of 
two children by Mr. H., namely: Elizabeth M. was 
born Oct. 14, 1858, and is the wife of Lloyd Bous- 
lough, a resident of Shabbona village; MaryB., born 
Nov. 8, i860, is residing with her parents. Relig- 
iously, Mrs. Husk and her daughter Mary are mem- 
bers of the Congregational Church. 



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sahel B. Byers is one of the most extens- 
ive farmers and stockmen in the township 
of South Grove, and resides on section 10. 
He was born Oct. 22, 1831, in Delaware Co., 
N. Y. James Byers, his father, was a native 
of Scotland, and a farmer by profession ; he 
came to the American continent when he was 21 
years of age, bringing with him his wife, to whom he 
was married just before taking a final leave of his 
native land. He came to De Kalb County in 184 1, 
and purchased several hundred acres of land in 
South Grove Township, where he was one of the 
pioneer settlers. His death occurred Dec. 9, 1874, 
when he was 77 years of age. Jane (Scott) Byers, 
the mother, was the child of Scotch parents, and was 
a most valuable acquisition to the early social ele- 
ment of the township where she settled with her 
husband. She died Nov. 7, 1873, when she was 78 
years old. They became the parents of six children, 
four of whom are yet living, and all are residents of 
the State of Illinois. Three live in De Kalb County. 
Mr. Byers is the fifth child of his parents, and was 
ten years of age when they came to Illinois. In 
their early days the order was hard work ami lim 
education, but, while the difficulties held sway to a 
certain extent and proved a great inconvenience, 
they tended to mature judgment and convert experi- 
ence into education of a valuable character. Mr. 
Byers was married Feb. 21, 1856,'in May field Town- 



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ship,' to Mar) A. McRae She is the daughtei o( 
Christopher and Celinda (Phelps) McRae, respect- 
ivel) of Scotland and New England. After their 
marriage, they removed to Ontario, Can., where the 
liter was born, Nov. n, 18)4. When she was 
15 years old, her parents came to De Kalb County, 
and she resided with them until her marriage. Her 
father died in Mayfield Township, in May, 1858. 
Her mother is still living, aged 87 years, and resides 
al Waterloo. Iowa, with a daughter. 

Mr. and Mrs. Byers settled pn a farm which thej 
had previously purchased, consisting of 500 a< res 
of land, and he is now the proprietor of 1.300 aires 
of land, all under improvement, besides a farm of 
190 acres, part of which is included in the village ol 
Kirkland. He is an extensive dealer in sheep, cattle 
and hogs, and takes a leading rank as a breeder of 
Stock and in general fanning. In political faith and 
action Mr. Byers is a Republican and has discharged 
the duties of several local offices in his township. 

The family includes eight children — Christie A., 
lames. Fred, Margaret, Jessie, Frank, Flora and 
Myrtie S. • 

As one of the leading agriculturists in De Kalb 
Countv, and a gentleman altogether worthy the posi- 
tion, we present the portrait of Mr. Byers in this 
volume. 




% 'fltndrew Clapsaddle, farmer, on section 24, 
Paw Paw Township, was born in Herkimer 
snsn Co., N. Y., March 30, 1824. His parents, 
George A. and Nancy (Bellinger) Clapsaddle, 
were of German descent and followed agricul- 
ture. In 1848 he came West to " spy out the 
land," resulting in the purchase of his present farm, 
consisting of 360 acres. At that time, however, he 
relumed East, and moved to his new Western home 
in 1850. He has improved and developed his 
property till he is now ranked among the foremost 
of the wealthy farmers of the county. In his politi- 
cal views he is an old-time Democrat. 

He was married in this county, July 16, 1861, to 
Mis. Mary L. Heustis, widow of Miles Heustis and 
daughter of Alman Ames. Mrs. C. was born in 
Otsego Co., N. Y., Nov. 12, 1830, and died July 22, 
1870, leaving three sons and two daughters, namely, 




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Frank (., bom Nov. 21, [862; Esther A., March 1 1, 
[864; Alman A., Nov. 25, 1865; George F., Nov. 
k), 1S67, and Mary N., June 5, 1870. Mr. Clap- 
saddle was married Lgain June 24, 1875, in Cass < !o. , 
Mich., to Miss Mary Walter, daughter of George 
and Elizabeth (Harter) Walter, who was bom in 
Herkimer Co., N. Y., April 9, 1834. 



■joses Bartlett, who is a fanner on sec tion 
Sk 9, Paw Paw Township, where he has 79 
acres, is one of the pioneers of this part 
* of the county. He was born in the town of 
Hampden, Geauga Co., Ohio, Oct. ti, 1825, his 
parents being Joseph -and Temperance (Pome- 
Bartlett. lie received a common-school edu- 
cation. 

In the fall of 1840 the family emigrated by team 
from Ohio to Bureau Co., 111., where Moses assisted 
his father in conducting the farm until the spring of 
1843, when they removed to Paw Paw Township, set- 
tling on Government land, which is still the residence 
of Mr. Bartlett. 

He was married at Ross Grove, Paw Paw Town- 
ship, June 10, 1S48, to Miss Martha R. Harper, 
daughter of James and Elizabeth (Black) Harper. 
Mrs. P>. was born in the town of Sterling, Oswego 
Co., N. Y., March 19, 1823, and died Oct. 2, 1872, 
leaving one child, Lester A., who was born May 21, 
1849, and in December, 1S71, married Jennie Blair. 
They moved in 1884 to Concordia, Cloud Co., Kan.; 
they have four children — three sons and a daughter. 

Mr. Bartlett, whose name heads this sketch, was 
married a second time Oct. 11, 1873, in Clinton 
Township, this county, to Mrs. Mary Christy, widow 
of John Christy and daughter of James and Jennie 
(Dobbin) McAllister. She was born in Greenwich, 
Washington Co., N. Y., Feb. 6, 1826. By her firsl 
marriage she had the following five children: James 
B., bom Feb. 10, 185 1, died Aug. 29 following; 
Martha J., born Dec. 11, 1853, died Aug. 29, 1854; 
Alpha, bom Aug. 9, 1855, died Sept. 22, 1856; Alice, 
born July 20, 1857, died Aug. 25, 1858; Charles W., 
bom July 26, 1S59, married Maggie Morrow, Jan. 1, 
1884, and resides in West Paw Paw, Lee County. 
Mr. and Mrs. Bartlett have an adopted daughter, 
Eva, who was born Sept. 12, 1S61, and whom they 



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adopted at the age of two years. She is a school- 
teacher by profession. 

In politics Mr. Bartlett is a Republican, and has 
been such since the organization of the party. He 
and his wife are members of the Congregational 
Church of Ross ('.rove, in which society he has held 
the the office of Deacon over 30 years. 



J|.f vando W. White, a farmer on section 27, 
» Shabbona Township, was born in Preble 
llSr Co., Ohio., Jan. 24, 1849, and when three 
years of age his parents, Lemuel and Nancy 
(Morrow) White, removed with him to Boone 
Co., Ind. He was brought up to agricultural 
work and received a common-school education. In 
November, 1S65, he came to Shabbona Township, 
this county, locating at Shabbona Grove. He pur- 
chased his present farm of 100 acres in the spring 
Of 1SS0. 

Mr. White was married at Shabbona Grove, Aug. 
15, 1875, to Annie Lockey. She was the daughter 
uf David and Elizabeth Horn, and was the adopted 
daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Enoch Lockey, natives of 
Whitestown, Ind., and they came to Sandwich, De 
Kalb Co., 111., in 1866. She remained with them 
until her marriage. She is the mother of three chil- 
dren: May, born March 20, 1879; Gracie, born 
April 20, 1881 ; and Jennie, Dec. 17, 1882. The 
mother was born in New York, Nov. 9, 1S55. 

In politics Mr. White has always voted the Re- 
publican ticket. 



Perry, merchant at Waterman, 





•> and Charlotte (Hall) Perry, natives of New 

fYork. They came to this State and settled in 
Aurora in 1853. While on a visit to Water- 
l man, this county, his father was taken ill and 
died. His mother still survives and is a resident of 
Aurora. The issue of their union was eight children, 
namely: Aimer K., Edwin S., Amitta, Harvey O., 
I- 1 ink H., Newton, Man A. and Ella M. 

I ' ink 11. Perry, the subject of this biographical 
notice, was born in Oneida Co., N. Y., Jan. 25, 1845. 



He remained under the parental roof-tree, assisting 
his father on the farm and attending the common 
schools, until he attained the age of manhood. 

Arriving at the age of maturity, Mr. Perry engaged 
as clerk in a store at Aurora, which position he held 
for seven years. Resigning his position, he opened 
a general store at Kaneville, Kane Co., this State. 
He continued in the business at the latter place for 
five years, meeting with success, and then removed 
his stock of goods to Waterman, this countj , the 
date of his removal being the fall of 1879. At the 
latter place he conducts the business at the present 
time, carrying a stock approximating $20,000, and 
does an annual business of about $45,000. Mr. Perry 
may be said to have spent all his past years in the 
mercantile business, at least since maturity; and he- 
is perfectly familiar with all its details. 

He was united in marriage to Miss Eunice O. 
Merrill, Dec. 14, 1874. She is a daughter of Chester 
L. and Seraph S. (Wiswell) Merrill, natives of New 
York. Mrs. Perry was born in Troy, N. Y., June 27, 
1851. 

Mr. Perry is a believer in and supporter of the 
principles and doctrines of the Democratic party. 
He was elected Township Treasurer in the fall of 
T883 and still holds the office. He is a member of 
the Masonic Order. 



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\% eorge H. Clapsaddle, residing on section 
Jj^ 24, Paw Paw Township, and owning 160 
"~£fv3~ acres thereon, is a son of George A. and 
'W* Nancy (Bellinger) Clapsaddle, and was born 
J in Frankfort, Herkimer Co., N. Y., March 17, 
I 182K His father was a farmer by occupation, 
and George was brought up on the farm, alternating 
his labors thereon by attendance at the common 
schools, until he attained the age of 17 years. On 
attaining that age, he was apprenticed to learn the 
shoemaker's trade, which he followed for two years, 
mastered and followed more or less until 1850. Dur- 
ing that year he came to Paw Paw Township, this 
county, and in the fall purchased the farm he at 
present owns and on which he resides. The land 
was in its natural condition, and after purchasing it 
from the Government, Mr. C. at once entered upon 



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its improvement, and by energetic labor has placed 
it in the excellent condition it is in at this time. 

Mr. Clapsaddle was married in Erie Co., N. V ., 
Oct. i, 1855, to Miss Clarissa, daughter of Abram 
and Electa (Whitney) Snook. She was born in 
Lenox, Madison Co., N. Y., June 4, 1832, and is tin- 
mother of the following children: Lelia M., born 

March 12, 1863, died Sept. 4, 1875; Alvin G., I 

July 9, 1866, died Oct. 27, 1867 ; John H., born 
Feb. 20, 1869, died Jan. 9, 1870; Alvin A., born 
March 29, 1871. 

Politically, Mr. C. has been identified with the 
Democratic party all his life. Religiously, Mrs. C. 
is a member of the Baptist Church. 



nomas Harper, farmer and breeder of full- 
blooded Norman horses, is a resident of 
Wyoming, Lee County, has 112 acres, and 
lives on section 11 ; postoffice, West Paw Paw. 
He was born in Paw Paw Township, De Kalb 
Co., 111., June 28, 1852, and is the son of Wil- 
liam and Sarah (Kirk) Harper. He received an 
academic education and was brought up to agricul- 
tural pursuits. 

He was married at East Paw Paw, May 1, 1876, 
to Miss Katie Santee, daughter of James and Caro- 
line (May) Santee. Mrs. Harper was born in Grand 
de Tour, Lee Co., 111., June 23, 1857. Two children 
were born of their union, a daughter and son : Gracie, 
born Dec. 29, 1878, and Benjamin, July 30, 1880. 
Mis. Harper died Jan. 27, 1885. 

Mr. Harper was engaged in farming in Paw Paw 
Township and moved to his present farm Sept. 9, 
1884. In politics he is a Republican. 



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*ohn Houghtby, farmer, section 21, Shab- 
bona Township, was born in Northorsby, 
Lincolnshire, England, Sept. 19, 1819, a 
son of William and Susannah (Hadkins) 
Houghtby. He was by occupation a "gentle- 
man's bailiff." He emigrated to the United 
States in 1876, reaching Shabbona in June, and pur- 
chased his present fine farm, which comprises 240 
acres. 

He was married Dec. 19, 1839, at Ashton-under- 




Line, Lancashire, Eng., to Miss Margaret, daughter 
of John and Bessie (Calvert) Gibson, who was born 
in that sliiie Sept. 5, 1815. They had eight children, 
namely : George, born Oct. 5, 1840, is married and 
lives in Shabbona; Susannah, born July 19, 1843, is 
the wife of John Lightbown, in England; Titus C, 
born June 18, 1845, died July 9, 1874; Charles G., 
born Aug. 6, 1850, married Ettie Abel and resides in 
Shabbona Township; Elizabeth C, bom Dec. 22, 
1852, is the wife of Cornelius Hall, residing in Eng- 
land; Mary A., born March 3, 1855, is the wife of 
Wesley C. Nicholson, of Shabbona; John, born March 
1, 1858, married Elizabeth Stimpson and resides in 
Shabbona Township ; and Sarah J., born March 27, 
1 86 1 , is now the wife of George Ray, of Shabbona. 

Mr. Houghtby and family are members of the 
Methodist Epis< opal Church in Shabbona. 




*«<Dfl 



on. Henry M. Boardman, farmer, residing 

; v'"f7& on section 4, Paw Paw Township, is the 
*'f owner of 437 acres in that township and 320 
A in Pocahontas Co., Iowa. He is the son of 
Charles G. and Submit (Wadkins) Boardman, 
and was born in Pittsford, Rutland Co., Vt», Dec. 12, 
183.. 

When Henry was five years old, his parents moved 
to Rutland, his native county, and he received his 
edui ation in the public and high schools of that plai e. 
His days uf minority were passed on the farm. In 
1854 he came to this State and was employed by a 
marble firm at Joliet for about 15 months. In the 
spring of 1855 he came to Paw Paw Township, this 
county, and pun hased the farm on which he at 
present resides. 

Mr. Boardman was married Feb. 6, 1855,10 Miss 
Caroline, daughter of Wait and Mary (Bacon) Chat- 
terton. She was born in Rutland, Rutland Co.. Vl.. 
Aug. 15, 1833. Two children were born of their 
union: Francis A., May 23, 1862, married George S. 
Hyde, a farmer residing in Paw Paw Township; 
Jennie M., bom March 17, 1867, died Oct. 19, 1867. 
Mrs. Boardman died July 30, 1867, and Mr. B. form- 
ed a second 1natnmoni.1l alliance Now 18, 1868, in 
Paw Paw Township, with Miss Christianna, daughter 
of Norman H. and Catharine (Hart) Powers. She 
was bom in Earl, La Salle County, this State, Feb. 



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22, 1846, and came to this county with her parents 
in 1S48. Four children were the issue of their union, 
namely: Ellen, born Julys, l8 74! Norman H. and 
CatharineS. (twins), born Aug. 10, 1 <S 7 6 ; and Charles 
\V., horn Nov. 11, 1 8S 1 . 

Politically Mr. Boardman is a Republican, and 
has held several important official positions, as well 
as minor offices. In [882 he was elected to the Si. Mr 
Legislature from the 17th District, on the Republican 
ticket, and served in the term of 1882-3, with credit 
to himself and entire satisfaction to his constituents. 
He has served eight terms as Assessor and five terms 
as Supervisor of Paw Paw Township. 

Mr. Boardman is one of those who have accumu- 
lated their possessions through honest industry and 
fair dealing, and is a respected and esteemed citizen 
of the county. He and his wife are both members 
of the Congregational Church at Paw Paw. 



obert H. Harper, deceased, an early 
pioneer of Paw Paw Township, was born in 
the town of Argyle, Washington Co., N. Y., 
June n, 18 1 3, and was the son of James and 
Elizabeth (Black) Harper. He removed to 
Cayuga County in early life, and was married 
March 20, 1S40, to Ann Oswald. Mrs. Harper was 
born in Oswego Co., N. Y., July 10, 1817. They had 
three children: James, born Jan. 2, 1842, married 
Elizabeth Nisbet and lives in Paw Paw Township; 
George, born Aug. 3, 1845, was a soldier of the late- 
war and subsequently of the U. S. regular army ; hg 
died at the age of 24 years; Malcom, born April 3, 
1848, died in infancy. Mrs. Harper died May 30, 
184S, and Mr. Harper was married again Oct. 9, 
1852, in the Township of Victor, De Kalb Count) . to 
Mrs. Ann Anderson, daughter of Robert and Janet 
Brown. Her parents were born in Scotland. Mrs. 
Harper was born in Canada, near Pearth, Oct. 2, 
1 82 1, and came to Illinois in 1850. Four children 
were born of their union: Malcom C, Nov. 7, 1859; 
Anna M., born Feb. 7, 1861, is the wife of John \V. 
Arnold and is a resident of Iowa. Alice M., born 
Dec. 9, 1862, dieel Jan. 16, 1S64; Robert B., born 
Feb. 9, 1867. 

Mr. Harper came to Paw Paw July 20, 1848, at 
which time he purchased the farm on which his 
widow now resides. He had 240 acres of land, and 








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was engaged in farming in Paw Paw continuously to 
the time of his death, which occurred March 28, 
1882. Mr. Harper was a member of the United 
Presbyterian Church, a liberal donor low aid the con- 
struction of the Ross Grove church, and a generous 
supporter of the same lor many years. In politic 3 he 
was .1 Republican. 



* 



'! p :<f.," eorge Henry Read, deceased, a formei 
H'-Sjli resident of Sycamore, and whose portrait 
we present on the opposite page, was born 
April 12, 1826, in the province of New Bruns- 
wick. His paternal grandparents were natives 
of Massachusetts and went to the provinces 
about the date of the Revolutionary War. 

The subject of this sketch was only 12 years 
of age when his parents came to Kane Co., Ill, 
and located in the township of Virgil, where he was 
reared on the farm and attended the public schools. 
In 1852 he went with his brother to Australia, where 
he spent three years in the gold mines. On his re- 
turn from there he settled in Kane County, where he 
was married, in July, 1856, to Adeline, daughter of 
Samuel and Susan (Bannister) Worcester. Her 
father was born six miles from Boston, Mass., and 
accompanied his parents to Vermont when he was 
six years of age. He married a lady of Vermont 
birth, who descended from ancestors of Massachusetts 
origin. Mrs. Read was born Aug. 4, 1832, in West 
Windsor, Vt. When she was nine years of age — in 
1841 — her parents removed to Illinois and became 
pioneers of Virgil Township, Kane County. They 
journeyed hither by stage from Windsor to Troy, 
thence by the Erie Canal to Buffalo, taking steamer 
passage from that city to Chicago, whence they were 
brought by a team to Lily Lake. Her father bought 
a 1 laim, where he built a house and resided nine 
years, when he sold out and bought a second farm 
one and a half miles distant from the first. On this 
he resided until his death in i860. Her mother died 
in January, 1S82. 

Soon after marriage Mr. Read settled near Maple 
Park, Kane County, where he owned a tract of land 
1 ontaining 300 acres. On this he built a frame house 
and other necessary and suitable farm structures. 
In 1865 he bought a similar acreage situated four 
miles from the first and containing a good equipment 



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of buildings. He removed his family thither and it 
formed his field ol operations until December, 1874. 
At that date he disposed of the estate by sale, bought 
four acres of city property at Sycamore, with a resi- 
, and moved there. In 1X7(1 he bought a farm 
on set tion 3 \, S) camore Tow nship, "here he resided 
until his death, April 18, 1883. 

In 1S70 Mr. Read purchased a considerable trad 
of land in Hardin Co., [owa, and in 1882 he bought 
300 acres of wild land in Cherokee Co., Iowa, where 
he erected necessary farm buildings. To these he ga\ e 
considerable personal attention, but never became a 
resident of" the State. 

Mr. Read was a man of excellent traits of charac- 
ter, and possessed qualities which received for him 
general esteem and respect. His leading character- 
istic was a spirit of boundless charity, and he was 
frequently mentioned as a philanthropist. 

Mis Read occupies the homestead at Sycamore. 
She wrote the following lines on the death of her 
husband : 

lie came in youthful vigor 

Ami w 11 1 me for his bride; 

I low glad was 1 in welcome 
Ami go with him in pride 1 

And now 1 see the shadow 

Of heath'- w ing o'er him fall ; 
1 li-i the knell's sad peeling; 

< Per him is spread the pall. 

My stricken heart is bleeding; 

M 3 i\ es «\ itli teais are dim ; 
My life is dark with anguish; 

Earth's joys have flow n with him. 

The neighbor and the stranger 

< 1-aze on with t rouhled sighs. 
Uas ! they mourn the fiat 

That caused the sacrifice. 

But all fades Into nothing 

Beside a w Ife's deep woe. 
And the helpless grief of sisters, 

Ami that his brothers know. 

But calm the heart's « lid tumult 
Subdue the murmuring will — 

In meekness bear the chastening 
And bid the tempest still. 



^oooes 




s^jj^flJK ohn Dixon, farmer, section 7, Squaw Grove 

y!jjg|jjcjl£ Township, was born in Canada, Nov. 29, 

'"^ 1820, and was a farmer in the Dominion 

until the spring of 1865. He then came to 

De Kalb County and located in the township 



of Clinton. In the spring of [874 he removed 
to Squaw Grove Township, and, associated with his 



sons, William and John, bought 305 acres, on which 
the homestead was established. He is an adherent 
to and supporter of the Republican party. 

The first marriage of Mr. Dixon occurred in Can- 
ada, "hen Louisa Perry, a native of the Dominion, 
became his wife. After becoming the mother of 
seven children, she died, in Clinton Township, May 
12, r.S7 3_ Her children were named Robert, Sarah, 
John, William, Maud, Ida and Cyrus L. The sec- 
ond marriage of Mr. Dixon, to Rebecca Owen, took 
place at Sandwich, Dec. 10, 1874. She was born 
March 5, 1835, in Perry Co., Pa. 



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|rnest S. Chambers, farmer, residing on the 

southeast quarter of section 26, Alton 

Township, was bom in Piano, Kendall Co., 

j^ III , April 7, 1859. He is a son of Muses and 

Sarah (Tyler) Chambers. His father was born 

in Wayne Co., Pa., Aug. 26, 1821, and resides 

with his son on sec lion 26. His mother was born in 

Tompkins Co., N. Y., April 8, 1821, and died on the 

home farm in Alton Township, March t6, 1880. 

Ernest S. Chambers, subject of this notice, came 
to this count) with his parents when but six weeks 
old and has resided here ever since. His ecliu ation 
was received in the common schools, and the major 
portion of his years previous to majority were passed 
on a farm. He has one brother and two sisters 
living, namely: Leu verna, born Aug. 29, 1848, mar- 
ried Henry Richmond and resides.it IV Kalb; Ade- 
lia, born Jan. 2, r85o; and Fred S., born July 22, 
1864, at present living in Iowa and working at his 
trade, that of a carpenter. 

Mr. Chambers was united in marriage to Miss 
Phena S., daughter of Lansing E. and Lurena De 
Forest, Dec. 20, 1882. Her father was born in 
Southville, Herkimer Co., N. Y., May ro, 1832, and 
her mother in "German Flats," Herkimer Co., N. Y., 
Dec. 31, 1831. Both are living in this county. Her 
father is a carpenter and worked at his trade after 
coming to this county. lie has a farm which he 
rents, ami he lives in the village of De Kalb. He 
and his wife were the pafents of seven children, 
namel) : Ella M ., born ( >< t. 24, 1852, in Oneida Co., 
N. Y.; Elizabeth A., bom Dec 25, 1855, in Oneida 
County,; Eugene A., born Feb. 17, 1854; Invena B., 

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nun in [857, and died July 9, 1866 ; Phena S., bom 
Oct. 18, 1861; Carrie M., born Jan. 1, 1864, and 
Lettie E., born July 3, 1870. 

Politically, Mr. Chambers is a Republican. He 

(£). has followed the vocation of a farmer all his life, and 
is a truly representative and practical gentleman. 



^pffi'i aul H. Nichols, farmer and tile manufac- 




; turer, resident on section 22, Squaw drove 
AV_^-$ Township, is the son of Cyrus C. and Al- 
c,') mira (Avery) Nichols. Th6 former was born 
-'/if in Vermont, the latter in New York, and after 
their marriage they were resident in the former 
State five years, subsequently removing to the State 
of New York. In 1845 they removed to Kane Co., 
111. In 1859 they located in Squaw Grove Town- 
) ship, where the father died, July 31, 1872. The 
mother is yet living. Mr. Nichols had three sisters, 
^S all older, — Fanny A., Rhoda D. and Sally H. 

He was born July 12, 1834, in Chenango Co., N. 
$} Y-> where he attended the public schools. He ac- 
13 companied his parents in their various removals, 
^X and, since November, 1859, has been a resident of 



to 



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the township of Squaw Grove. He is the owner of 
400 acres of land, and is ranked among the leading 
farmers and business men of his township. In 1879 
he embarked in the manufacture of drain tile, in 
which he is prosecuting relations of rapidly extend- 
ing popularity. The clay bed which had been pre- 
viously utilized in the manufacture of brick to some 
extent, proved on more extended investigation to be 
of the most superior character known in the business, 
a fact entirely unsuspected by Mr. Nichols at the 
commencement of the venture. It is classed as 
" timber " clay, which exceeds all other varieties in 
tenacity or strength, obviously a most desirable qual- 
ity. The annual product ranges from 350,000 to 
950,000 feet, and it is mostly absorbed by local pa- 
tronage, only a small proportion being shipped to a 
distance. During the season the working force 
numbers at times r6 men. Mr. Nichols has several 
diplomas from local fairs attesting the comparative 
value of the tile. The manufacturing is under the 
management of Charles Pratt, and the value of the 
output is materially increased by the skill exercised 
in manipulating the material and in the completing 



process, the foreman being a practical and experi- 
enced craftsman, having been bred to the business 
in which he is engaged. 

Mr. Nichols built his factory in the winter (if 
1878-9, and had but opened preparatory operations 
when, May 10, the building was destroyed by fire, 
between five and six o'clock in the morning, with no 
insurance save in the hearts of his neighbors, who, 
before nightfall of the day of disaster, had purchased 
ia Chicago the material required for building another 
of similar pattern. The new establishment was 
ready to be occupied July 6, following. Mr. Nit hols 
made the first successful application of drying clay 
by means of steam pipes, a method now in general 
use. 

Politically, Mr. Nichols is an endorser and sup- 
porter of the issues and principles of the Republican 
party. He has been Treasurer of his township a 
little less than 17 years. He has also been Town- 
ship Clerk one year. 

He was married Feb. 3, 1858, in Sugar Grove 
Township, Kane Co., III., to Sarah J. Skiff, and of 
their five children four survive : Edwin C, Obed C, 
Fanny E. and Jesse J. May died when she was a 
little child. Mrs. Nichols was born Feb. 27, 1833, 
in Warren Co., N. Y., and is the daughter of Obed 
and Azubah (Judd) Skiff. Her parents were born 
in Massachusetts. 



«=—• 






'homas Harper, Sr., was a pioneer of Paw 
Paw Township of 1842. He is now a res- 
T^ ident of Wichita, Kan. He was born in 
Ireland in 181 1, and is the son of James and 
Elizabeth (Black) Harper, and emigrated from 
Ireland to America with his parents in infancy 
in 18 1 2. The family located in Washington Co., N. 
Y., and moved from there to Sterling, Cayuga County, 
in 18 1 9. 

He emigrated to Peoria, 111., about 1840, and from 
there to Paw Paw Township, De Kalb County, in 
1842. He entered Government land in that town 
on sections 13 and 14, and was engaged in farming 
and stcck-growing till 1877, when he removed to 
Shabbona Station. In 1880 he removed to Wichita, 
Kan., his present home. 

He was twice married, first to Sarah Hart, by 



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whom he had one child, a son, Norman, now a resi- 
dent of Kan-.. is. Ilis second wife was Mrs. Hattie 
Becker. There were no children of the second mar- 
riage. 

Mi. Harper was a member of the United Presby- 
terian Church ot Ross ('.rove, was a liberal supporter 
of the Church and aided largely in the construction 
of their house of worship. In politics he was a Re- 
publican. 



nomas Thomason, fanner, section 30, Clin- 
ton Township, is a son of Osmon and 
Bertha (Sawyer) Thomason, natives of Nor- 
way. He was horn in that country, March 25, 
1825, the third in order of birth in a family of 
five children, and was about 12 years of age 
when he came with his parents to America. He fol- 
lowed farming in La Salle County, this State, until 
the spring of 1880, when he came and bought the 
Reuben Pritchard farm, of 180 acres, which he now 
owns and cultivates. Coming from a nation noted 
for industry, economy and honesty, and characterized 
by the same traits, Mr. T. succeeds well in this land 
of plenty. Politically, he is a Republican, and locally 
he has been entrusted with the office of School 
Director. 

He was married in La SalleCounty, July 19, 185 1, 
to Tabitha Aget, a native also of Norway. Mr. and 
Mrs. Thomason have had 12 children, named Sarah 
A., Francis M., Thomas H., Emily J., Emery J., 
Martha M., Eunice E., Lottie N., Addie R. and Ella 
J., and two who died in infancy. 







■*•- 



illiam J. Bushnell, farmer, section 36, 
Squaw Grove Township, was born April 
4, 1828, in Cattaraugus Co., N. Y., and is 
the son of Amasa and Mila (Frary) Bush- 
nell. His parents were natives of the State 
' of New York, and came to Kendall Co., 111., in 
1855. The father died there Sept. 20,1855. The mother 
died Jan. 9, 1876, in De Kalb County. They had 
three children — William J., Elmer and Man us S. 

Mr. Bushnell came to Illinois with his parents, 
and was then 27 years of age. He lived in Kendall 






County until 1S72, and in the spring of thai year 
took possession of the farm where he is now a resi- 
dent, in Squaw Grove Township. He owns 120 
.11 res of land, all of which is in a line slate of culti- 
vation and constitutes a valuable farm. 

Mr. Bushnell was fust married Dec. 17, 1863, in 
Aurora. Kane Co., III., to Adaline Hubbell, who was 
born in Kendall Co., 111. Jennie, only 1 hild of this 
marriage, died when she was one year old. The 
mother died April 28, 1870, in Kendall County. Mr. 
Bushnell was a second time married Feb. 2, r872, in 
Cattaraugus Co., N. Y., to Mrs. Maria (Rhoades) 
Hoard. She is the daughter of Asahel and Permelia 
(Fair) Rhoades, and was the widow of Nathaniel 
Hoard. The latter was a soldier in the Ninth N. Y. 
Cav: and was killed near Fairfax Court-House, Va. 
Cora A., only issue of that marriage, is the wife of 
Charles Foster, of Piano. Frank J. is the name of 
the only 1 hild of Mr. and Mrs. Bushnell. The latter 
was born Dee. 18, 1835, in Genesee Co., N. Y. 

In political sentiment Mr. Bushnell affiliates with 
the Republic an party. 



athew G. Shackelton, dealer in drugs 

and groceries at Shabbona, was born in 

Northampton Co., Pa., Nov. 28, 1838, and 

is the son of Samuel and Catharine (Darling) 

Shackelton. He received a common-school 

education. When 14 years of age he left his 

native place and came to Illinois with his parents, 

the family settling in Clinton Township, this county, 

in the fall of 1851. 

Young Sha< kelton was brought up on a farm. In 
1861 he went to Durand, Pepin Co., Wis., where 
he spent about two years as clerk in a drug and 
grocery store. He was next engaged in the hard- 
ware business till 1864. He then returned to Clin- 
ton and went from there to Chicago, where he spent 
the winter of 1 S65 -6. During the following spring 
he went to Cairo, III., where he spent a few months, 
and returned to 1 )e Kalb County, wdiere he was en- 
gaged in farming till the fall of 1875. He then went 
to De Kalb c iiy and engaged in the grocery, res- 
taurant and bakery business. He was doing well till 
he was burned out, June 29, 1876, by which he lost 
about $3,000. He then bought an interest in a hotel 




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at De Kalb, which he operated two years. He was 
next engaged in farming in Afton Township. In the 
spring of 1880 he erected a building in Shabbona 
and opened a restaurant. He sold out to Mr. Lucas 
and spent some time in traveling in Iowa. He next 
bought a stock of general merchandise at Hinckley, 
111., and carried on business there one year. He sold 
out, went to Kansas, and from there to Missouri. 
Returning to Shabbona, he bought back his old stand, 
which he operated till March 1, 1883, when he 
sold out to Mr. E. M. Card, and opened at his pres- 
ent stand, in the drug and grocery business. He 
carries an average stock of $3,000. 

He was married in De Kalb, Dec. 31, 186S, to 
Miss Annie Goodrich, daugher of Erastus and Annie 
(Taylor) Goodrich. Mrs. Shackelton was born in 
Oswego, N. Y., Oct. 30, 1851. They have one child, 
a daughter, named Kittie, born Sept. 2, 1872. 

In politics Mr. Shackelton is a Democrat. 

#^HfB-<5^§— 

j^iram Ellwood, Secretary and General Man- 
ager of the Superior Barbed-Wire Company, 
resident at De Kalb, is one of the Ellwood 
Brothers, whose names are prominent in the 
history of De Kalb County. The portrait of 
the gentleman who forms the subject of this 
sketch appears on the page opposite, and is a valua- 
ble addition to the gallery of portraits given in this 
volume. 

Mr. Ellwood was born in Montgomery County, 
N. Y., in the town of Canajoharie, on the 19th day 
of September, 1828. He is the son of Abraham and 
Sarah (Delong) Ellwood. (See sketch of Hon. C. 
Ellwood for further mention of parents.) When he 
was about ten years of age his father became a con- 
tractor on the Erie Canal, entering into an agreement 
to build a mile of that water course lying within the 
town of Minden, Montgomery County. The contract- 
or boarded the men whom he employed, and every 
member of the family who was still under the par- 
ental authority contributed their share of assistance 
in the scheme. Girls in the Ellwood household 
were not numerous enough or large enough to afford 
the necessary amount of assistance that is generally 
supposed per se to fall to the feminine lot, and the 
boys who were plenty and available were pressed 




into domestic duty. Hiram was one of the most 
useful adjuncts of the household and did valiant 
service in the intervals of school, his principal busi- 
ness at home being washing dishes, and, like Billy 
Gray, the Boston millionaire, who was wont to boast 
of the quality of his work when he sawed wood for 
his living, chiefly remembers that he did it well, and 
moreover is not ashamed of it. Later, Abraham Ell- 
wood went with his family to Ilion, in Herkimer 
County, N. Y. Hiram engaged as a salesman 
in the employ of a Mr. Dygert in the city of Utica. 
He was then about 15 years of age, and remained 
in that employment about two years. Subsequently 
he was employed by a Mr. Folts as a clerk in a dry- 
goods and grocery store, where he continued three 
years. He had saved his earnings, and, being desir- 
ous of embarking independently in business, he 
purchased a half interest in a canal boat, which he 
sold after one season. He returned to the mercan- 
tile establishment where last employed and resumed 
the ocupation of a clerk. 

His next business venture was in an enterprise in 
company with William Frank in raising broom-corn 
and manufacturing brooms, carrying on their opera- 
tions on the " Flats " in the town of Mohawk, adja- 
cent to the river of the same name. 

Mr. Ellwood made his home with the household of 
his associate in business, and the family circle was 
increased by the addition of a young lady, a cousin 
of Mrs. Frank — Miss Sarah Dygert by name. The 
young people were mutually attracted from the first. 
Their first meeting occurred between 30 and 40 
years ago, and their first favorable opinions strength- 
ened into appreciative friendship and soon into sub- 
stantial affection which resulted in their marriage in 
March, 1850. No finer touch of manliness appears 
on these pages than the tribute paid by Mr. Ellwood 
more than 35 years afterward to the strength of the 
sentiment which held him in indissoluble bonds. 
" I thought her the handsomest and most lady-like 
girl I had ever seen, and I still think so." The 
marriage took place at Fort Plain, N. Y., and to the 
wedded pair one child was born — Alice — who was 
married in the spring of 187 1 to D. D. Brown, of 
Sycamore. 

Chauncey Ellwood, the oldest brother of Hiram 
Ellwood, was a widower, and in 1852 the latter and 
his wife entered the employ of the former — the wife 



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as general housekeeper, the husband as assistant in a 
grocery and provision store at a point on the Erie 
Canal in Frankfort, Herkimer County. There was 

ino business save during (lie season of navigation, 
and the intervening seasons were spent in methods 
that combined much amusement and little exertion, 
as there was literally nothing to do. The relation 
between the brothers was in existence two years. At 
the end of that time the elde'r was appointed to the 
position of Superintendent of a section of the canal, 
and the traffic of the store passed into the hands of 
Messrs. J. E. and Hiram Kllwood. They conducted 
their affairs jointly one year, when the former sold 
his interest to the latter and it continued under his 
management two years. 

In the spring of 1856 Hiram Ell wood sold out 
and came West. On the ninth day of August in 
that year, the mercantile firm of Ellwood & De- 
long opened business at De Kalb, then a village 
: ) with little promise of the prosperity and development 
^ of to-day, and they continued the sale of drugs and 
*£ groceries until 1866, when the junior member of the 
° firm withdrew and Mr. Ellwood conducted the busi- 
*%> ness until 1877 in his own name. He then sold 
^ out to J. H. Lewis, who still continues its successful 
££ prosecution. Meanwhile the business of I. L. EU- 
S wood & Co. had assumed mammoth proportions 
■) and Mr. Ellwood went to Kansas City, Mo., in the 
interests of that firm and operated as Western 
agent, shipping barbed wire West and South from 
Kansas City. He returned to De Kalb at the expi- 
ration of three years. In August, 1881, the Superior 
Barbed-Wire Company of De Kalb went into opera- 
tion. The charter members included I. L. Ellwood, 
J. F. Glidden, J. I). Lott, Reuben Ellwood and 
Hiram Ellwood, and the latter was elected Treas- 
urer, Secretary and General Manager, and still holds 
the same position. 

Mr. Ellwood, in addition to his business relations 
with De Kalb city and county, has discharged the 
duties and responsibilities of several official posi- 
tions. In 1857 and 1858 he was elected Supervisor 
of the township of De Kalb and has served three 
terms as member of the Board of Trustees of the 
village before its corporation as a city. He has 
served a term as School Director, officiating as Clerk 
of the Board. He acted two years as Deputy Post- 
•J master under I. V. Randall, and on the resignation 
of his chief, two years after, he was appointed Post- 



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master and served four years. During the years 
1859, '60, '61, '62, he officiated as Treasurer of De 
Kalb County and executed all the trusts which fell 
to him in his duties in a characteristic way, one of 
which was the signing of the soldiers' orders. With 
A. K. Stiles, County Clerk, he was appointed by the 
Board of County Supervisors to act as County 
Agent in the sale of the county bonds, which labor 
was accomplished and resulted in the payment of the 
claims of the soldiers of the 105 th Regiment 111. Vol. 
Inf.. the soldiers receiving one-half cash and one- 
half the amount due them in county orders. 

Mr. Ellwood located at De Kalb nearly 30 years 
ago, when it was a village. He has watched its de- 
velopment and the increase of its business resources 
with much gratification. At the date he made the 
acquaintance of the place its population was about 
500, and it is now six times as great, and is second 
in business to no town of its capacity between Chi- 
cago and the Mississippi. The interest of Mr. Ell- 
wood in his adopted home and his identification with 
its general welfare will expire only with his life. One 
notable event, which has heretofore failed to receive 
deserved notice in the sketches, of the Ellwood 
brothers, and which should find place, is the last act 
of filial affection performed by them in connection 
with the death and burial of their venerable mother. 
It was her dying request that " her boys " should act 
as her pall-bearers, which they did, the six bearing 
her remains to their last resting place in Elmwood 
Cemetery. 



sahel Firkins, deceased, was an early 
pioneer of Paw Paw- Township. He was 
born near Oswego, N. Y., in 1819, and was 
the son of George and Lydia (Chappel) Fir- 
kins, of English descent. He emigrated to 
Illinois in 1838 and made his home in Hender- 
son, Knox County, where he was married, Jan. 10, 
1841, to Miss Harriet Miller, daughter of Tames and 
Hannah (Preston) Miller. Mrs. Firkins was born in 
Monroe Co., Mich., Jan. 25, 1823, and came to Illinois 
in 1838. Seven children were born to them, three boys 
and four girls: Mariette, born Dec. 25, 1841, wife of 
George D. Ileldebrant, of Kansas ; William, born J 
7, 1844, married Laura Haskell and lives in Paw 




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Paw; John, born Jan. 26, 1846, died in infancy; 
Harriet A., born May 19, 1837, wife of William Rust, 
of East Paw Paw; Emma F., born July 22, 1849, 
was killed by the cars while in a carriage crossing 
the track near Maiden, 111., Feb. 5, 1874; Josephine, 
born Sept. 21, 185 1, wife of Seneca Duncan, of Kan- 
sas; George A., born Jan. 16, 1854, single, at home. 

Mr. Firkins made his home in Knox County till 
1842, when he removed to Warren Co., 111.; spent 
three years in that county, and in March, 1845, re- 
moved to Paw Paw Township, De Kalb County, and 
entered land on section 7. He had 204 acres. He 
made his home in this township, and was engaged in 
farming till his death, which occurred June 17, 1856. 

He was a Methodist from early life, and a Class- 
leader many years. In politics he was an avowed 
Abolitionist. 



I^dmond Towne, the first white settler of 
Shabbona Township, and now deceased, 
was a native of Waterbury, Vt, became a 
I'S. brick-maker by trade, moved to Ohio, where he 
resided several years, and returned to his native 
State. He married Mrs. Sally Smith, widow of 
James Smith and daughter of David Straw. He then 
returned to Marion Co., Ohio, where he engaged in 
brick-making until 1834, when he came to this State 
and settled in what was afterward surveyed as Shab- 
bona Township, De Kalb County. He subsequently 
removed to Marble Rock, Iowa, selling out here to 
Frank Frost. He died in the fall of 1881. Before 
his removal to Iowa his wife died, in Shabbona, and 
none- of their family are now left in this county. 
Their children were Mary J., Electa, Cynthia, Sarah, 
Ralph, Chester, Russell and Daniel. 



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(,'^SIk illiam Cone, resident on section 4, Squaw 

^Ltufliffln ■ • ■ 

1 MsSM r Grove Township, has been a citizen there 

JkSj-) ' since he arrived at the estate of manhood. 
/ His parents, Archibald and Rosetta (Cun- 
ningham) Cone, were natives of Scotland and 
came to the United States in 18 15. They 
fixed their first residence in the State of New York, 
whence they removed in 1843 to Squaw Grove Town- 
ship, De Kalb County. The mother died there May 






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9, 1873, and the father Aug. 6, 1877. Their family 
of it children were born in the following order: 
Jane, Jeannette, Mary, William, Isabella, Margaret, 
John (1st), Elizabeth, John (2d), Archibald and 
Rosetta. 

Mr. Cone was born Sept. 13, 1822, near Albany, 
N. Y. He passed his early years on a farm and at 
school. On coming to De Kalb County at the age 
of 21 years, he became a farmer. In 1848 he entered 
the Army of the United States, enlisting in the First 
Mo. Vol. Inf., which was engaged in the Mexican 
War about ten months. On receiving his discharge, 
he returned to the township of Squaw Grove. In 
1862 he went to California, reaching there by the 
overland route across the plains, and spent three 
years in mining and farming in the Golden State. 
He is the owner of 323 acres of fine farming land, on 
which he has erected excellent farm buildings. He 
is a Democrat in political opinions. 

Jan. 19, 1856, Mr. Cone was "married, in Oneida 
Co.', N. Y., to Margaret McFarland, and they have 
had five children, — Isabella, Jeannette, John, Jane 
and Margaret. The latter died Dec. 18, 1882, when 
17 years of age. Mrs. Cone died May 3, 1881. Is- 
abella is the wife of Henry Schmidt, of Squaw Grove. 
Jeannette married Elihu Ramer, of Pierce Township. 
Jane is Mrs. Louis Hohn, and resides in Nebraska. 
The only son, John, resides on the homestead. 



lit eorge F. Park, a retired farmer residing in 
Hjlj the village of Shabbona, has a farm of 138 
K acres on section 27, Shabbona Township. 
' ffl * He is a native of this township, his birth dat- 
ing June 17, 1849, and his parents being Ira 
and Matilda (McNeal) Park. He passed his 
boyhood upon his father's farm, and when 15 years of 
age he removed with his parents to Leland, La Salle 
County, where he lived six years. The family then 
removed to a farm near Leland for two years, and 
finally returned to the old homestead in Shabbona 
Township. Mr. Park removed to his present resi- 
dence in Shabbona village in December, 1883. 

Mr. Park was married in Somonauk, Oct. 25, 1870, 
to Miss Joanna, daughter of Charles D. and Matilda 
D. (Suidam) Skinner. She was born at Leland, 111., 
Jan. 31, 1S53. Mr. and Mrs. Park have three chil- 



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DE KALB COUNTY. 



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dren, — two sons and a daughter: Charles F., born 
July 23, 1871 ; Ira E., Oct. 14, 1877 ; and Etta M., 
Dec. 14, 1880. 

In his political views Mr. Park is a Republican, 
-§ . and both himself and wife are members of the Con- 
gregational Church of Shabbona. 




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ohnson Low, farmer, sections 19 and 20, 
'[ Clinton Township, is a son of Charles and 
Lanor (Richardson) Low, natives of Can- 
ada. They were married in that country and 
came to this country in 1856, settling in Clin- 
ton Township, where the father died Nov. 5, 
1863. He was of Scotch extraction, and held an 
officer's position in the British Army. His wife still 
survives, and is still a resident of Clinton Township. 
1 ) They were the parents often children, namely: Wil- 
^ liam R., John S., Tameran, Mary J., Charles, Caro- 
•?S line, James, Johnson, George and Wolford. Of the 
i ten children, John S., Mary J., Caroline, James and 
Cfc George are deceased. James was a soldier in the 
1 late Civil War, doing duty in the 105th 111. Vol. Inf., 
gv and died at Gallatin, Sumner Co., Tenn., in 1863. 

Johnson Low, the subject of this biographical 
notice, was born in Canada, May 16, 1842. He re- 
ceived his education in the common schools of Can- 
ada and Illinois, coming to this State when 14 years 
of age with his parents. He lived with them in 
Clinton Township, assisting on the farm until his 
father's death, when he purchased the homestead of 
120 acres and on which he is at present residing. 

Mr. Low enlisted in the Second Illinois Light Ar- 
tillery, Sept. 16, 1861, and was in his country's ser- 
vice for 18^ months. He was in the battle of Fort 
Donelson, Tenn., Feb. 16, 1862, in which the Union 
forces, commanded by Gen. Grant and Com. Foote, 
had 446 killed, 1,735 wounded and 150 taken pris- 
oners, but captured six forts, 65 guns, and 17,500 
small arms. He was also in other battles and skir- 
mishes of less import, and was honorably discharged 
at Memphis, Tenn. On receiving his discharge he 
immediately returned home. 

Mr. Low was married Dec. 25, 1866, in McDon- 
^ ough Co., 111., to Miss Kate, daughter of Joseph and 
/ ® Delia (Overton) Long, natives of Pennsylvania, who 
^- settled in McDonough County at an early day. 



They had ten children, namely : Albert, Clarkson, 
John G., Mary E., Kate, Joanna, Susan, Bessie, Lilly 
and Brainard. 

Mrs. Low was born in Hancock Co., 111., Aug. 25, 
1 85 1, and of the issue of her marriage to Mr. Low 
there are seven children, all living, namely : Caddie 
V., born Jan. 23, 1868; William R., born Aug. 20, 
1870; Sue F., born Oct. 29, 1873; Johnson, born 
Sept. 30, 1875 ; James R., born Sept. 5, 1878; Katie, 
born Feb. 4, 1883; and Charles H., born Dec. 9, 
1884. 

Politically, Mr. Low affiliates with the Republican 
party. Three of his brothers, William R., James and 
Wolford, were soldiers in the late Civil War. 



-S3- 



-E3- 




y\ of William B. and Agnes G. (Vail) Weddell. 
He received an academic education at the 
Teachers' Institute and Classical Seminary of East 
Paw Paw, and at the Presbyterian academy of Na- 
perville, 111. He was brought up to agricultural 
pursuits, and was married in Paw Paw Township, 
March 29, 1877, to Miss Mary Nisbet, daughter of 
Mathew and Agnes (Harper) Nisbet. Mrs. Weddell 
was born in Paw Paw Township, De Kalb Co., 111., 
Nov. 28, 1855. They have two children, namely: 
Nellie V., born Jan. 9, 1878; and Christina L., born 
June 29, 1879. 

Mr. Weddell has served four years as School 
Trustee and is now holding that office. Politically, 
he is a Republican. 



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1 ■..- 



ames W. McAllister, farmer, section 36, 
- Clinton Township, is a son of James and 
Jennie (Dobbins) McAllister, natives of 
Scotland and Ireland respectively. They were 
married and emigrated to the United States 
about the year 1822, and settled in Washing- 
ton Co., N. Y. From there they moved to Ohio, 
and thence, in 1849, came to this county and settled 
in Clinton Township, where they died. They were 



y= 



a&harles V. Weddell, farmer, residence sec- 

M tion 20, Paw Paw Township, has 160 ( 

acres of land. He was born in the town- ^ 

Cjp? ship of Paw Paw, Aug 8, 1853, and is the son &> 



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the parents of 12 children, namely: Margaret, 
Mary, Eliza, Martha, William, James W., Sarah, 
Ellen, Esther, Anna, Bell and Samuel. Samuel and 
William are deceased. 

James W. McAllister, the subject of this biograph- 
ical notice, was born in Washington Co., N. Y., July 
1, 1834, went with his parents to Ohio, and when 15 
years of age accompanied them to this county. He 
lived at home, assisting on the farm and attending 
the common schools, in Ohio and this county, until 
he was 25 years of age. On arriving at the age 
stated, Mr. McAllister purchased 80 acres of land 
on section 36, Clinton Township, where he at present 
resides. His present landed possessions consist of 
160 acres, all of which is in a good tillable condition. 

Mr. McAllister was married Dec. 18, 1864, to Miss 
Mary A. Graham, in Victor Township, this county. 
She is a daughter of Robert and Sarah (Williamson) 
Graham, and a sister of Mrs. James McCleery, whose 
biography appears in this Album. She was born in 
Franklin Co., Ohio, Dec. 5, 1841, and is the mother 
of seven children by Mr. McAllister, namely: Ward, 
born Dec. 4, 1866; Hellen, Nov. 9, 1868; Robert J., 
Nov. 4, 1871; Margaret, Dec. 25, 1873; Russell, 
June ir, 1876; Mary B., Dec. 15, 1878; and Sarah 
J., Dec. 24, 1881. 

Mr. McAllister affiliates with the Republican 
party. Religiously, he and his wife are members of 
the United Presbyterian Church. 



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m ''PWitr i nnaeus C. Burke, farmer, owning 315 
'! LafiJf acres located on section 20 and 21, Shab- 
yitiSfty* bona Township, and residing thereon, was 
6(j born in Bndgewater, Windsor Co., Vt., Sept. 5, 
Jk 1 8 14. His parents, Erastus and Lydia (Ward) 
Burke, moved to Plymouth, Windsor Co., Vt., 
when their son was an infant, and to Orwell, Rut- 
land (now Addison) County, that State, when he was 
two years of age. Nine years later they removed to 

f^ Benson, same county. His father, Erastus Burke, 
was born Sept. 8, 1783, in Westhampton, Mass. He 
was a practicing physician for several years. He 
died Nov. 23, 1858, at the house of his son. Lydia 
rfS (Ward) Burke, his mother, was born July 7, 1787, and 
^ died in Vermont, Oct. 16, 1849. 
£ Linnaeus received his education in the schools at 

ij|\§dfgi4- ^^^ — &<m 




Benson and assisted his father on the farm, and early 
in life engaged in teaching. He taught during win- 
ters, and occupied his time summers by labor on the 
farm. In all, he taught about 20 terms of school. 

Mr. Burke was married in Rutland Co., Vt., Oct. 
29, 1839, to Miss Abigail, daughter of Rufus Long. 
She was born at Rutland, Vt., March 21, 18 14. Two 
children were born of their union, namely : Sylvanus 
O. (1st), Aug. 10, 1840, died Oct. 16, 1843, and Syl- 
vanus O. (2d), born Oct. 19, 1843, and died May 31, 
1844. Mrs. Burke died Aug. 27, 1844, and Sept. 6, 
1848, Mr. Burke was married a second time; Miss 
Mary E., daughter of Horace and Aurelia (Bush) 
Higgins, was the lady whom he selected. She was 
born in Orwell. Addison Co., Vt., Nov. 2, 1828, and 
became the mother of four children, the issue of their 
union, namely: Horace H., born Dec. 18, 1849, died 
Feb. 28, 1861 ; Mary E., born Dec. 12, 1853, and is 
the wife of James W. Shanks, a resident at Simpson, 
Kan.; Elizabeth A. was born April 4, 1856, and is 
the wife of Samuel T. Thompson, residing in Shab- 
bona Township; Linnaeus C, Jr., was born Dec. 
26, 1857, married Maria E. Plant, and resides in 
Shabbona Township. Mrs. Burke died Jan. 30, 1861. 

Mr. Burke contracted a third matrimonial alliance 
July 20, 1862, at Shabbona, with Mrs. Martha Sher- 
wood. She was a daughter of Thomas Reese and 
widow of Salmon Sherwood, and was born in Hamp- 
shire Co., Va., March 24, 1816, and departed this 
life Feb. 24, 1882. 

Mr. Burke came to this county from Vermont in 
1852, and located on his present farm on section 21, 
Shabbona Township. He had traded a stony farm 
in the Green Mountain State, for the one he now 
owns (at that time consisting of 160 acres) and moved 
on it when he first came here. He has continued to 
reside on the place ever since, and by subsequent 
purchase has increased his acreage to the amount 
stated. 

Politically, Mr. Burke is a Democrat. He has 
served four years as Town Clerk, and the same num- 
ber of years as Town Treasurer. He joined the Con- 
gregational Church while a resident of Benson, Vt., 
and is at present a member of the same Church at 
Shabbona. He has always been a worker in the 
Church. 

As one of the leading and representative agricul- 
turists of De Kalb County, and a gentleman worthy 



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DR KALB COUNTY. 



to be classed with the besl citizens of the county and 
State, we place a portrait of Mr. Burke in this vol- 
ume. It was engraved from a photograph taken in 
1885. 



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!j.'®aC oorgo G. Congdon, farmer, section 15, 
W&L Clinton Township, is a son of James H. 
and Lydia E. (Brock) Congdon, natives of 
Rhode Island and Vermont. They were mar- 
ried and settled in Rutland Co., Vt., where 
they died, the father Nov. 22, 1854 and the 
mother March 10, 1S37. They were the parents of 
1 i children, named as follows: Lansford VV., James, 
John, Charles, Orville, Harvey, Lydia E., George G., 
William M., Hannah S. and Phillip P. 

George G. Congdon was born in Wallingford, Rut- 

) land Co., Vt., Feb. 29, 1828. He attended the com- 

> mon schools of his native county, matriculated at the 

^ academy at Ludlow, Windsor County, known as 

° "Black River Academy," in which institution he re- 

JOj mained four terms and then attended the Leland 

* Seminary at East Townsend one term. 
^ After leaving the latter school Mr. Congdon en- 
s gaged in teaching, which profession he followed dur- 
ing winter months for 10 years, meeting with success. 
His summers he devoted to farming. 

In 1854 Mr. Congdon came to Kane Co., this 
State, where he resided, variously engaged, for two 
years and then, in 1856, came to this county. He 
purchased 160 acres of land in Clinton Township, on 
which he located and where he has since resided, 
with the exception of the time he served in the late 
civil war. He enlisted in the summer of 1862 in the 
105th 111. Vol. Inf., and received his discharge at 
Gallatin, Sumner Co., Tenn. 

Mr. Congdon was united in marriage to Miss 
Augusta A. York, at Wallingford, Rutland Co., Vt., 
Feb. 14, 1867. She is a daughter of Levi and Laura 



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(Allen) York, natives of Vermont. Her mother died 



in Vermont, Feb. 9, 1875. Her father, after the 
death of his wife, came to this county, and is at pres- 
ent living with his daughter. The parents had a 
family of seven children, four of whom are living, 
namely, I.ura A., Rufus A. Augusta A. and Ella E. 
Mrs. Congdon was born in Wallingford, Rutland 
Co., Vt., March 27, 1843. She remained an inmate I 

^€^ &<M 




of her father's family, assisting the mother in the 
household duties, and for four years previous to her 
marriage she was engaged in teaching. She is the 
mother, by Mr. Congdon, of five children, one of 
whom, Lillian, died in infancy. The surviving are 
George E., born Feb. 25, 1869; William A., Nov. 24, 
1870; John S., Feb. 12, 1873; Carrie P., April 14, 
1876. 

Politically Mr. Congdon is a supporter of and be- 
liever in the principles and doctrines advocated by 
the Republican party. He has held the offices of 
School Trustee,' Township Collector and Constable 
for about four years, Township Clerk a number of 
years and at present is a Justice of the Peace. 

Mrs. Congdon is a member of and believer in the 
faith of the Baptist Church. 



■-. ;f t*j -enjamin Lobdell, merchant and Post- 
5;tSJ* master at East Paw Paw, was born in 
&® Putnam Co., N. Y., Oct. 3, 1844, and is 
the son of Harry and Mary (Davenport) Lob- 
dell. He moved to Lee Co., 111., with his 
parents in 1856; learned the carpenter's 
trade, at which he was engaged several years. In 
December, 1883, he engaged in merchandising at 
East Paw Paw, and Jan. 14, 1884, was appointed 
Postmaster of East Paw Paw. 

In politics Mr. Lobdell is a Democrat. 



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I ichard P. Rowley, retired farmer, Water- 
man, is from the Empire State. His par- 
ents, Asahel and Betsey (Roberts) Rowley, 
natives also of that State, came to Kane 
County, this State, in 1856, and spent the re- 
mainder of their lives there. He died Nov. 
17, 1864, and she in February, 1863. They had 
eight children, — Amanda, Phebe, Richard P., Enoch, 
William, Albert, Elizabeth and Mary. 

Mr. Rowley was bom in Rensselaer Co., N. Y., 
Feb. 26, 1824. From the age of 15 to 20 years he 
worked by the month in farming pursuits. He then 
learned the carpenter's trade and followed that until 
1853, when he came to Kane Co., 111., and followed 
agriculture on a rented farm for 17 years. In 1872 



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DE KALB COUNTY. 



he came to this county and settled upon 104 acres in 
Clinton Township, which he had bought three years 
previously. He resided on this place until 1883, 

'i~ when he sold it and moved to the village of Water- 
J man, where he now resides, and is one of the Village 

< Trustees. In his views of national interest he is a 
Republican, and locally he has held the office of 
Overseer of Highways in the township. 

He was married in Rensselaer Co., N. Y., Sept. 10, 
1846, to Hannah M. Cole, also a native of that 
county. She became the mother of five children, — 
Mary L., Phebe A., Elliot 1)., William H., and 
Charles, who died in infancy. Mrs. R. died May 24, 
1855, in Kane County, and Mr. R. again married, in 
Rensselaer Co., N. Y., Feb. 2, 1857, Mrs. Mary A., 
nee Finckle, widow of Jacob Pitcher, who died in the 
last named county, Oct. 28, 1855. By her first mar- 
riage she had one child, Sarah E., who is the wife of 
Thomas Cummings and resides in Iowa. Mrs. Row- 

J ley was born in Rensselaer Co., N. Y., Aug. 10, 1825. 

> By the present marriage there is one child, Erwin N. 
$} Mrs. R.'s parents, Nicholas and Harriet (Silvernale) 

x Finckle, were natives of Dutchess Co., N. Y. 




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i^van Evans, farmer, section 2, Squaw 
Sjjjjjp Grove Township, was born May3i, 1823, in 
Wales. His father and mother, John and 
4k£- Anna (Thomas) Evans, were natives of the 
South of Wales, and of their family of ten chil- 
dren the son who is the subject of this notice 
was the fifth in order of birth. He was engaged in 
the pursuit of agriculture in his native country until 
1851, and in the fall of that year he came to the 
United States. After landing he proceeded to Chi- 
cago and remained there until Feburary, 1852, when 
he came to Kane County and conducted a rented 
farm at Big Rock for three years. In 1855 he 
bought the farm he has since owned in Squaw Groue 
Township, purchasing 160 acres originally, which he 
3" has since doubled in extent. His farm includes 260 
acres of land under tillage, and he has built hand- 
some and valuable buildings. 

He was married in Chicago, Feb. 16, 1852, to Ann 
Davis, and they have had five children : David, Ann, 
John E., Dean and Willie E. The latter died when 
nearly three years old. Mrs. Evans was born Feb. 




6, 1823, in Wales. Her father and mother, Benjamin 
and Catherine Davis, were natives of Wales, and the 
former died in his native country. The latter came 
subsequently to America, and died at Big Rock, in 
September, 1872. Mrs. Evans had one brother, 
Benjamin. 

Mr. and Mrs. Evans are members of the Congre- 
gational Church. Politically Mr. E. is identified 
with the Republican party. 




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m 

\\ eter V. Quilhot, farmer, section 13, Shab- 
\l bona Township, has a well improved farm 
f^?" °^ I 7° acres - As a settler at that place he 
ij w as a pioneer. He was born in the town of 
r Victory, Cayuga Co., N. Y., Jan. 21, 1822. His 
' parents were Henry and Hannah (Van Allen) 
Quilhot. He lost his father in early youth, and cir- 
cumstances rendered it necessary for him to aid his 
mother in the care of the family ; so that his educa- 
tional advantages were limited to a few weeks at 
school in the winter. After he became of legal age 
he succeeded in securing one term at the Red Creek 
Academy. 

He learned the painter's trade, and in June, 1845, 
came to this county and purchased a tract of 120 
acres in Shabbona Township, and made his home 
with his brother-in-law, Peter Miller. Not finding 
the West a profitable field in which to work at his 
trade, he returned in 1847 to New York. In the fall 
of the following year he came again to Shabbona, im- 
proved his land and engaged in farming. Aug. 8 
1850, he was married in Somonauk, this county, to 
Miss Frances Bacon, daughter of Lyman and Sarah 
(Rood) Bacon, which family were among early pion- 
eers of this county, having emigrated from Syracuse, 
N. Y., to De Kalb County in the fall of 1846. Mrs. Q. 
was born at Salina, Onondaga Co., N. Y., Aug. 28, 
1827. She has had seven children, all of whom are 
living except one. The eldest, John J., was born 
Sept. 1, 185 1 ; married Fannie Burchard and lives at 
the old homestead. His wife was adopted in child- 
hood by her step-father, S. M. Corey, and she was 
married under the name of Corey. Henry B., born 
March 20, 1853, married Alice Prescott, and lives in 
Morris Co., Kan. Helen E., born Jan. 1, 1856, is 
the wife of Richard K. Anderson, of Atchison, Kan. 
Josephine, born Nov. 30, 1859, is the wife of John A. 



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Sweet, of Waterman, 111. Franklin, living at home, 
was bom Jul) s, 1S62. Lila S. was born Jan. 5, 
1865, and one child, a son, died in infancy. 

Mr. Quilliot has been prominently identified with 
public affairs in his town and county. He lias served 
seven years as Supervisor of Shabbona, and repre- 
sented his township as many term; in the County 
Board, besides having held various minor offices. 
During the late war he was a< tive in aiding and en- 
couraging enlistments, and contributed liberally to 
the volunteer bounty fund. In his views of national 
policy he is a Republican, and has voted with that 
party ever) since its organization. He has been con- 
nected with the Masonic Order for many years, le- 
1 : ow a member of Shabbona Lodge, No. 374. 



obert Humphrey, retired farmer, residing 
at Waterman, Clinton Township, is a son 
of John and Ann (Price) Humphrey. His 
parents were natives of Wales and emigrated 
to this country about 1831, his father dying 
soon thereafter. They were father and mother 
to five children, namely, John, Thomas, Mary, Rob- 
ert and Edward. 

Robert Humphrey, subject of this biographical 
) notice, is a native of Wales, in which country he was 
bom Nov. 22, 1827. He was about four years of age 
when his parents emigrated to America, and passed 
his early life on a farm in Oneida Co., N. Y. He 
alternated working on the farm and attending the 
common schools until he attained the age of 25 years. 
At that age he engaged in the hotel business, at 
North Western, Oneida Co., N. Y., in which he re- 
mained for six months, then sold and engaged in the 
lumber business. He remained in the latter busi- 
ness for about three years, when he sold out and 
came to this county. 

On arriving in this county, in the fall of 1853, Mr. 
Humphrey located on a farm on section 4, Clinton 
,g\ Township, which he purchased. He continued to 
reside on the farm until 1872. During his residence 
^ !a there he was for a year engaged in the coal and lum- 
?< j) ber business, and had charge of the station at Water- 
>£ man for about 20 months. He has subsequently 
been engaged in the lumber and coal business at 
Waterman, which he disposed of in 1875. He then 




( ■ 




moved to Chicago, and was engaged in the grain and 
commission business two years and a half. He then 
returned to Waterman and built his present fine resi- 
dence. Since he returned to Waterman, he has not 
been actively engrged in any business. 

Mr Humphrey was united in marriage to Miss 
Louisa Barnes, in Lee, Oneida Co., N. Y., Sept. 22, 
1 85 1 . She is a daughter of Amos Barnes, a native 
of York State. She was born in Martinsburg, Lewis 
Co., N. Y., in 1827. 

Mi. and Mrs. Humphrey are the parents of one 
child, Emma L. She was born March 12, 1857, and 
is the wife of J. J. A. Zeller, resident of Rochelle, 111. 
Mi. Humphrey affiliates with the Republican party. 
He lias been Honored with all the offices in the gift 
of the people of his township except Assessor; was 
Supervisor three years, Collector about three years, 
and at present holds the offices of Road Commis- 
sioner, Street Commissioner and Notary Public. He 
is a member of the Masonic Order. 

Mis. Humphrey has been a member of the Meth- 
odist Episcopal Church for a number of years, and is 
still a believer in the faith of that denomination. 



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jbapt. Thomas B. Lucas, dealer in agricul- 
.■^jjj tural implements and live stock, residing 



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at Shabbona village, was born in Boone Co., 
End., July 2, 1843, and is a son of Henry and 
Jane (Montgomery) Lucas. He lived with 
his parents, assisting his father in the support 
of the family and attending the common schools, until 
he was 18 years of age. At this period in his life's 
history, the rebel shot on Sumter awoke a patriot's 
desire on his part to join the North in defense of the 
Union. He enlisted May 10, 1861, in Co. E, 55th 
Ind. Inf., and served as a private until September, 
1862. He was then transferred to the 1 1 6th Ind. 
Inf., and Sept. 8, 1862, commissioned Second Lieu- 
tenant of Co. G, and Dec. 1, 1863, was commissioned 
First Lieutenant. In May, 1864, he was transferred 
tn the 135th Ind. Inf., and on the 10th of that month 
received his commission as Captain, in which ca- 
pacity he served until the expiration of his term of 
enlistment, Nov. 28, 1864. Captain Lucas served in 
the Army of the Cumberland, under Gen. Thomas, 
and was in all the engagements in which his com- 
rades participated, and escaped without any serious 












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wound. Considering the age at which he entered the 
army, and his steady promotion from private to Lieu- 
tenant and from Lieutenant to Captain, his record is 
most certainly an honorable one. 

After his discharge from the army, Capt. Lucas 
came to this county, in December, 1864, and located 
in Shalibona Township, where he engaged in farming 
until 1870. During that year he moved to Shabbona 
village, and was engaged with William Jackson in 
general merchandise until 1873. He then engaged 
in the business in which he is at present employed 
and has continued in the same ever since, except a 
portion of the year 1878, which he spent in Colorado 
to recover his health. 

Capt. Lucas was married Sept. 4, 1865, at Shab- 
bona Grove, to Miss Melissa E., daughter of Lemuel 
White. She died May 3, 1877, and Capt. Lucas was 
again married Sept. 4, 1879, at Shabbona village, to 
Miss Jennie, daughter of Dominicus and Catharine 
(Rennick) Mitchell. She was born in Comanche, 
Iowa, June 14, 1856. 

Politically, Capt. Lucas is a Republican. He has 
been Collector of his township on two occasions. 
Socially, he is a member of T. S. Terry Post, No. 
463, G. A. R. 

* -«^ * 

H|l^ eneral Daniel Dustin, Clerk of the Circuit 
Court and Recorder ex officio of De Kalb 
County, resident at Sycamore, was born 
Oct. 5, 1820, in Topsham, Orange Co., Vt. 
John K. Dustin, his father, was a farmer, born 
Jan. 24, 1784, in Atkinson, New Hampshire, 
near the border line between that State and Massa- 
chusetts. He died in Topsham, Vt., in August, 
1858. His wife, Sally (Thompson) Dustin, was born 
in Newbury, Vt., Jan. 15, 1788, her death transpiring 
in Topsham, Vt., Dec. 14, 1829. The immediate 
ancestors of John K. Dustin were Nathaniel Dustin 
and Judith (Knight) Dustin. The former was born 
Sept. 8, 1756, and died March 3, 1815. The latter 
was born May 2, 1756, and departed this life June 
3, 1842. 

The Dustin family is of Scotch and English de- 
scent, and the first authentic record of them in this 
country was of Thomas and Hannah Dustin, of Ha- 
verhill, Massachusetts, in 1677, which was at the 





time of their marriage. " Hannah Dustin," says the 
historical record, "became the mother of 13 children. 
She was taken prisoner by the Indians in the attack 
on Haverhill March 15, 1698, her nurse and infant 
one year old being also taken, but the child was soon 
afterward killed. She was placed in an Indian fam- 
ily of 12 persons on an island (Dustin's Island), in 
the Merrimack River, near the mouth of the Conto- 
cook, in New Hampshire, and with the aid of the 
nurse and a white captive boy she killed all the In- 
dians in their sleep except a squaw and a boy who 
escaped. She returned to Haverhill with their 
scalps." 

General Dustin is the seventh of a family of 13 
children, and remained with his parents on the farm 
until attaining his majority. He received a good 
common-school and academical education, and after 
studying medicine at Topsham and Corinth, at- 
tended three full courses of medical lectures at 
Dartmouth College, at Hanover, N. H., graduating 
therefrom in 1846. His labor upon the farm had 
been interspersed with the duties of a teacher in the 
district school. Thrown mainly upon his own re- 
sources, he continued teaching at intervals while a 
medical student at Dartmouth. After being gradu- 
ated he first established himself in the practice of 
medicine at East Corinth, his native county, remain- 
ing there for a period of three years. In March, 
1850, like many other adventurous and ambitious 
young men, he was pursuaded by the glowing reports 
of gold discoveries in California to try his fortunes 
in the new Eldorado, whither he went and engaged 
in mining operations until 1853, when, in connection 
with mercantile pursuits in which he had become en- 
gaged, he resumed the practice of his profession. The 
political abilities which have always distinguished 
the General soon attracted favorable attention, and 
in 1855-6 he was chosen to represent Nevada Coun- 
ty in the Legislature of that State. 

In 1858 he was induced by the representations of 
friends to come to Sycamore, where he became asso- 
ciated with J. E. Ellwood in the sale of drugs and 
medicines. He continued in business until the 
breaking out of the Rebellion, when in response to 
the call of the Government for troops he disposed of 
his interest to Mr. Ellwood and assisted in raising the 
8th Regt. 111. Cav. The regiment was organized at 
St. Charles, 111., September, 1861, was assigned to 
the Army of the Potomac, and General Dustin went 



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to the front in command of Co. L. In January, 
1862, he was made a Major of the 8th Cav, In 
March, 1862, His regiment joined in the general ad- 
vance on Manassas, in General Sumner's Division. 
In the early part of the spring of that year, at four 
different tunes it drove the enemy across the Rap- 
pahannock. His regiment did important service at 
Gaines' Hill and Malvern Hill, and was on picket 
duty while the army laid at Harrison's Landing; it 
led the advance on the second occupation of Mal- 
vern Hill, and with Benson's Battery, United States 
Artillery, bore the brunt of the fight, and brought up 
the rear of our retreating forces at Barrett's Ford 
and Chickahominy. At the opening of the "Seven 
Days' Fight " General Dustin was in command of a 
squadron 'of the 8th on the extreme right of our 
lines, and where the rebel troops first encountered 
the Union army; and the first volley of musketry on 
the first day of that memorable succession of en- 
gagements was fired at Major Dustin, his orderly 
and a captain of his command, by the advance guard 
of the enemy at close range, the captain being shot 
down by the Major's side. 

In July, 1862, under the call for more men, the 
105th Regt. of 111. Inf. was raised. It was mustered 
into the service Sept. 2, 1862, at Dixon, 111., and the 
General became its commanding officer. The regi- 
ment joined the Army of the Cumberland, with which 
it remained through the war. In the spring of 1864 
the regiment was brigaded with the io2d and 129th 
Illinois, the 70th Indiana and the 79th Ohio, the 
same being in the 1st brigade, 3d division of the 20th 
Army Corps. After the Atlanta campaign Col. Dustin 
was placed in command of the 2d brigade of the 
same division and corps and remained in command 
of that brigade during the war. He accompanied 
Gen. Sherman in his grand march to the sea. After 
the battle of Averysboro, N. C, he was brevetted 
Brigadier General, a promotion which his coolness, 
dash and bravery in that engagement had well 
merited. It may be said here that he has a spotless 
military record, and was one of the most gallant 
officers sent from De Kalb County. Upon being 
mustered out of the service June 7, 1865, at Wash- 
ington, where he took a proud part in the Grand Re- 
view of the armies, Gen. Dustin returned home, and 
in the fall of that year was elected to the office of 
County Clerk, without opposition, which position he 
held for four years. He was subsequently elected 

I 'V r ^ - <f ^€S»^ —^< 



County Treasurer for one term, and in the fall of 
1880 was elected Circuit Clerk and Recorder. He 
was re-elected in 1884, and with the expiration of his 
present term will have completed sixteen years of 
official service in the Court-House at Sycamore. It 
is needless to say that he has performed the several 
important trusts reposed to his keeping by the people 
ol the county with signal fidelity and ability. As a 
Republican none have been more active and influen- 
tial in local politics. The General has twice been 
the choice of Republicans in De Kalb County for 
Congress, and in both instances has ne withdrawn in 
favor of personal friends, preferring in his modesty 
and humility to remain in comparative obscurity, 
although second to none in influence and lilted in 
every sense to confer honor upon any position to 
which he might be called. He has been a stanch 
Republican from the first, and in every political cam- 
paign sincejiis return from military to civil life he 
has done yeoman service for his party. Intellectually 
gifted, he is fluent of speech and possesses that rare 
grace and power of oratory which is at once most 
pleasing and effective on the stump. He is a man 
of warm and generous impulses and never fails in 
his appeals to the patriotic feelings of those whom he 
addresses. In this respect he is exceptional. His 
fine presence and courtly manners, added to his un- 
swerving integrity and his utter unselfishness, have 
won for him a host of friends and enthusiastic ad- 
mirers. De Kalb County is proud of him, and loves 
him for the gallant soldier that he was, for the faith- 
ful and able part he has borne in the administration 
of its civil affairs and for his manly and devoted 
spirit in all things pertaining to their interests. As a 
neighbor he is conspicuous for his kindly ways and 
his ready response to every appeal in behalf of 
charity and benevolence. He is one of those worthy 
sons of New England who have left the impress of 
their character and good deeds upon the institutions 
and people of the West. 

He has been twice married. His first wife being 
Isabel, daughter of Colonel Gouldsbun Taplin, of 
Corinth, Vt. Their marriage took place at Topsham 
Vt., in 1846, and of their union three children were 
born. Emma A. married William B. Myers, a woolen 
manufacturer of Carthage, Mo. Electa J. is the wife 
of Walter Waterman, a merchant at Sycamore. Wil- 
liam G. is connected with a prominent journal pub- 
lished at Rockford, 111. The mother died at East 



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Corinth, Vt., which was also the place of her nativity. 
The second marriage of General Dustin, to Elmira E. 
Pauly, occurred Oct. 15, 1854, and they have one 
daughter, Zada Belle. Mrs. Dustin was born in War- 
ren Co., Ohio. 

In 1859 the General became especially interested 
in the Masonic Order and is now a Mason of the 
'33d degree. He is a member of Sycamore Lodge, 
No. 134; Sycamore Chapter, No. 49; Sycamore 
Council, No. 36, and Sycamore Commandery, No. 15. 
In 1872 the Knights Templar of Illinois elected 
him to the highest office within their gift, that of 
Right Eminent Commander of the Grand Com- 
mandery of the State. 

Mr. and Mrs. Dustin, together with their daugh- 
ters, are members of the First Congregational Church 
of Sycamore, in which society the General has held 
important offices, being at present Clerk of the 
Church. 

The portrait of General Dustin on a preceding 
page is presented by the publishers with a satisfac- 
tion which will meet with a corresponding degree 
of appreciation wherever the subject is known. 



-- <S- 



-S-o- 




^ 



If eorge C. Cooper, deceased, for many years 
a resident of Paw Paw Township, was born 
"@JBp K in the town of Salem, Washington Co., N. 
fyf^ Y., Oct. 2, 1808, and is the son of William and 
■ ; Sarah (Crage) Cooper. His parents were born 
in Washington Co., N. Y., of Irish descent. He 
moved to Cayuga County, with his parents, in 18 ro, 
became a farmer and was married in Sterling, N. Y., 
Sept. 26, 183^ to Miss Elizabeth Moore, daughter of 
James and Letitia Moore. Mrs. Cooper was born in 
Cambridge, Washington Co., N. Y., of English and 
Irish descent, April 20, 1810. They had two chil- 
dren, both born in Sterling, Cayuga Co., N. Y., a son 
and a daughter : James C, born Feb. 2, r833, married 
Margaret Newton, Feb. 21, 1856, and died Oct. 22, 
1869; Mary C, born May 30, 1835, wife of Joseph 
L. Holmes, married Feb. 28, 1858, and resides in 
Leland, 111. 

Mr. Cooper emigrated with his family to Illinois, in 
1848, and arrived in Paw Paw Township, De Kalb 
County, July 24. He purchased 320 acres of Gov- 
ernment land, and subsequently bought an 80-acre 

^^ ^^^-^Hl] 







tract at private sale, making 400 in all. He was en- 
gaged in farming and stock-growing to the time of his 
death, which occurred July 20, 1862. In politics he 
was an earnest Republican, with Abolition sym- 
pathies. He always took a warm interest in political 
affairs, and was a zealous advocate of temperance 
principles. He was a man who aimed to advance 
the best interests of society, and was highly esteemed 
by his fellow citizens. His wife survives him, and 
still resides at the old homestead, on section 23, 
where she is held in high esteem by neighbors and 
friends. 



ames McCleery, Supervisor of Clinton 
Township, residing and farming on section 
aW^ 34' ' s ason °^ J ames an d Jane (Thompson) 
^■fj McCleery, natives of New York and Scotland 
^£ respectively. They were married and settled 

I in Canada, and eight years later moved to 
Wayne Co., Ohio. From Ohio they came to this 
county in 185 r, and settled in Somonauk Township, 
and afterward removed to Victor Township, where, 
May 29, 1859, his mother died. His father then 
removed to Washington Co., Iowa, where he is at 
present residing, at the advanced age of Si years. 
Nine children constituted the issue of their marriage. 
Six survive, namely, John, James, Mary A., Margaret, 
Elizabeth, and William D. The deceased are Hugh. 
Robert and Jane C. 

James McCleery, Jr., was born in Canada, near 
Gault, Waterloo County, June 18, 1835. He was 
seven years of age when his parents moved to Ohio, 
and remained on his father's farm, assisting in its 
cultivation and attending the common schools until 
he attained the age of 22 years. Arriving at that age, 
he set out to fight life's battles alone. He at first 
engaged in farming, which vocation he followed in 
Ohio until 185 1, when he came to this county. 

In 1855 Mr. McCleery came into possession of 120 
acres of land situated in Victor Township. He at 
once settled on his land and lived thereon for two 
years, when he traded it for 187 acres in Clinton 
Township. He moved on the latter farm in i86r, 
and is still a resident thereon. He is at present the 
owner of 292 acres of land, all situated in De Kalb 



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County, and of the entire amount 220 ai inder 

ill state nt' cultivation. 
Mr M. ( Hi .TV was united in marriage to Margaret 
Graham, in Victoi Township, Feb. 1, 1858. She isa 
daughter of Robert and Sarah (Williamson) Graham, 

natives of Washington Co., N. Y. They came to this 
county in 1850 and lived for one year in Somonauk 
Township, then removed to Victor Township, where 
they at present reside. They are the parents of six 
children, five of whom survive, namely, Margaret, 
Mary A., Andrew, Russell and James. One died in 
nfancy. 

Margaret McCleery, wife of the subject of this 
biographical notice, was born in Washington Co., N. 
Y., June 15, 1837. She remained an inmate of her 
father's family, assisting in the household duties and 
attending the common schools until her marriage. 

Mr. and Mrs. McCleery are the parents of ten chil- 
dren. The living are Sarah J., Mary, Fanny E., 
Adeline I., William R., Raymond and Jeannett. The 
deceased are John, Andrew and Margaret. 

Mr. McCleery was appointed Supervisorof Clinton 
Township in the spring of 1883, and in the spring of 
1884 was elected to the office, and now holds the 
same. He has also held other minor offices in his 
township. Politically, he is a Republican. Relig- 
iously, Mr. and Mrs. McCleery are members of the 
Presbyterian Church. 




homas Wright, farmer and stockman, resi- 
|| dent on section 34, De Kalb Township, is 

one of the leading agriculturists of his 
county. On attaining his majority he settled 
on the farm on which lie has since resided and 
carried on his successful operations. His 
estate includes 226 acres of land, all under a high 
order of cultivation and devoted largely to the rearing 
of stock of excellent grades, comprising 44 head of 
tattle, r 20 swine and eight horses. He is a Repub- 
lican in political connection. 

Mr. Wright was born March n, 1833, in Oneida 
Co., N. Y. He acquired a fair degree of education 
in the common schools, and after the death of his 
father, which occurred when he was three years of 
age, was brought up by his mother, who supported 
her family of four sons and two daughters and reared 



them to a period when they could make their own 
:n the world. From the age of 12 years until is 
manhood, he was a farm laborer. He was seven 
years of age when the family came to De Kalb 
County. Before coming of age, in company with his 
brother Jabez, he bought 160 aires of land, of which 
hi tfterwards became by purchase sole proprietor 
and which is now included in his homestead. 

The marriage of Mr. Wright to Amanda Richard- 
son took place Dec. 2t, 1854, in De Kalb Township. 
Her parents, Abiel and Sophia Richardson, were 
natives of Vermont, and removed from that State to 
Illinois in 1837, becoming pioneer settlers of De Kalb 
County. The former died April 14, 1869; the de- 
cease of the latter occurred March 12, 1871. Mrs. 
Wright was born Aug. 18, 1836, in Addison Co., Vt. 
Frank E., only child of Mr. and Mrs. Wright, was 
born March 19, 1857. 



evi Hurst, a retired farmer, residing in the 
village of Shabbona, was born at Eaton, 
Nottinghamshire, England, Nov. 23, 1823, 





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and is the son of James and Mary (Bowskill) 
Hurst. In youth lie was employed in farming 
and other service, and, May 15, 1849, he was 
married, at Troxford, England, to Miss Sarah Burdin, 
daughter of John and Ann Burdin, who was born in 
Bothamsall, England, Feb. 7, 1828. 

Mr. Hurst and family emigrated to America in 
1851, and after spending two years in Seneca Co., 
N. Y., removed, in 1853, to Batavia, Kane Co., 111., 
where they resided one year. Then they were resi- 
dents of Victor, De Kalb County, three years; then 
again in Seneca, N. Y., three years; next, in 1859, 
they returned to Victor; and finally in 1864, Mr. 
Hurst purchased a farm of 160 acres in the town- 
ship of Shabbona, being the southeast quarter of sec- 
tion 1. He carried on his farm successfully till 1881, 
when he sold, and Feb. 20, 1882, removed to the vil- 
lage of Shabbona. where he has a pleasant and com- 
modious residence. 

The living children of Mr. and Mrs. Hurst are 
seven in number, besides twodei cased, and all born 
in America except the oldest, as follows: John, born 
April 14, 1850, married Eva Wigton and lives in 
Hamilton Co., Iowa; Mary A., born June 20, 1852, 



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died July i, 1852; George, born Aug. 10, 1853, mar- 
ried Franc Bronson and lives in Hamilton Co.. 
Iowa; James H., born Sept. 12, 1855, married Sarah 
Wescott and resides also in Hamilton Co., Iowa; 
Sarah E., born May 29, 1858, is the wife of William 
Launsbury and lives in Hamilton Co., Neb. ; Eliza 
J., born Nov. 1 1, i860, is the wife of Charles R. Dodd 
and is a resident of Humboldt, Iowa; Ann M. was 
born Feb. 4, 1863; Lillie M., July 22, 1865; and 
Joseph, born Oct. 23, 1868, died June 2, 1873. 



. ames McFarland, deceased, was a re- 
E* spected pioneer of Paw Paw Township of 
1S45. He was born in the town of Salem, 
Washington Co., N. Y., Sept. 24, 1797, and was 
^ the son of John and Janet McFarland. His 
parents were of Scotish birth, and had emigrated 
to the State of New York in an early day. He 
moved with his parents to Cayuga County in boy- 
hood, where he was engaged in farming and lum- 
bering. 

He came to Illinois in 1845 and settled on section 
23, Paw Paw Township, De Kalb County. He pur- 
chased his land of the Government (160 acres), and 
made this his home continuously till the time of 
his death, which occurred Dec. 27, 1876. He was 
married in Cayuga Co., N. Y., March 6, 1832, to Miss 
Mary Harper, daughter of James and Elizabeth 
(Black) Harper. Mrs. McFarland was born in 
County Tyrone, Ireland, April 10, 1809. She emi- 
grated with her parents to America during the War 
of 181 2. The family settled in Washington Co., N. 
Y., and subsequently removed to Cayuga County, 
same State, where she was married. Three children 
were born of this union, one boy and two girls : 
Elizabeth, born Feb. ro, 1833, became the wife of 
Charles S. Hubbell, and died Feb. 24, 1875, leaving 
three children, all girls; the next younger than 
Elizabeth was Janet, who was born Nov. 14, 1835, 
and died June 24, 1848; Thomas, born in 1837, died 
in infancy. 

Mr. McFarland was an earnest member of the 
United Presbyterian Church from boyhood. He 
took an active part in building the church at Ross 
Grove, and was one of the most liberal in its support. 

He was a man of the strictest integrity, and com- 



manded the confidence and esteem of all who knew 
him. His wife, a lady justly held in high esteem, 
survives him and still occupies the old homestead. 
She is a consistent Christian and has a membership 
in the United Presbyterian Church of Freeland, De 
Kalb County. 



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^^ — @A«II 



H \ (M& ewis H. Crego, farmer, residing on section 
s-J^g|r 36, De Kalb Township, was born in Che- 
4&z^ nango Co., N. Y., Jan. 1, 1841. He is the 
6 (j son of Daniel Crego, a native of New York, and 
/«j was born in Herkimer County, that State, April 
30, 1801. He followed the business of a 
farmer in that county until his removal to this State 
in 1852, when he settled in Kane County. In 1857, 
he came to De Kalb County, which is now their place 
of residence. His father was born in Dutchess Co., 
N. Y., in 1750, of Holland parentage. His wife, 
Polly (Stanehan) Crego, was born in Chatham, N. Y., 
and they moved to Chenango Co., N. Y., where she 
died, in 1829, aged 69 years; and his death occurred 
in 1836. They were the parents of nine children, — 
two daughters and seven sons. Daniel Crego, their 
eighth son, was married to Ann Kelley, who is the 
daughter of Michael and Elizabeth (Stall) Kelley, 
natives of New York, both of whom died the same 
year, the father in February and the mother in July, 
1837. There were seven children in the family of 
Daniel and Ann Crego, namely, Sarah, George M., 
Polly J., Owen C, Lewis H., Nancy E. and Ellen. 

Mr. Crego, the subject of this sketch, is a promi- 
nent agriculturist of De Kalb County, of which he 
has been a continuous resident since 1857. He has 
a valuable farm, which comprises 480 acres of land, 
devoted to the raising of stock and general farming of 
an advanced character. Mr. Crego 's political views 
are in harmony with those of the Democratic party. 

The marriage of Mr. Crego to Millie Souders took 
place in Kane Co., 111., March 1, 1873, and they be- 
came the parents of four children : John S. and Dan 
S., twins, were born June 28, 1875 ; Floyd O., Aug. 
14, 1876; Mabel M., July 14, 1879. Mrs. Crego 
died Oct. 28, 1879, in the township of De Kalb. She 
was born in Kane County, Nov. 27, 1842, and was 
the daughter of John and Polly Souders, natives of 



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Ohio, who were the first settlers on Blackberry Creek 
in Kane County. 

As one of the prominent and representative agri- 
culturists of De Kalh County, we take pleasure in 
presenting Mr. Crego's portrait in this work among 
other leading and representative men; and as a fit 
and worthy companion picture of Mr. Crego, we place 
by it that of his estimable wife. The photographs 
from which the engravings were made were taken in 
1878. 



-5 — AM.! 



■^ss^ — 



HJ| athaniel Smith, deceased, formerly of 
t Sandwich, came in 1858 to that place from 
Little Rock, 111., where he had located in 
1849. He was born in Providence, Sara- 
,l(j toga Co., N. Y., Dec. 2, 1822. 
After completing a course in the State Normal 
School of New York, he was appointed Public School 
Inspector in his native State. Mr. Smith was a man 
of artistic tastes and was one of the best photogra- 
phers in the west. He was the instructor of C. D. 
Mosher, of Chicago, who has a national reputation. 
Nathaniel Smith died at his home in Sandwich, Jan. 
24, 1878. 

■ i -t H ^fe***-* 

,:|k rastus Dean, proprietor of a drug store 

•: P-j^fe and meat-market at Waterman, is from the 

Empire State. His parents, Smith and 



Jjk Delilah (Wright) Dean, also natives of that 

"■ State, came to Kane Co., 111., in 1846, where 

where they resided the remainder of their lives. 

Their seven children were Erastus, Althea, John, 

Robert, Lewis, Miriam and Nathaniel. 

The gentleman whose name heads this sketch was 
born in Putnam Co., N. Y ., July 18, 1831, came to this 
State with his father in 1846, lived at home till 1855, 
and came and purchased a farm of 146 acres in 
Afton Township, this county, where he lived about 
14 years, and then rented his farm and removed to 
Shabbona, where he engaged in the meat business 
about live years; he then removed to Waterman, 
where he has since been employed in the same voca- 
tion, adding to his business a stock of drugs in 1884. 
In his political views Mr. Dean is a Democrat. 



He has been one of the Trustees of the village of 
Waterman for four years, School Trustee, etc. 

He was married in Afton Township, this county, 
Oct, 12, 1859, to Miss Charlotte L., daughter of 
Orson and Betsey (Brainard) Pearl, natives of New 
York State, who came to this county in 1854, settling 
in Afton Township, where Mrs. Pearl died. Mr. P. 
afterward married and moved to Waterman, where 
he at present resides, at the advanced age of 81 
years. His children are Julius, Mary A., Charlotte 
L., Sarah, Ellen and Charles. Mrs. Dean was born 
in the State of New York, July 10, 1841. Mr. and 
Mrs. D. have 12 children, namely: Alice, Smith A., 
Charles O., Amzy, William E , Bertie P., Cornelius, 
Jennie, Lulu, John W., Fred and one who died when 
an infant. 



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i^zra M. Ames, farmer, section 33, Clinton 
Township is a son of Elijah and Cynthia 
Ames, natives of Vermont, and is the 
■Z'to- youngest of 15 children who constituted the 
issue of their marriage. 

He was born in Potsdam, St Lawrence Co., 
N. Y., June 5,1822. He was a resident of " York 
State " for 25 years, until 1847, when he came to Du 
Page County, this State. He lived in the latter coun- 
ty three years, until June 1850, when he came to this 
county and purchased 80 acres of land in Clinton 
Township, on which he located and where he is at 
present residing. He is the owner of 204 acres of 
land, 180 of which are in a good tillable condition. 

Mr. Ames was united in marriage to Miss Orpha 
M. Ames, Jan. 9, 1846, in St. Lawrence Co., N. Y. 
She is a daughter of Elijah and Mable (Pierce) Ames, 
natives of Vermont and Massachusetts respectively, 
and are the parents of 1 2 children. 

Orpha M. Ames was born in Canton, St. Lawrence 
Co , N. Y., April 27, 1822. She is the mother ot 
eight children by Mr. Ames, namely : Marion E., 
born April 9, 1847; Almeda, born March 6, 1S50; 
George W., born April 15, 1S52; Ota E., born Nov. 
23, 1856; Charlie I., born March 30, 1859: Ethan 
E., born Dec. 21, r86o; Myron P., born May 29, 
1863, and Cora M., born Dec. 5, 1865. Marion E. 
died April 19, 1868. Almeda is the wife of James 



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Merritt, and resides in Waterman. Ota E. married 
Miss Ella Hill and resides in Sycamore. 

Politically, Mr. Ames is a Republican. He has 
held the office of School Director, Overseer of the 
&. Poor and Overseer of Highways. 



ames Harper, farmer, residence East Paw 
Paw, on section 18, has 62854 acres of 
land, 158 acres of which lies in Lee 
County, the balance being in De Kalb County; 
]C was born in Paw Paw Township, De Kalb Co., 
111., Dec. 2, 1854, and is the son of William 
and Sarah (Kirk) Harper. He received a common- 
school education and was reared on his father's 
farm. He has always made this township his home. 
He was married at East Paw Paw, April 10, 1878, 
to Bertha Patrick, daughter of William and Mary 
(Congrave) Patrick. Mrs. Harper was born in Du 
Page Co., 111., April 7, 1858. They have three chil- 
dren, all boys: Floyd E., born March 9, 1879; 
Frank W., born Nov. 23, 1881 ; and Jesse C, born 
Dec. 10, 1883. 

Mr. Harper made his home on section 14 of this 
township immediately after his marriage, where he 
still has a farm, and continued to reside there till 
1883, when he removed to East Paw Paw, his pres- 
ent home. Politically, he is a Republican. 



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I illiam Howison, farmer, section ^^, Clin- 
ton Township, is a son of George and 
Margaret (Brown) Howison, natives of 



!> Scotland, who emigrated to America in 1834 
and settled in New York in 1844 and came to 
\J Somonauk Township, this county, where they 
passed the remainder of their lives. 

They were the parents of James, William, Eliza, 
Alexander and Robert. 

Mr. Howison, of this sketch, was born also in 
Scotland, Oct. 18, 1821, and in 1S43 he emigrated 
to this country, coming direct to De Kalb County. 
He first resided about four years in Somonauk 
Township, and then, in 1847, he moved to Clinton 
Township, where he purchased a quarter of section 
33, settled upon it and has since resided there. He 




is now the owner of 500 acres of land in Clinton 
Township, most of which is in a state of good cul- 
tivation or pasture. He keeps about 250 head of 
hogs, 60 of cattle and 14 horses. 

In his political principles he is identified with the 
Republicans. He has been entrusted with the 
offices of Highway Commissioner, School Director, 
etc. He and Mrs. H. are both members of the 
United Presbyterian Church. 

He was married in Clinton Township, Oct. 18, 
1855, to Catherine Walls, who was born in Washing- 
ton Co., N. Y., Dec. 25, 1824, and they are the par- 
ents of James A., William J., Robert W., George W., 
Albert and Mary M. The first-born, James A., 
died March rs, 1882. 




^OOOfe 




" ranklin O. Stevens, farmer, owning 120 
C acres on section 30, Shabbona Township, 
11 was born in West Haven, Rutland Co., 
Vt., Sept. 14, 1832. His parents, Amma and 
Polly (Talmadge) Stevens, moved from Ver- 
mont t-> Parma, Monroe Co., N. Y , in which 
vicinity his father soon after engaged in farming. 

Franklin O. was raised on his father's farm, alter- 
nating his labors thereon by attendance at the com- 
mon schools. In 1840 he came, with his parents, 
from New York and located in Cook County, this 
State. They resided in the latter county for about 
three years, then moved to Du Page County, and in 
1848 came to this county and located on a farm. 

Mr. Stevens'was married Feb. 15, 1855, to Loticia 
M. Erwin, who died Dec. 8, same year, leaving a son, 
Terry G. He was born Nov. 14, 1855, married Cora 
Allen and resides in Montana. Mr. Stevens was a 
second time married Sept. 13, 1857, at Shabbona, to 
Miss Ann, daughter of Lyman and Hannah (Gates) 
Norton. She was born in Parkham, Geauga Co., 
Ohio, July 22, 1835, and came to this State with her 
parents in 1845'. The issue of their union was two 
children : Murray L., born Oct. 6, 1868, married E. 
Hattie Ray and resides on a farm in Shabbona 
Township; Curtis E. was born Feb. 13, 1874, and 
is living with her parents. 

Soon after the breaking out of the late Civil War, 
Nov. 2, 186 1 , Mr. Stevens enlisted in Co. C, 50th 
111. Vol. Inf., was a Sergeant and served in the 
Army of the Tennessee. He received an honorable 



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discharge June 17, 1862, on account of physical dis- 
ability. 

Mr. Stevens settled on his present farm and has 
1 onstantly resided thereon except two years he spent 
in Oregon and the time lie was in the army. In 
May, 1871, he, with his family, went to Oregon via 
the Union Pacific Railroad. He traveled by stage 
about 300 miles and located in Jacksonville, Jackson 
County. He spent two years there, and then re- 
turned to his farm, which he had rented during his 
absence, arriving in the fall of 1872. 

Politically, Mr. Stevens has been identified with 
the Republican party ever since its organization. 



eorge Harrington, farmer, section 13, 
Squaw Grove Township, was born Sept. 26, 
1835, in New Berlin, Chenango Co., N. Y., 
and is the son of Rufus and Eliza (Welch) 
Harrington. (Sue sketch of Rufus Harrington). 
He obtained his education in the public 
schools of his native State and of Illinois, having 
been about 1 3 years of age when he came to De 
Kalb County. His first act of unusual importance 
was his enrollment in the Union army. He en- 
listed Aug. 15, 1862. in the 105th 111. Vol. Inf., as a 
private in Co. H. He served until the close of the 
war, and obtaining his discharge returned to Squaw 
Grove. He is the owner of 120 acres of land, 
which is under advanced cultivation and forms a 
valuable property. He is a Republican and is a 
member of Aurora Post, No. 20, G. A. R. He has 
held several local offices, of different degrees of re- 
sponsibility. 

Nov. 25, 1858, he was married at Sandwich, to 
Elvira A. Ward. She was born Dec. 24, 1835, in 
Ohio, and they have three children, — Jessie A., 
Ruth E. and Stella M. Mr. and Mrs. Harrington 
are members of the Baptist Church. 



artman Schule, farmer on section 21, Pierce 

Township, was burn April 24, 1803, in 

Hesse Darmstadt, Germany. He grew to 

/v manhood in his native State, and was married 

May 20, 1830, to Elizabeth Roth. In 1847 the 

family, including the parents and five children, 




Mr. Schule found employment there and saved suf- 
I'u ient of his earnings to come to Illinois after a 
and a half, and in the fall of 1849 settled in Du 
Page County, where he was engaged in farm labor 
until 1S53, when he settled in Pierce Township, to 
which place he had come a year before and purchased 
240 acres of wild land situated on section 21, at the 
rate of $3 per acre. They first built a shanty with a 
shed-root, which served a few months for a shelter 
and was then replaced with a more commodieiis 
frame house, Their children are named Catherine, 
John, Henry, Elizabeth and George. The latter is 
the only one living in the township of Pierce. He 
was bom in Hesse Darmstadt, Germany, and was 
married Dec. 2, 1862, to Mary A. Shoop, a native of 
Crawford Co., Ohio, and daughter of Solomon and 
Catherine (Eberly) Shoop. They have five children, — 
Adelia Jane, William Henry, Emma Ellen, Nelson 
George (Postmaster at Pierceville) and John Harvey. 
On coming West from New York, they came by 
the Hudson River and Erie Canal to Buffalo, and 
thence to Chicago by steamer. From the last place 
they came to Du Page County on foot. The family 
homestead is in fine and valuable condition, with 
good farm buildings, orchard and shade trees. 




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Samuel M. Swift, retired farmer, residing at 
§Jl Waterman and owning land on section ir, 
t^ Clinton Township, is a son of Samuel and 
Betsey M. (Woodworth) Swift, natives of New 
York. They moved to Calhoun Co., Mich., 
where they located and resided until their 
death. Seven children were the issue of their union, 
namely : Samuel M., Elizabeth M., Nathaniel, 
Charles, David, Harriet, Woodworth and Kent. 

Samuel M. Switt, the subject of this biographical 
mini e, was born in Columbia Co., N. Y., March 27, 
1820. He lived at home, aiding in the support of 
the family, working on the farm and attending the 
common schools until manhood. On attaining that 
age, he set forth to meet life's obstacles with a deter- 
mination to accumulate a competency. He came to 
Kendall County, this State, where he remained until 
the spring of 1854, and then came to this county. 
On his arrival he purchased 160 acres of land on 
section n, Clinton Township, on which he at once 
located and resided until the spring of 1885, when 



set out for America, landing at the port of New York. 

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he moved to Waterman. All of his land is in good 
tillable condition. Politically, Mr. Swift is identified 
with the Republican party, and has held the offices 
of School Director and Highway Commissioner. 

Mr. Swift was united in marriage to Miss Harriet 
M. Shonts, April 7, 1846, in Little Rock Township, 
Kendall Co., 111. She is the daughter of Andrew M. 
and Mariam (Buck) Shonts, natives of New York 
and Connecticut respectively, and of German and 
American extraction. They moved about the year 
1840 to Kendall Co., this State, where they died. 
Their family comprised 12 children, namely : Eber,, 
Anthony, David, Eliza, Angeline, John, Mariam 
Harriet M., Mary, Andrew, Edwin and Jeremiah. 

Harriet M. Swift was born in Saratoga Co., N. Y., 
Nov. 16, 18 19. She was an inmate of her father's 
family until the date of her marriage. Mr. and Mrs. 
Swift are the parents of seven children, namely: 
Drew C, Emma M., Eber M., R. K, Earnest, Ells- 
worth and Elizabeth. Emma M. and Elizabeth are 
deceased. 

Mr. and Mrs. Swift are members of the Baptist 
Church. 



- 



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Lenry Corson, farmer, section 28, Genoa 
I Township, whose portrait is given on the 
opposite page, was born July 8, 1825, in 
Lycoming Co., Pa. His parents, John and 
Elizabeth (Buck) Corson, were born in the Key- 
stone State. The former was born Feb. 5, 1788, 
and died in Pennsylvania April 16, 1842. The 
mother came to De Kalb County after becofhing a 
widow. She was born Oct. 15, 1795, and died in 
January, 1882, in McHenry County. They were the 
parents of n children, — Hannah, Catherine, Peter, 
Sarah, Susan, Henry, Lovinia, Daniel B., Alfred, 
Harriet and Lucretia. 

Mr. Corson was a farmer in his native county un- 
til the spring of 1864, when he removed with his 
family, consisting of his wife and four children, to 
De Kalb County. He bought 140 acres of land in 
Genoa Township, on section 3, immediately after his 
removal hither, on which he prosecuted his agricul- 
tural work until 1877, about which time he rented 
the place to a tenant and bought 40 acres on section 
28 — since constituting his homestead. In the spring 
of 1878 he went with his family to Colorado and 




New Mexico, and spent about nine months, return- 
ing to his home in Genoa Township. In political 
principle and preference he is identified witli the 
Democrats. 

The marriage of Mr. Corson to Eliza A. F. Hew- 
lett took place Oct. 31, 1850, in Lycoming Co., Pa. 
Mrs. Corson is one of 12 children, — Edward, Caro- 
line, Charlotte, Sophia, Drusilla, Eliza A. F., Thomas, 
Angeline, Charles, Catherine, William E. and Henry 
C. Mrs. Corson was born Feb. 5, 183 1, in Lyco- 
ming County, and is the daughter of Charles and 
Martha (Croft) Hewlett, the former a native of Eng- 
land, the latter of Pennsylvania. Mr. and Mrs. 
Corson have had four children born to them, — Hor- 
ton H., Angeline, Mary D. and Carrie E. The 
youngest child died when 16 months old. 



ohn Ray, farmer, residing at Shabbona, was 
f born in Nassau, Germany, Jan. 10, 1820, 
and is a son of John J. and Catharine Ray, 
natives of that country. He received a good 
common-school education in his native coun- 
try, and prior to majority had mastered the 
stone-mason's trade. In 1849 he emigrated to the 
United States, arriving in New York city July 15 of 
that year. He proceeded from that place to Monroe 
County, that State, where he resided for about four 
years and then came to this State, locating at Piano, 
Kendall County. He followed the vocation of a 
farmer in that county for five years, when he re- 
moved to Victor Township, this county, and contin- 
ued in the same occupation until 1864. During the 
latter year he moved to Shabbona Township and on 
Feb. 9, of that year, purchased 160 acres of land lo- 
cated on section 15, that township. 

On the construction of the railroad through Shab- 
bona Township, Mr. Ray gave the right of way 
through his farm, and also donated an undivided half 
interest in 17 acres to secure the establishment of a 
station at Shabbona. He aided by his liberality and 
public-spiritedness very materially in establishing the 
village of Shabbona. 

Mr. Ray was married in his native country Jan. 10, 
1843, to Miss Elizabeth Enders. She is a daughter 
of George and Mary Enders, and was born in Nassau, 
Germany. They have been blessed with nine chil- 




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dren, three of whom were born in Germany, namely : 
William II., the present editor and publisher of the 
Shabbona Express; John Ferdinand died in this 
country, aged 12 years and 8 months; Lissette H. is 
the wife of George Hochstrasser and resides at Wil- 
low Creek, Lee Co., 111. The remaining six children 
were born in this country. They are : John P., 
married Lotta Heun ; Benjamin F. married Laura 
Linthicum; George A. married Miss Sarah J. 
Houghtby ; John A. died in infancy; Emma A. is 
unmarried and lives at home; Esther H. is the wife 
of M. L. Stevens and resides in Shabbona. 

Mr. Ray and his sons are Republicans. He and 
his wife are members of the Baptist Church of Shab- 
bona. 

— *3>- 

iehael Zeiglor, a farmer on section 22, 

Pierce Township, was born Sept. 20, rS2o, 

in Wurtemburg, Germany. His father, 

ys^\ Michael Zeigler, was a native of Baden and 

'•' married Elizabeth Steinle, who was born in 

Wurtemburg. He was a land-holder five miles 

from the chief city of his province, and his residence 

was in the village of Pfahlbash. 

Mr. Zeigler was sent to school eight years and 
obtained a good education. In 1847, accompanied 
by his brother, he set out in a sail vessel for America, 
and in 28 days landed at New York. He proceeded 
from that city to Pennsylvania and spent a few 
months as a clerk. He came next to Chicago, where 
he prospected for a couple of weeks, and went thence 
to Michigan. He spent a few months as a saw-mill 
assistant, but he contracted the ague and returned to 
Chicago, where he remained until he recovered his 
health. He next made his way to D11 Page County, 
and during the summer following worked on a farm 
in Kane County. In 1850 he contracted the Califor- 
nia gold " fever," and in company with live men and 
six teams set out for an overland journey to the land 
of promise, carrying with them their supplies. The 
journey consumed four months. Mr. Zeigler passed 
three years in the mines at different localities and 
with varying success. In 1853 he returned, making 
the route across the Isthmus and by steamer, thence 
to New York, coming from there to De Kalb County. 
He bought 160 acres of land on section 22, Pierce 




Township, which im hided 20 acres of broken prairie 
and a log house. At date of writing, 32 years after 
making his purchase, Mr. Zeigler has his farm all 
improved and excellent farm buildings. His marriage 
to Laura Ramer took place in 1853. Their children 
are — Ferdinand, Edward, Reuben and Melinda. 

^ ~=gg>- W- 

[lmon W. Lake, farmer and stock-grower, 
section 25, Paw Paw Township; post- 
office, Leland. He was born in Sterling, 
Cayuga Co., N. Y., Oct. 13, 1829, and is the 
son of John and Catharine (Van Tassel) Lake, 
of English descent on the father's side, and of 
German on the mother's. When 10 years of age he 
emigrated to Hancock Co., 111., arriving May 31, 
1840. In the spring of 1845, he came to Paw Paw 
Township, De Kalb County, and purchased a part of 
his present farm, of the Government, in 1849. He 
worked out at $1 1 a month to earn money to pay for 
it, and subsequently purchased another tract of 80 
acres, making 160 in all. He was married in Paw 
Paw Township, Jan. 5, i860, to Mary E. Dennis, 
daughter of John and Margaret (McFarland) Dennis. 
Mrs. Lake was born in the township of Argyle, 
Washington Co., N. Y., April 16, 1842. They have 
one child, a son, Myron E., born Jan. 15, 1863. 

In politics Mr. Lake is a Republican and has 
voted that ticket since the organization of the party. 





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fie Jorgensen Prestegard, of the firm of 
Christopher & Jorgens, dealers in grain, 
lumber, coal and live stock, in the village 
Qffi of Lee, was born in Norway, April 23, 1841, 
J Jfc> the son of Jorgen and Gruenelda Prestegard. 
J He emigrated from his native land to America 
in 1864, coming directly to Illinois and settling in 
the township of Alto, Lee County, where he engaged 
in farming. He purchased 320 acres of land, situ- 
ated on sections 35 and 36, which he still owns and 
on which he still resides. 

In 187 1 he formed the existing partnership with 
C. Christopher, in the business above mentioned. 
He moved to the village of Lee in September, 1874, 





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where he resided till the spring of 18S5, and he then 
removed to the farm in Alto, still continuing his 
business at Lee. As a business man he has a repu- 
tation for enterprise and fair dealing of which any 
man might be proud. 

Since declaring his intention to become a citizen, 
he has always voted with the Republican party. 

He was married in Alto Township Dec. 24, 1868, 
to Gorend Pedersen, daughter of Lars and Segeri 
Pedersen. She was born in Norway. They have 
had a family of eight children, namely: Gruelda, 
Lars, Gorgen, Sarah (1st) deceased, Sarah (2d), 
Peder O., deceased, and Olaf G. 

* ~4^r+ 4- 




dward Molitor, M. D., practicing physican 
and surgeon at Somonauk, is the son of 
Dr. Nicholas and Rosa (Salmon) Molitor 
^j^. and was born in Somonauk, Dec. 31, 1862. 
His father was a native of Bavaria and was 
graduated at Rush Medical College in Chicago. 
He came to Somonauk in i860. He was for 23 
years a practicing physician and surgeon at Somo- 
nauk. He died March 12, 1883, at Somonauk, aged 
58 years. 

He educated his son in his profession, and the 
latter was graduated Feb. 20, 1883, at Rush Med- 
ical College, and on his father's decease a month 
later succeeded to his office and practice, and is 
doing an extensive and prosperous business. Dr. 
Molitor was a student at Notre Dame, Ind., two 
terms, 1879-80, previous to his matriculation at 
Rush College, and received a medical certificate 
from that University, dated June 23, 1880. 



* Cx-X> * 




I j ussell R. Brown, deceased, formerly a far- 
mer on section 36, Clinton Township, was 
born in the State of New York, in Septem- 
ber, 1816. In the family of his parents, 
James and Fanny (Scott) Brown, were five 
children, — Russell R., Morris P., Adelia, 
Abi and Emma. 

Mr. Brown came to De Kalb County with his 
parents in 1846 and entered a quarter-section of land 
in Clinton Township, where he followed agriculture 



until his death, which was a most distressing circum- 
stance. He was driving a team of spirited horses 
near his home, when they became frightened and ran, 
throwing him out and breaking his back. He died 
ten days afterwards, from the result, July 3, 1864. 

Mr. Brown was married Dec. 19, 1850, to Miss 
Nancy Warner, daughter of Ralph and Clara Warner. 
She came to Henry Co., 111., with her parents in 1845 
and to De Kalb in 1850. In her father's family 
were 1 1 children, namely : Wilson, Amos, Hester, 
Rhoda, Nancy, Calvin, John, Marrilla, Orman, David 
and Mary A. The deceased are Rhoda, Marrilla 
and Mary A. Mrs. Brown was born in Elizabeth- 
town, Canada, March 10, 1826. She is the mother 
of five children, namely: Fred A., born Sept. 16, 
185 1 ; Ralph R., born Oct. 7, 1853, married Anna 
M. Beveridge Feb. 18, 1880, and resides in Clinton 
Township; Grace was born March 27, 1855, and 
married A. G. Case, July 14, 1878 ; he is a hardware 
merchant at Aurora; Sarah, was born July 13, i860, 
and died Nov. 4, 1862 ; Grant, born March 14, 1864. 



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$|p9{pL mma Stevens, deceased, formerly a citizen 



_|f of Shabbona, was born in Connecticut, 

Ifilf Se P l - ZI « I ? 88 ' and was a son of Daniel 
§ltak Stevens. He was seven years of age when 
his parents moved with him to Vermont. In 
1836 he moved to Parma, Monroe Co., N Y., 
and in 1840 to Cook Co., 111., where he resided three 
years ; next, in Du Page Co., 111., for a time, and 
finally, in 1848, he settled in Shabbona, where he 
lived until his death, which occurred Feb. 9, 1870. 

He was married Nov. 24, 1814, in West Haven, 
Vt, to Miss Polly, daughter of Win. Talmadge, and 
a native of the Green Mountain State. They had a 
family of five children, namely : Edwin F., born 
May 3, 1S21, was drowned in Lake Michigan 
Oct. 23, 1841 ; Deramon D., born June 2, 1823, 
married Charlotte E. Smith and lives in the town- 
ship of Shabbona; William H. O., born Jan. 30, 
1827, married Elnora Waters and resides in Shab- 
bona; Enoch W., born Nov. 15, 1830, married first 
Elizabeth Park and afterward Hannah Kittle, and is 
now living in Shabbona Township ; and Franklin 
O., born Sept. 14, 1832, was also twice married, first 



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to Loticia M. Erwin and subsequently to Ann Nor- 
ton. He also is a resident of Shabbona, 

In his life-time, Mr. Stevens was a Jackson Dem- 
ocrat, and since the organization of the Republ 
party he was a member of that body. Mrs. S., his 
widow, who was born June 17,, 1793, departed this 
life July 4, 1873. 

t'ohn H.Larson, farmer, section 3, Paw I'.iu 
\ Township, has 216 acres in this township 
and S3 acres in Shabbona township. He- 
was born in the town of Adams, La Salle Co., 
111., Feb. 14, 1847, and is the son of Lars and 
1 (."aniline (Holversoji) Larson. His parents 
\\ ere born in Norway and came to America in child- 
hood. 

John H. was brought up on a farm, and was mar- 
ried in Dodge Co., Minn., Jan. 8, 1868, to Miss Sarah 
Stevenson, daughter of Sjure and Annie (Seeverts) 
Stevenson. Mrs. Larson was born in the town of 
Rutland, La Salle Co., 111., July 18, 1847. They 
have had seven children, — five boys and two girls: 
Edward Li, born Oct. 7, 1S68; Frank S., July 16, 
1870; Albert O., Oct. 3, 1872; Nellie A., May 10, 
1876; Emma C, Sept. 9, 1878; John C, Nov. 13, 
1 88 1 ; and one child died in infancy unnamed. 

Mr. Larson was engaged in farming in La Salle 
County till the fall of 1875, when he purchased his 
present farm upon which he moved in January, 1876, 
and has made his home here continuously since. 
Mr. Larson is one of the most successful farmers and 
stoi k-growers in Paw Paw Township. Politically he 
is a Republican. 




v|J||lS? the Empire State. His parents, 
'•JtT Phebe (Bent) Hinds, were nativ 



ilbert Hinds, farmer and tile manufacturer, 
section 29, Clinton Township, is a native of 

Thomas and 
natives of Massa- 
chusetts, married in' Vermont and settled in 
New York State, where they finally died. They had a 
family of 13 children. 

The subject of this sketch, the ninth in the above 
family, was born in Champion, Jefferson Co., N. Y., 

r-^n : — ^-<C ; []D 




March 29, 1818. He lived in his native State until 
his emigration westward, with the exception of about 
three years, which he spent in Canada. In 1849 he 
settled in Clinton Township, this county, purchasing 
a farm of 65 acres, which he afterwards sold. He 
then bought 300 acres on sections 29 and 30, most of 
which is tillable, where he now resides. 

In public affairs Mr. Hinds holds the principles of 
the Republican party, has been School Director about 
30 years, and held other positions of public trust. 

He was married in Canada August 20, 1843, to 
Fanny Richardson, a daughter of William and Jane 
(Schermerhorn) Richardson, who was born in Cana- 
da, March 14, 1824. Mr. and Mrs. H. have become 
the parents of six children, four of whom survive, 
namely: Albert, Jr., William R., Carlos W., and Or- 
vis. The deceased are Emily and Gilbert L. 






*** 



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\ euben Allen, deceased, formerly a farmer of 
Shabbona Township, was one of the early 




pioneers of that section of the county. He 
y^r was born in the town of Ira, Rutland Co., Vt., 
July 30, 1787, and was married Feb. 1 1, 1813, to 
Miss Nancy Andrews, who was born in the town 
of Canaan, Litchfield Co., Conn., Dec. 25, 1792. He 
removed in early manhood, with his family, to St. 
Lawrence Co., N. Y., where he was one of the first 
pioneers, and where he engaged in farming a number 
of years. He next removed to Jefferson County in 
the same State, where he carried on the dairy busi- 
ness. In his younger days he had been brought up 
to both farming and dairying. 

In the spring of 1845 he emigrated to the West, 
settling at Shabbona, this county, where he entered 
land at Government price, on section 24 of town 38, 
range 3 east, and on section 19, town 38, range 4 
east, — 320 acres in all. Here he continued his agri- 
cultural pursuits until his death, which occurred 
Sept. 20, 1850. He was a Justice of the Peace sev- 
eral years, and also held other offices. In politics he 
was a Free-Soil Democrat. ' He was an honorable, 
upright man, who commanded the respect and esteem 
of his neighbors and fellow citizens. 

By his death, Mr. Allen left a widow, four sons and 
two daughters. The children were Benjamin F.; 
Harvey E.; Almira M., wife of Earl B. Hines, of 



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Jefferson Co., N. Y.; Hiram P. ; Laura E., wife of 
William Bowers, of Clinton, 111.; and Martin V., of 
Shabbona. Mrs. Allen, an estimable lady, survived 
her husband about 16 years, dying in 1866, at the old 
homestead. 






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appan R. Elliott, farmer, residing on sec. 
4 (and owning the west half of lots 1 and 
% 2 of the northeast quarter), Afton Town- 
ship, is a son of Ephraim and Mary (Robie) 
Elliott, natives of Chester, Rockingham Co., 
N. H. His father was a young man at the 
date of the Revolutionary War, and, sympathizing 
with the " sons of freedom " in their battle for liberty 
and country, enlisted as a privateer on board an 
American vessel. He was captured and sent to the 
" Old Mill " prison, Ireland, and was kept there until 
the end of the war. The prison was said to be 
haunted, and the fact was so thoroughly impressed 
on the minds of the prisoners that it added twofold 
to the misery of their confinement. He had the 
small-pox, as the result of vaccination. Mr. Elliott 
also had an uncle who was a Lieutenant in the Rev- 
olutionary Army. He participated in the battle of 
Bennington, and during that memorable engagement 
received a gunshot wound, the ball entering one side 
and was extracted at the other ; but he recovered 
from its effect. At the close of the war the father of 
Mr. Elliott was exchanged and returned to New 
Hampshire, where he engaged in farming, and where 
he resided until his death. He was appointed En- 
sign of the Militia in 1793, and Lieutenant in 1795, 
by Gov. Bartlett, and in 1800 he was appointed Cap- 
tain of a company by Gov. J. T. Gilman ; he was 
also a member of the New Hampshire Legislature. 

From the foregoing history, we see that Mr. Elliott 
of this sketch comes from the old " Revolutionary 
stock," of which an American of this generation may 
justly feel proud. He was born in the town of 
Thornton, Grafton Co., N. H., Nov. 18, 1809. He 
was an inmate of the family household and assisted 
on the farm until he attained the age of manhood. 
In addition to the education he received at the com- 





mon schools he was, through the generosity of an 
uncle, »n attendant at an academy for a year. 

He came to Kane County, this State, in 1839, and 
remained at the residence of a married sister for 
about six months, and then returned to New Hamp- 
shire. Previous to coming his parents died, and Mr. 
Elliott sold the old homestead. On returning to his 
native State, he purchased a farm in Merrimac 
County, four miles from Manchester in the same 
State, on which he lived and which he cultivated 
for several years and then sold. In the spring of 
1855 he again came to this State, accompanied by 
his wife and son, and on June 27 of that year pur- 
chased the farm on which he at present resides. It 
was a wild piece of land, in the natural condition, 
and Mr. Elliott, having faith in the future develop- 
ment of the country, and a desire to establish a 
home, entered at once upon the laborious task of its 
improvement. He has planted about six acres of 
timber. 

When he first came to the State he made the trip 
overland with a horse and buggy, with others who 
were seeking a home in the West. 

Mr. Elliott has been twice married. His first 
matrimonial alliance was with Miss Elmira, daughter 
of Nathan and Mary (Basford) Carr, and occurred 
Dec. 14, 1837. She accompanied him to this county 
on his second trip, and lived on the farm until her 
death, Oct. 6, 1855. She was the mother of one 
child by Mr. Elliott, Wm, Francis, born Nov. 17, 
1840, and at present living on the old homestead. 

He was married a second time at Dixville, Oneida 
Co., N. Y., Jan. 28, 185s, to Mrs. Hannah J. Kelley, 
widow of William C. Kelley, who died at the age of 
33 years, in Westchester Co., N. Y. He was the 
father of one child, T. Augustus Kelley, born in 
Westchester County, March 1, 1849. He is now liv- 
ing in Calhoun Co., Iowa, near Lake City, at which 
place Mr. Elliott has a farm of 160 acres adjoining 
that on which the son resides. The maiden name 
of Mrs. Elliott was Hannah J. Parker. 

Mr. Elliott has been Highway Commissioner and 
School Director, the latter of which offices he held 
for nine years. Politically he is a Republican. 

The portrait of Mr. Elliott appears in this work, 
and, in company with this brief sketch, will stand 
for ages to come, as portraying and representing a 
man respected and esteemed by the community in 
which he lived. 

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rederick Clapsaddle, farmer, section 24, 
Paw Paw Township, postoffice, Leland, 
La Sall< County, has 175 '_• aires, a por- 
tion of which lies in Victor Township, and two 
and one-half acres in Ross Grove. He was 
born in Frankfort, Herkimer Co., N. Y., April 
1827, a son ul George A. and Nancy (Bellinger) 
Clapsaddle, was brought 11 p a farmer, came to Paw 
Paw in the spring of 1S51, settled on his present 
farm, and has made this his home continually since. 
Was married in Frankfort, Will Co., 111., Nov. 10, 
1853, to Marenda Hare, a daughter of Nicholas and 
Mary (Rice) Hare. She was born in Houghton, Can- 
ada, Nov. 6, 1836, and came to Ohio with her par- 
ents in 1849. Their children were: Dan, born 
March 29, 1855; Myron H., Oct. 30, 1859, lives in 
Iowa; Omer, born Dec. 3, 186 1 ; Harry 13., June 26, 
1869; Hattie M., Sept. 23, 187 1 ; Andrew F., March 
12, 1874; Neva M , June 28, 1879. Dan married 
Mrs. Ida Everson and lives in East Paw Paw, Lee 
County; Omer married Mary C. Cox and lives in 
Paw Paw Township. 

In politics Mr. C. is Democratic. 




-->>» 



*e- 



fohn B. Fulle, farmer, section 16, Clinton 
ifc Township, is a son of Peter and Mary A, 
(Enderle) Fulle, who were natives of Ger- 
many and spent their entire lives in their na- 
tive land. They had 16 children, all of whom 
are deceased, excepting the subject of this 
sketch, the youngest of the family. 

Mr. Fulle was born in Germany, Aug. 26, 1836, and 
when 18 years of age he emigrated to the "land of the 
free." After a year's residence in New York city he 
was employed about six months in New Jersey on a 
farm, then about four months on Long Island, next 
^K about ten months in a machine-shop at Buffalo, N. 
Y., one year in Chicago ai various occupations, a few 
months in a woolen mill at Aurora, 111., and finally, 
in the summer of 1856, he came to De Kalb County 
'/ and purchased 80 acres of section 16, Clinton Town- 
^ ship, where he resided until about 187 1. He then 
V. built the " Clinton House," a hotel, which he con- 
ducted about five years, when he rented and after- 



ward sold the property, returning to his farm, where 
he has since lived, in the successful prosecution of 
ulture. In political matters he generally votes 
the Republican ticket. 

He was married in Kane Co., 111., April 14, 1862, 
to Margaret Jones, daughter of Joseph and Mary 
Jones, and they have had three children — Ida M., 
Mary E. and Henry F. They also have an adopted 
daughter, named Mabel E. Cutler. Mrs. Fulle was 
born in Wales, May 27, 1840. Her brothers and 
sister are William, Walter, Henry and Anna. 



' 



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euben Challand, retired farmer, residing at 
Shabbona, was born in East Bridgeford, 
Nottinghamshire, England, Feb. 7, 182 1, 
and is a son of Charles and Ann (Freeman) 
Challand, natives of that country. Reuben 
Challand received a good common-school ed- 
ucation in his native country. Early in life he en- 
gaged to learn the blacksmith's trade, which he 
mastered and followed in his native country until 
1 85 1. During that year he emigrated to the United 
States, arriving at New York city May 30. He spent 
three months in Genesee County, that State, then 
came to Aurora, this State, remained nine months 
and then removed to Shabbona Grove, this county. 
On arriving at the latter place, he opened a shop 
and worked at his trade for three years. He had 
meanwhile purchased a farm on section 8, Shabbona 
Township, on which, after disposing of his shop at 
Shabbona Grove, he moved his family. He subse- 
quently increased his original purchase to 253^ 
acres, and continued to reside on the farm until 1875. 
He then retired from farming and removed to Aurora, 
and the following year (1876) sold his farm. He 
lived at Aurora two years, until 1877, and then 
moved to Shabbona, where he has resided since, and 
where he has a fine residence and six lots. 

Mr. Challand was married May 15. 1843, to Miss 
Rebecca Brownlow. She was a daughter of Thomas 
Brownlow, and was born in England, March 8, 1S20. 
They had seven children, four born in England, 
namely: Charles, Feb. 11, 1844; Elizabeth, Aug. 
11, 1845; George, Oct. 12, 1846; and Reuben, 
March s, 1849. Sarah N., bom May 2, 1854; Es- 
ther R., Oct. 14, 1856; and Emily M., June 16, 



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1859, are natives of this country. Charles is a phy- 
sician at Charlotte, Iowa, and married Annie Mark- 
ham. Elizabeth is the wife of Charles Hallam, of 
Shabbona. George married Alice Greenfield and 
resides in Iowa. Reuben married Mary Cutts and 
lives on the old homestead in Shabbona Township. 
Sarah N. is the wife of Weekman Stimpson, of Shab- 
bona. Esther is the wife of George Cutts, resident 
in La Salle Co., 111. Emily M. is the wife of Wm. 
Van Velzor, resident of Shabbona. 

Mrs. Challand died March 24, 1873, and Mr. 
Challand was again married Dec. 30, 1874, at 
Naperville, 111., to Mrs. Ann Ashland, widow of John 
Ashland and daughter of William and Nancy (Hurt) 
Wells. She was born in Northscar, Lincolnshire, 
Eng., Oct. 16, 1818, and came to the United States 
in 1850. By her first marriage she had four chil- 
dren, one son and three daughters, namely : Jennie, 
born June 1, 1848; Helen, Nov. 24, 1850; Annie, 
Nov. 4, 1853; and William W. A., Jan. 1, 1856. 
Jennie was the wife of William North and died June 
8, 1876, in Du Page County. Helen is the wife of 
Wallie Jones, a resident of Du Page County, and 
they have one son, Frank J. Annie was the wife of 
Hiram Davis and died Sept. 22, 188 1, leaving one 
child, Gracie. William W. A. is single and resides 
on a farm in Du Page County. 

Mr. Challand is a member of the Methodist Epis- 
copal Church, and one of the respected and esteemed 
citizens of Shabbona. 

illiam D. Weddell, a pioneer farmer of 
Paw Paw Township, section 21, has 517 
acres of land. He was born in West- 
moreland, Pa., March 8, 1824, and is the 
son of Jesse and Nancy Weddell. He re- 
moved to Indiana in childhood with his parents. 
He was brought up on a farm and subsequently 
learned the carpenter's trade. In 1849 he went to 
Iowa, where he bought land, but did not become a 
resident. He came to Paw Paw the same year and 
purchased his land on section 21, where he engaged 
in farming and stock-growing on a large scale, till the 
spring of 1SS3, when lie retired from active farming. 
He was married in Indiana to Agnes G. Vail, 





Weddell was born in Fayette Co., Pa., April 9, 1829. 
They had three children — one son and two daugh- 
ters: Nancy A., born March 22, 185 1, wife of E. B. 
Powers, of Paw Paw Township; Charles V., born 
Aug. 9, 1853, married Mary Nisbet and lives in Paw 
Paw Township; the youngest, Elma A., was born 
Nov. 6, 1 866, and is unmarried. Mrs. Weddell died 
Dec. 16, 1 88 1, and Mr. Weddell was married again 
in June, 1883, to Mrs. Priscilla M. Upton, sister of 
his former wife. 

Mr. Weddell is a member of the Congregational 
Church. In politics he is a Republican. 



artin L. Posson, Treasurer of Pierce 

Sfe. Township, was born July 8, 1833, in the 

town of Knox, Albany Co., N. Y. His 

ZR- P arents > John and Betsey (Partridge) Pos- ( >) 

"V son, were both natives of the State of New * 

I York, and reared their son to a knowledge of ris 

agricultural pursuits, meanwhile giving him a fair ™ 

education in the common schools. %f 

When he was 21 years of age he went to Tama ^ 

Co., Iowa, for the purpose of buying land, and after If.' 




accomplishing his purpose he went back to the State 
of New York. He was married Feb. 5, 1857, to 
Sophia E. West. She was born May 28, 1837, in 
the town of Berne, Albany Co., N. Y., and is the 
daughter of Benjamin C. and Eunice (June) West. 
A few weeks after their marriage, Mr. and Mrs. Pos- 
son went to Iowa City by rail and then by stage to 
Tama County. But they made only a short stay 
there, returning to Joliet, 111. There Mr. Posson was 
employed as an assistant in the construction of the 
State prison. He acted in the capacity of teamster 
and drew some of the first stone used in the build- 
ing. In the fall of the same year he negotiated for 
the management of a farm adjoining Joliet and con- 
ducted its affairs one year, after which he spent an- 
other year on a rented farm and in the spring of 
i860 came to De Kalb County and exchanged his 
land in Tama County, Iowa, for 80 acres of land on 
section 35, on which he commenced the work of 
improvement. He plowed the land, set out an or- 
chard, dug a well and after adding to the buildings 
sold the place, and bought 160 acres of land on sec- 
tion 34. This was in a backward state, and he has 



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daughter of Charles C. and Ann (Jeffries) Vail. Mrs. 



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placed it under advanced irn ats and lias it 

well stocked. He is showing some valuable grades 
of cattle. Mr. Posson has been a member of the 
School Board some time and has officiated as Treas- 
urer of the township 11 years. 

Mrs. Posson died July 14, i.xf>o, leaving four chil- 
dren — Wallace S., Myron J., Leah M. and Martin 
Luther, jr. Mr. Posson formed a second matrimonial 
alliani e Dei . 6, 1S70, with Phebe, daughter of Cyrus 
B. ami Fanny (Larkin) Hopkins. Her parents were 
pioneer settlers in Cortland Township, where she 
was born Aug. 14, 1848. She is the mother of two 
children — John H. and Chester G. 




§ 



' enry Grim, farmer, section 27, Pierce Town- 
ship, was born July 24, 1831, in what was 
designated the Armstrong Valley, in Dau- 
phin Co., Pa., and is the son of John and Cath- 
erine Grim. His father and mother were both 
born in Pennsylvania and settled in Dauphin 
County soon after marriage. His father bought 
timbered land and cleared a large farm, assisted in 
the labor of improvement by his children. He is 
still its occupant and is 90 years of age. He was a 
soldier in the second war with Great Britain. 

The first 20 years of life Mr. Grim passed on the 
_ ) paternal homestead, and after arriving at a suitable 
age joined in the work of making a homestead in the 
Pennsylvania forest. He became the maker of his 
own fortunes when he reached the year preceding his 
majority, and left home to try a different portion of 
the world. He first came to Kane County and 
spent a season in farming. In the fall he went to 
Kaneville and worked a year with a carpenter, with 
the intention of learning the business, but his employer 
failed and he was forced to seek another situa- 
tion. He returned to his native State at the expira- 
tion of two years, and on the second day of Febru 
ary, 1 S 5 3 , he was married to Abby Laudermilch. 
She was born in Jackson Township, Dauphin Co., 
^ Pa., and is t he daughter of Adam and Mary (Kreiner) 
Laudermilch, both of whom were born in Pennsyl- 
vania. In March following their marriage Mr. and 
Mrs. Grim came to Illinois and settled in the town- 
ship of May field. The husband rented a farm, 
<s\ which he managed threi years. He saved his Barn- 
s' ings, and in 1856 bought 80 acres of land on section 



37, Pierce Township, at the rate of $24 per acre. 
Tin land had been improved to some extent, a frame, 
house had been built and a grove set out. He 
brought all his energies to bear on the final payment, 
and in a lew years he had cleared himself from debt 
and had become the owner of 1,400 acres of valuable 
land, all in the highest state of cultivation. In 1882 
he commenced buying farms in Cerro Gordo Co., 
Iowa, and has now 1,200 acres there and other trai ts 
in adjoining counties. 

Following is the record of the children of Mr. and 
Mrs. Grim : Charles M. was born April 29, 1856, in 
Mayfield Township, and married Alida Shoop, 
daughter of Solomon and Catherine Shoop, who was 
born in Pierce Township. They live in Cerro Gordo 
Co., Iowa. George W. was born Sept. 25, 1858, and 
married Henrietta Callanan, a native of Cerro Gordo 
Co., Iowa, where they reside. Aaron was .born Aug. 
27, 1863, and married Isola Bartmess, born in Kane 
Co., 111. They live on the Grim homestead in Pierce 
Township. Alice M. was born Aug. 26, 1867 ; 
Elmer S., Nov, 24, 1872; Eugene, Jan. 19, 1875. 
All the children of Mr. and Mrs. Grim, except the 
oldest son, were born in the township of Pierce. 

Mr. Grim is one of the most prominent and suc- 
cessful farmers in De Kalb County. He began his 
agricultural operations by raising stock and grain. 
In i860 he harvested 3,200 bushels of small grain, 
among which was barley, which he sold at $2.18 
per bushel. He sold his entire grain crop in De 
Kalb County. The family attend the assemblies of 
the Evangelical Association, of which Mrs. Grim is a 
member. Mr. Grim is a Republican in political sen- 
timent. 

:'-.-'• peneer GriiTeth, farmer, section 8, Pav 
Paw Township; postoffice, East Paw Paw ; 
born in Herkimer Co., N. Y., Jan. 
and is the son of Wright and Susan 
(Smith) Griffeth. His parents were of Amer- 
| ican birth and of Welsh descent. He came 
to Illinois with his parents in 1854, and settled in 
the township of Paw Paw. He was educated at 
Clark's Seminary, of Aurora, 111., and at Humboldt 
College in Iowa. Mr. GriiTeth has made fanning 
his business, and resides on the old homestead. He 




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owns 300 acres of land. He was married in Paw 
Paw Township, Jan. 15, 1879, to Miss Mary Adams, 
daughterof James L. and Martha J. (Barnes) Adams. 
Mrs. Griffeth was born in East Paw Paw, 111., Feb. 
10, 1854. They have two children, a girl and a boy ; 
Edith, born Sept 22, 1881, and Howard, June 28, 
1884. 

Mr. Griffeth is the present Township Treasurer, 
and is also the secretary, solicitor and surveyor of the 
Paw Paw Mutual Fire Insurance Company. He is 
a member of the Congregational Church, and politi- 
cally a Republican. 



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jl dwin R. Zellar, farmer, section 6, De Kalb 
Township, was born Sept. 14, 1836, in 
Herkimer Co., N. Y. His father and 
^^ mother, Jacob and Fanny Zellar, were natives 
$>' of the State of New York, and settled in 1864 
J in the township of De Kalb. The mother died 
Nov. 21, 1883. The father still survives. Their fam- 
ily comprised five children, as follows : Edwin R., 
William W., George W., Charles and Ruth. 

Mr. Zellar came to Illinois in 1857, and located in 
Piano, Kendall County. To him, as to millions, the 
call of his country came with unmistakable import, 
and he responded as did the millions, placing his 
young life and the strength and energies of his open- 
ing manhood at her service. He enlisted in 1861, 
in the 36th 111. Vol. Inf., and during the time he was 
in the army saw much arduous service. He was 
under fire at Pea Ridge, Perrysville, Stone River, 
Mission Ridge and Lookout Mountain. At Mission 
Ridge he received a shot in the elbow of his right 
arm, necessitating amputation just above the joint. 
He was wounded Nov. 25, 1863, and was confined 
to the hospital six months. On recovery he was dis- 
charged, and on leaving the army went to Jefferson 
Co., N. Y., where he remained six months, coming 
thence to De Kalb. He is now a successful and 
substantial farmer, owning 176 acres of land, con- 
stituting a valuable estate, all the acreage being cul- 
tivated and improved. Mr. Zellar is a Republican 
in politii al faith and connection. 

He was married in De Kalb, March 26, 1868, to 
Mercy A. (Ferguson) Chappell, and they are the 




parents of one child — Marvin, born Sept. 22, 1880. 
Mrs. Zellar was born May 18, 1838, in Jefferson Co., 
N. Y., and is the daughter of Luther and Alvira 
(Gardner) Ferguson. Her father was born in Can- 
ada and died March 15, 1852, in St. Lawrence Co., 
N. Y. The mother came with her two children, 
Samuel and Mercy A., to Illinois, in September, 
i860, and settled in Malta Township, where she 
died Nov. 21, 187 1. The first marriage of the daugh- 
ter occurred in De Kalb, June 27, 1862, when she 
became the wife of Charles Chappell. He was a na- 
tive of the State of New York and settled in Malta 
Township, where he deserted her, leaving one child, 
Olive A., who was born May 18, 1863. 

Mr. Zellar is a member of Edward Bridge Post, 
No. 21, G. A. R. 

As one of the leading and representative agricul- 
turists of De Kalb County, we place Mr. Zellar's 
portrait in this work. It is engraved from a photo- 
graph taken in March, 1885. 



,.,:.;,. 





j-.enry Earner, deceased, formerly a farmer, 
resident of Pierce Township, was a pioneer 
settler of De Kalb County. He was born 
in Dauphin Co., Pa., Aug. 8, 1804, and was 
there brought up and instructed in agricultural 
pursuits. His marriage to Susannah Troup oc- 
curred April 1, 1826'. She was born Nov. 2, 1808, 
in Dauphin County. In 1833 they emigrated to Ohio, 
moving there in what was then known as an emigrant 
wagon, but is called in Illinois a " prairie schooner." 
Mr. Ramer purchased a tract of timber land in 
Richland County, made a clearing, built a log house 
and lived on the place until 1846, clearing and im- 
proving 65 acres. In that year he bought another 
place near by which he sold a year later and came 
to Illinois. The journey thither was accomplished 
by the aid of three horses, a pair of oxen and two 
wagons, and they brought with them their household 
goods and provisions. They were 17 days on the 
road. They rented a farm in Du Page County, where 
they operated until 1849, when they settled in town- 
ship No. 39, range 5 east, which afterwards became 
Pierce Township. Mr. Ramer purchased 160 acres 
of land in its original condition on section 27. He 
built a frame house upon it, for which he drew the 



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lumber from Du Page County. On this he lived 
until his death. His first wife died Jan. 9, 1 S 7 7 . 
He married Catherine Smith, who lived but live 
months after marriage. Mr. Ramei died in April, 
1881. He was the father of 10 children by his first 
wife,— Maria, Catherine, Peter, Levi, Lavina, John, 
Henry, Philip, Anthony and George. 

Peter, oldest son and third child, was born Aug. 4 
1830, in Dauphin Co., Pa., and was but three years 
of age when* his parents went to Ohio. He came 
with them in their journey to Illinois and helped to 
drive their one cow. He was married July 2, 1853, 
to Elizabeth, daughter of David and VVilhelmina 
(Hoover) Gerlach. Her parents were natives of 
Germany. In 1S50 Peter Ramer had bought 80 
acres of land on section 29, and built a frame house, 
with a car-shaped roof. The year subsequent to his 
marriage he, with his wife, lived on the farm of 
Moses Hill, after which he took possession of his 
own property. In 1862 he erected a commodious 
frame house, drawing the required material from 
Chicago with horse teams. In T872 he built a fine 
frame barn, 36 X46 feet in dimensions, and has since 
erected another adjoining, 38 x 50 feet in size. His 
farm contains 320 acres and is supplied with modern 
farm machinery and well stocked. The family in- 
cludes five children, — Mina S., Elihu B., Frankie C, 
Grant A. and Ella E. 



■■•' :l — f 
- i £?r|ik dward B. Powers, farmer, section 33, Paw 

■ [\^f : I'.iw Township, postoffke Earl, La Salle 
'•'■>■ '. ■ ' Co., III., was born in La Salle Co.. 111., 

j?S. Sept. 16, 1841, and is the son of Norman H. 
and Catharine (Hart) Powers. He came to 
Paw Paw Township, De Kalb County, with his 
parents, in June, 1849, and spent his boyhood on his 
father's farm. He enlisted in the late war Aug. 13, 
1862, as a private of Co. I. 4th 111. Cav. He was 
captured by the enemy during a skirmish at Chest- 
nut Bluffs, Tenn., in November, 1862, but was 
paroled the same day. He was soon afterward ex- 
changed and resumed his connection with his com- 
pany, and served till the last of June, 1865, or till 
the close of the war. 

He was married in Paw Paw Township Dec. 1, 
1867, to Miss Nancy A. Weddell, daughter of Will- 

^^^ — =^<m 




iam B. and Agnes (Vail) Weddell. Mrs. Powers 
was born in Paw Paw Township, March 22, 185 1. 
They have two children (daughters) : Katie C, born 
in Paw Paw Township, Sept 29, 1868; and Agnes 
G., Jan. 2, 1873. 

Mr. Powers is the present Assessor of Paw Paw 
Township. In politics he is a Republican. Mr. 
and Mrs. Powers are members of the Congregational 
Church of Ross Grove. 



jtenry Till, deceased, was formerly a farmer 
! on section c, Malta Township. He was 
«>Jg born in Suffolkshire, England, about 1824, 

m and was the son of Christopher and Mary 
i (Hutton) Till, also of English birth and parent- 
' age. 'The mother died when her son was in 
childhood. 'The latter was reared by his father, who 
gave him a fair common-school education, and when 
he grew to manhood he followed the customs of the 
class to which he belonged, and became a laborer 
on the farms of his native shire. He was thus en- 
gaged until his marriage Aug. 27, 1848, in Dorset- 
shire, England, to Sarah Coombs, and afterwards 
continued in the same line of employment in his na- 
tive country eight years. In 1856 they came to 
America, and with little delay at the port of landing 
came to De Kalb County. They located in the 
township of the same name, where Mr. Till engaged 
in farming on shares. In 186S he purchased 80 
acres of land, where he pursued the vocation of 
farming, with success, until his death, and doubled 
his landed estate, owning 160 acres, all of which was 
well improved and stocked. He died Jan. 17, 1881, 
aged about 57 years. He was a Republican in 
political opinions, and was much respected for his 
excellent traits of character. Since his death the 
management of the farm has been conducted by 
Mrs. Till, 

She was born June 10, 18 r 9, in Burton Bradstock, 
County of Dorsetshire, England, and is the daughter 
of Giles and Mary (Wills) Coombs. Her parents 
were of English origin and lineage and belonged to 
the yeomanry of their native land, tracing their name 
and line of descent back to ancestry of the earlier 
days of England. The father of Mrs. Till died in 
1831, the mother in July, 1848. Mrs. Till passed 

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her life previous to her marriage near the place of 
her birth, and attended the public schools. She has 
one child, — Sarah J., — born Aug. 20, 1858. She was 
married Oct. 29, 1881, to Herman Sandgren, a native 
of Sweden. He came thence when 21 years of age, 
and has since resided in Illinois. To him and his 
wife one child, Agnes J., has been born. The family 
of Mr. Sandgren reside on the estate of Mr. Till. 



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K^&gi/iTZJW^ WW 




illiam Gibbons is a representative farmer 
of Victor Township, where he owns a val- 
uable estate on section 10. Henry Gib- 
bons, his father, was a native of England 
and emigrated thence to Potsdam, N. Y., 
where he married Betsey Ames. He was a 
farmer and trafficked in real estate, buying timber 
' land, and after improving it selling it again, in which 
manner he operated 21 years. In 1864 he sold his 
f^ interests in the State of New York and removed to 
" Waupaca, Wis., where he bought 140 acres of land 
$ and was occupied 10 years in farming. In 1874 he 
° sold his farm preparatory to retiring to private life in 
^ the village of Waupaca, where he died in 1880. The 
mother is still living. 

Mr. Gibbons was born Dec. 22, 1827, in Potsdam, 
St. Lawrence Co., N. Y. He received a common- 
school education, and on attaining his majority came 
to Illinois, where he spent three years in farm labor, 
obtaining $10 a month as a remuneration for his 
services. In 1851 he went to Minnesota and passed 
a winter in the lumber woods, after which he came 
to the township of Clinton, in De Kalb County, and 
became by purchase the owner of 1 20 acres of land. 
Jan. 5, 1857, he was married to Emily Warren, by 
whom he had three children, — Warren H., Oscar S. 
and Rachel O. The oldest son is married and lives 
at Stratton Station, Hitchcock Co., Neb. The mother 
was born in the State of New York, and died in De 
Kalb County March 13, 1863. In 1864 Mr. Gib- 
bons married Araminta Willcy, a native of Illinois, 
and they have had seven children : George W. 
died when he was five years old ; Dora, at the age 
of seven months; Ernest O., Alice B., Mary E., 
Clara R. and Ray E. are still living. 

After a residence of one year in Clinton Township, 
Mr. Gibbons sold his farm and passed five years 



subsequently in the township of Victor, on a rented 
farm. He then purchased his present homestead of 
160 acres, and has since made an addition of 160 
acres more. He at first built a small house, 16 by 
24 feet in extent, and later erected a valuable resi- 
dence and a fine barn. 

Mr. Gibbons is a farmer of the pattern that has 
made the State of Illinois what it is, — peerless among 
the Western States earliest settled. Besides the im- 
provements named, he has planted a fine grove on 
his farm, has about 300 hickory trees, natural growth, 
and 800 black-walnut trees which were planted. He 
has made a specialty of Durham cattle for the past 
12 years, and his herd has always included registered 
stock of acknowledged standard. 

Mr. Gibbons is a Republican of a decided type. 



-waefirtS-SS"* 



&— x^gwraw- 





illiam H. Ray, editor and publisher of the 
Shabbona Express and President of the 
Village Board, residing at Shabbona, was 
born in Nassau, Germany, Nov. 13, 1843. 
He is a son of John and Elizabeth (Enders) 
Ray, natives of Germany, and who emigrated 
to this country in the spring of 1849. His parents 
located near Rochester, Monroe Co., N. Y., where 
they remained until 185 1 and then removed to Little 
Rock, Kendall County, this State. Two years later 
they came to Somonauk, this county, and in the 
spring of 1864 moved to Shabbona. 

William H. Ray, subject of this notice, grew to 
manhood under the parental roof-tree. He received 
his education in the common schools and at Clark's 
Seminary, Aurora, spending two years in the last 
named institution. After leaving the seminary, he 
engaged in farming, and alternated his labors on the 
farm by teaching during winter seasons. 

In 187 1, when the Chicago & Iowa Railroad was 
completed through Shabbona Township, he was ap- 
pointed station agent at a station called Cornton. 
He was also American Express agent at the same 
place. He held the former position one year and the 
latter some 14 years, being Express agent at Shab- 
bona at the present time. 

In 1876 he purchased a half interest in the Shab- 
bona Express and in May, 1878, bought his partner's 
interest, since which time he has conducted the pub- 



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lication of the paper alone. The Express is a five- 
column quarto with patent inside. It is Republican 
in politics and is issued weekly. The paper's popu- 
larity is due to the energy of its editor, who 
to give to the reading public facts as they transpire 
and condemn vice wherever il is found. Fair dealing 
with all and an earnest and persistent effort to sus- 
tain the principles which it believes to be right, is 
constantly increasing the subscription of the paper, 
and its future will place it the peer of any in the 
county. 

Mr. Ray has held various IcH al offices in the town- 
ship. Fie is present Town Clerk and has held the 
office foi !-• years in succession. He also served 
as School Directoi oi District No. 3 for 11 years. 
He has been a Trustee of the village for four years, 
and is at present serving his second term as Presi- 
dent of the Village Board. 

He was married at Aurora, Dec. 22, 1870, to Miss 
Emmagene, daughter of Hon. Hiram Loucks. oi 
Sandwich. She was born in Oneida Co., N. Y., Feb. 
27, 1850. Her mother's maiden name was Vosburg. 
Mr. and Mrs. Ray have one child, Lizzie A., born 
Nov. 13, 1871, at Shabbona. 



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f fc'ii f\*|, athew Parks, a retired farmer, resident 
■'. ' ^Vk£t -at I, eland, I. a Salle County, a settler on 
lHH? 5 ^ section 28, Victor Township, m [856, 
y^^\ was born Feb. 25, 1827, in Ireland. His 
"y' parents, Edward and Sarah (Davidson) Parks, 
came thence with their family in 1832 to Mont- 
real, reaching that city at a time when the cholera 
was raging. After a residence of a year in the 
Dominion they went to the State of New York. 

Mi. Parks came to the State of Illinois in the fall 
of 1856 and purchased 53 acres of land in the town- 
ship of Victor. To this he has added by subsequent 
purchase until he is the owner of a quarter-section. 
On this he pursued mixed husbandry, with satisfac- 
tory results, until 1882. In that year he purchased 
his residence at Leland and relinquished the man- 
agement of his farm, of which he still retains the 
ownership. He is a Republican and is justly con- 
sidered a substantial and reliable citizen, He held 
the office ol Road Commissioner 10 years. 

'V--X- *®^ <^<MDI 





Mrs. Eliza Parks was born Sept. 3, 1826. She is 
the daughter of John Parks, of Niagara Co., N. V. 
Of the tour children bom to Mr. and Mrs. Parks, 
three are living, — -Nettie M . Lizzie 1!. and Emma ('•. 

oseph B. Lyons, fanner and stock-grower, 

section 14, Paw Paw Township, has 206 
i ni land. He was born in county 
vvi Tyrone, Ireland, Nov. 12, 1834, and is the son 
Jt "^ J ose P n '""' (Mary) Lyons. He emigrated 
[ to America in 1856, and came directly to Illi- 
nois and made his home in Paw Paw Township. 
He bought a farm in 1864, on section 23, and occu- 
pied it in May, 1866. 

He remained there until 1884, when he purchased 
his present farm on section 14, and took possession 
Sept. 9 of that year. 

He was married in Sterling, Cayuga Co., N. Y., 
March 2, 1866, to Elizabeth McFadden, daughter of 
Benjamin and Eleanor (Harper) McFadden. Mrs. 
Lyons was born in Sterling, Cayuga Co., N. Y., Aug. 

17, 1841. They had one child, Benjamin, born June 

18, 1869, and died aged three months. Mrs. Lyons 
is a member of the United Presbyterian Church. In 
politics, Mr. Lyons is a Democrat. Mr. Lyons takes 
a warm interest in local history, and has by intelli- 
gent research arrived at a better knowledge of the 
history of his township than many earlier settlers. 
The publisher takes pleasure in acknowledging the 
receipt of valuable information from him. 




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\ illiam Lang, farmer, section 28, Malta 
sa'. Township, was born Nov. 27, 1849, in 
Devonshire, England. William Lang, sen- 
ior, his father, was a native of the same 
county and married Mary A. Boiles. Both 
are now living in the place of their nativity. 
Mr. Lang is next the youngest in birth of six children, 
and he remained with his parents until he was 20 
years old, receiving as good an education as could be 
obtained in the public schools of his native land. 
In 1870 he accompanied neighbors and relatives to 
America, and the entire part) came to the county of 
De Kalb, where he operated for a time as a farm la 



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borer, to which calling he had been bred in England. 
He pursued that means of obtaining a livelihood 
until his marriage, previous to which he purchased 
160 acres of land, where he established his home- 
stead, and the place is now in valuable and credita- 
ble condition and finely located. His marriage to 
Mary C. Lang occurred July 28, 1882, at Sycamore. 
She was born Oct. 3, [859, in the north of Devon- 
shire, England, where her parents, Thomas and Ann 
(Huxtable) Lang, now reside. She was reared at 
home and educated at Oxford, England, becoming, 
after finishing her studies, a teacher in the public 
schools of her native land, and was occupied in that 
calling eight years. She taught in both the primary 
and grammar-school grades. In July, 1882, she set 
out alone for America in order to fulfill a pre-arranged 
project and respond to an obligation she had entered 
into to become the wife of William Lang. She 
joined him in Malta Township, and a week later the 
pair were united in matrimony, at Sycamore, in the 
Episcopal Church, in whose cherishing arms she had 
been reared. The farm house in Malta had been 
made ready for the advent of a mistress, and the 
wedded pair at once took possession of their home. 
One child — Albert C. — has been born to them, who 
died when six months old. Mr. Lang is a substan- 
tial and enthusiastic Republican, and is at present a 
School Director. 




ichard L. Divine (deceased), a former resi- 
dent of Sycamore, where he was a promi- 
^ nent attorney for more than 20 years, was 
t v.- N born Sept. 27, 1832, in Fallsburg, Sullivan 
v Co., N. Y., and was the son of James and 
Mehitable (Hall) Divine. His grandfather, 
Joseph Divine, who is his earliest ancestor now trace- 
able, removed with his family from Plattekill, Ulster 
Co., N. Y., in 1794, to Sullivan County and located 
in the western part of the township of Fallsburg, the 
place where he settled soon afterward taking the 
name of Divine's Corners. At the time of his re- 
moval there he was the first white settler, his nearest 
neighbor being four miles distant. His demise oc- 
curred in 1S02. James Divine, born June 14, 17 81, 
in Fallsburg, was his youngest son and was a man 
of conspicuous ability and became prominent. He 

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was for many years a Justice of the Peace and was 
the occupant of other positions of trust and responsi- 
bility. He spent his entire life on the homestead at 
Divine's Corners and died there Feb. 1, 1846. The 
descendants of Joseph Divine still resident in Falls- 
burg sustain the honorable prestige of the family 
name and are recorded as prominent and valuable 
citizens of Sullivan County. The wife of James 
Divine, known in the records of Sullivan County as 
" Hetty " Divine, was a member of the denomination 
of Friends or Quakers, and was a "preacher." She 
was a woman of decided character and opinions, and 
so uncompromising a foe to slavery that she sacri- 
ficed her peace principles in her opposition to the 
"divine institution." The quality of esteem in which 
she was held and that of the influence she exerted is 
manifest from the fact that a spirited controversy 
with a male member of the society in which she was 
the aggressor, is preserved in the history of Sullivan 
County. She was born Jan. 15, 1789, was married 
July 16, 1803, when she was 14 years and six 
months old, and died in the town of Fallsburg, 
March 14, 1S66. She was the daughter of John 
Hall, one of the first white settlers in the town of 
Neversink, in Sullivan County. Her mother's maiden 
name was Stone, and of her marriage to John Hall 
five children were born, of whom " Hettie " was the 
second in order of birth. 

One of the most suggestive thoughts arising from 
examination of the personal records of the closing 
years of the 18th century and the opening period of 
the century following, concerns the women of those 
days; and if it were possible to trace their influence 
in forming the characters of their sons, there is no 
question but the development would present a most 
interesting study. 

The ancestral stock of Mr. Divine in the paternal 
line of descent were Huguenots, and he was the 
youngest child in order of birth of 10 children — seven 
sons and three daughters — born to his parents. He 
was a boy of studious, reflective character, and he 
acquired a comprehensive knowledge of all the 
branches taught in common schools. He afterwards 
attended a select school taught by Henry R. Low at 
Fallsburg, and spent eight years in teaching in the 
county where he was born and in the counties ad- 
joining, and also studied law with George W. Lord, 
an attorney of prominence at Monticello, Sullivan 
Co., N. Y. His interest in educational matters was 



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DE KALB COUNTY. 



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recognized in his native county by his election in 
isition of School Commissioner. In 
the fall ol that year he came to Michigan and en- 
gaged hi teaching al ah. 

In the spring of 1S58 he settled al Sycamore .mil 
completed his preparation for .1 professional life in 
the office of Hon. E. L. Mayo. In the winter of the 
same year he taught a term of school al Cortland, 
and in March, 1S60, was admitted to practice. He 
entered into a business association with Judge Mayo 
and rapidly rose to pre-eminence as a counselor and 
advocate. He held his position unassailed and was 
recognized as one of the leaders of the Bar of De 
Kalb County for many years, and justly ranked and 
estimated in all the Courts in which he practiced, 
which included the local tribunals, the Supreme and 
Apellate Courts of Illinois and of other States, and 
the United States Courts. His knowledge of law 
was commensurate with his abilities, his memory, 
his industry, his powers as a logician, his skill in 
legal adaptation and his intrepidity in the interests 
of his clients. Under the pressure of his indomitable 
energy and ambition to crowd the greatest possible 
amount of labor into his life, he met his Waterloo, 
dying a few days before reaching his 50th birthday, 
at the period when his splendid powers should have 
been at the zenith. 

In social life Mr. Divine was on occasion the rarest 
of companions ; and in conversation the powers of 
mind he displayed differed essentially from those he 
exercised in his professional relations. The field of 
nation was, so to speak, his ground of recrea 
tion, and he reveled in the beauties of practical and 
classical literature, his obedient memory storing the 
pictures of imagery painted in glowing words, which 
he was in the habit of reproducing under the influ- 
ence of the social hours in which he endeared him- 
self to his friends and built an enduring monument 
to his life and genius. 

Mr. Divine was a Republican in his political con- 
nections. In 1872 he was elected Presidential Elec- 
tor, and in 1875 was made Mayor of Sycamore. In 
1867 he embarked in a private banking enterprise in 
company with Moses Dean and Daniel Pierce, which 
relation was in existence until 187 1. In the latter 
year he withdrew and erected a building for banking 
purposes, and, associated with C. O. Boynton, con- 
ducted business in that avenue under the firm style 
of Divine & Boynton. Their relations continued 

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until the withdrawal of Mr. Boynton, when the firm 
ie Divine & Co., and the business was prose- 
cuted until the failing health of Mr. Divine compelled 
his surrender of active business life. 

He died Aug. 22, 1882, of typhoid fever. His 
marriage to Susan S. Smith occurred Aug. 11, 1862, 
at Sycamore. Mrs. Divine was born in St. Johns- 
bury, Vl, and is the daughter of James M. and 
Martha (Lowell) Smith. The children born of her 
marriage are all living. They are named Henry, 
Mary Beatrice, Richard L., Gertrude A., James Jo- 
seph and Charles A. 

The portrait of Mr. Divine on a preceding page is 
given by the publishers with unusual pleasure, con- 
fident of its value to his numerous friends, who 
cherish a warm remembrance of his genius and abil- 
ities. 

-5 ^^Sf-ggS-w — t- — 

fflfJESk eorge Ashelford, farmer, section 25, South 
:!lalla|j Grove Township, De Kalb County, was 
-g|i§S" k i )om April 12, 1834, in Somersetshire, 
"a* » Eng., and is the son of George and Sarah 
(Blackmore) Ashelford. The father removed 
with a part of his family to America in 1858, 
but soon after returned to his native land, and 
died in his native shire in 1876, aged about 74 
years. The mother is So years of age and still re- 
sides in the shire where she was born. 

Mr. Ashelford is the third of six children born to 
his parents, five of whom are living. Two are in 
America and are residents of this township and 
county. He came with his father and one sister to 
the United States in 1858, and settled at once in 
Illinois. After his father's return to England, Mr. 
Ashelford began to work as a farm laborer, working 
on shares. He operated in that method until he 
had accumulated sufficient money to buy 80 acres of 
land, situated on section 36, in the township where 
he is now a resident. He is now the owner of 320 
acres of valuable and well improved land, in loca- 
tion and merit second to none in the county. His 
herds of stock are of excellent grade, and all the 
belongings of the place afford a fine testimonial to 
the character and quality of the energy and effort 
expended upon them. 

Mr. Ashelford was married Feb. 17, 1863, at Svca- 



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more, in the Episcopal Church, to Faith Gathercoal. 
She was born March 3, 1844, in Cambridgeshire, 
Eng., of English parentage. Her parents came to 
the United States when the daughter was a child of 
nine years, and are now residents of Malta Township. 
Mr. and Mrs. Ashelford have eight children, all of 
whom are living but one. They are named George 
E., Ida M. (Mrs. Lock, of Malta Township), Will- 
iam H., Albert, Joseph, Frank and Grace M. The 
family are attendants of the Methodist Episcopal 
Church, to which the mother belongs. 

Mr. Ashelford is a Republican in political persua- 
sion, and has held various local official positions. 

^3iC" 'JJC^ 



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i^harles Atherton, fanner, residing on sec- 
ra ^ tion 31, Shabbona Township, postoffice 
Paw Paw, Lee County, was born in Luzerne 
t? Co., Pa., Nov. 20, 1832, and is a son of 
I Joseph and Phebe (Vosburg) Atherton. 
He was brought up and resided in Pennsylvania 
until 23 years of age ('855), receiving the advan- 
tages afforded by the common schools of that State. 
During the year named he came to this county and 
settled in Shabbona Township, where, in company 
with a brother, B. F. Atherton, he engaged in farm- 
ing and in which vocation he has continued to the 
present time. 

Politically, Mr. Atherton is a Republican. He is 
a single man, and for a period of 30 years has fol- 
lowed the occupation in which he is at present en- 
gaged. 



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; [.'-ffi-;. nmes Baxter, farmer, section 17, Malta 

, EBBs Township, was born about [819, in Devon- 

• y> ' ' shire, England. John and Elizabeth (Rich- 

mjf ards) Baxter, his parents, lived all their lives 

It in their native country, the former dying when 

I the son was 13 years of age, about 1832. The 

latter was a little past his majority when his mother 

died. 

Mr. Baxter was married while yet an inhabitant of 
his native country, to Mary A. Daracot, the daughter 
of an English farmer. Eight years later Mr. and 

' — sb*<m 





Mrs. Baxter came to America and sought a home in 
the township of Malta. At that date (1856) the sec- 
tion was in a comparatively unsettled state, and for a 
time Mr. Baxter worked as a common laborer. He 
was industrious and frugal, and was soon in circum- 
stances to become a land-holder, a privilege he could 
never enjoy on the " tight little island." He entered 
a claim of 320 acres of land and put in a crop of 
wheat in 1857. This was entirely destroyed by 
thunder-storms in that year; but instead of becoming 
disheartened he began anew, and has since accom- 
plished signal success. He is now the proprietor of 
540 acres of land, all within the limits of the same 
section and well improved. 

The wife and mother died about 1874, in Chicago. 
She was 53 years of age. Charles, the first-born 
child, is deceased; Eskat married Hattie Griswold 
and is a farmer on section 20, Malta Township; 
William is a citizen of the far West; Mary E. mar- 
ried William Letheby, a farmer in Malta Township; 
John is a deaf-mute ; Emma is the wife of Lant Gris- 
wold, and they live on the homestead ; Mary A. mar- 
ried John Letheby, who is engaged in farming in 
Malta. Mr. Baxter is an inflexible Republican. His 
name was originally Baxtaer, but has become Ameri- 
canized by custom. 

* -«- * 

illiam W. McDonald, farmer, section 10, 

Kingston Towship, is the son of Daniel 

and Catherine (Penny) McDonald. His 

father was a native of Scotland, and his 

mother was born in Maine. The former died 

j in 1843, in Ohio, aged 73 years; the latter died 

in 1882, aged 84 years. 

Mr. McDonald was born March 17, 1820, in Wash- 
ington Co., Ohio, and lived there until the fall of 
1852, the date of his removal and location in Kings- 
ton Township, his home since that period, and where 
he owns 138 acres of partly improved land. His 
first marriage, to Susan Heckman, took place in Ohio. 
She died in April, 1855, after becoming the mother 
of four children, — John, who married Lettie Johnson 
in Wisconsin, and now resides in Kansas; Go 
Daniel and Wallace. The latter married Ann l\r- 
cell, a native of Ohio, and resides in De Kalb. 
George, the second son, was first married to Carrie 




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DE KALB COUNTY. 



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Stowe, a native of Kane Co., 111. They were the 
parents of two children, Edna G. and Eddie. After 
the death nf their mother, whi< h 01 1 urred March 30, 
[881, they were brought to the home of their grand- 
parents lo live. Edna died of s< trlet fever April 27, 
18S4; and Eddie died three days later, from scarlet 
fever also. Mr^. McDonald, wife of William W\, 
subject of this sketch, died in April, 1855. Mr. Mi 
Donald Was again married in October, [856, to Sarah 
E., daughter of Jacob and Joanna (Blacklidge) 
Stephens, and they hue three children, Susie A., 
II. Edwin and Lizzie M Mrs. McDonald was born 
\pnl 8, 1831, in Morgan Co., Ohio; her mother was 
born in Pennsylvania in 1807, and her father in Ohio 
and died in the same State when the daughter was 
two years old. 

Politically Mr. McDonald is a Republican and has 
offii iated as School Director, and in other minoroffices. 



ohn P. Newhall, farmer, living in retire- 
ment at Malta, was born Feb. 20, 18 17, at 
Athol, Mass. His father, William Newhall, 
i-- a descendant from the family of that name 
who came to America with Governor Winthrop 
in 1630, and settled in Lynn, Mass. The 
mother, Clarissa (Phillips) Newhall, was a descend- 
ant of a family conspicuous in the early history of 
the Colonies, and who were afterwards distinguished 
for wealth and position. William Newhall was a 
farmer in early life, and afterwards devoted his atten- 
tion to mechanics. He died June 6, 1S58, in New 
Hampshire, aged 75 years. Mis mother died in the 
same State, when she was 83 years of age. 

Mr. Newhall was the youngesl bul one of a family 
of six children. His brother, Cyrus Newhall, is a 
noted mechanic and inventor, and has acquired a 
wide reputation as a manufacturer of lawn and 
meadow mowers, and John P. became at 20 years of 
age an employee in his shops, where he remained 
until 1S56. 

Nov. 7, 1S41, he was united in marriage in Chester- 
field, Cheshire Co., N. H., to Emmeline I,., daughter 
of Richard and Emmeline (Lewis) Hopkins. Her 
father and mother passed tin n entire lives in their 

native i OUnty and State, and died in the Same county 

in New Hampshire, respectively in April, 1864, and 






March, 1877, aged 71 nd 81 years. Mrs. Newhall 
«.h born July 25, 1819, in Colerain, Mass. She is 
the second of four children, and was reared under 
the 1. ne of her parents. She is the mother of one 
child, J. Frank, who is a resident on the homestead 
estate in Afton Township. 

Mr. and Mrs. Newhall came to Illinois in 1856, 
and after a short residence in the township of De 
Kalb they located on section 6, Afton Township, 
where Mr. Newhall purchased 50 acres of farming 
land. In 1877 they retired from active life to the 
village of Malta, where they are residing in quiet 
comfort after busy and honorable lives of useful 
effort. 



oseph B. Stephens, State's Attorney, resi- 
dent at Sycamore, is a native of De Kalb 
County, and was born Aug; 25, 1849, in 
Genoa. His father, Samuel Stephens, was 
born in Pennsylvania and removed early from 
the Key-Stone State to Indiana, where he resi- 
ded a number of years. In the fall of 1836, while 
yet unmarried, he came to the township of Genoa 
and pre-empted a large tract of land. He is a resi- 
dent of Genoa, and nearly one-half of the village is 
built on his original homestead. About 30 acres 
was first platted and portions of the town are known 
as "Stephens' First and Second Additions." The 
senior Stephens married Rebecca Patterson for his 
first wife, and she died before her son was two years 
old. The father was aftenvard married to Philena 
Crocker. 

Mr. Stephens is the only child of the first mar- 
riage, and was brought up on his father's farm. At 
14, he was placed at the seminary at Woodstock, 
where he was a pupil a year, and was sent thence 
to the Warren Institute. He studied there two years 
and went next to De Kalb, where he remained about 
the same time. After leaving school he worked on 
the farm summers and taught school winters until 
1877. In April of that year he entered the law 
office of Kellum & Carnes, of Sycamore, and studied 
law under the supervision of the former two years. 
April 19, 1879, he was admitted to the liar, and in 
October of the same year he opened a law office at 
De Kalb and conducted a legal business there until 
February, 1SS1, when he came to Sycamore. 











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/?£• A^Zj? COUNTY. 



627 ' 



He was elected State's Attorney for Ue Kail) 
County in the fall of 1880, and was re-elected 
in November, 1884. While a resident of" Genoa he 
served four years as Township Clerk, and discharged 
the duties of other minor local official positions. He 
is at present (1885) an Alderman at Sycamore. 

Mr. Stephens was married in Sycamore, Jan. 4, 
1881, to Martha M., daughter of Coles and Jane L. 
Cook. She was born in Monkton, Vt., April 26, 
i860. Mr. and Mrs. Stephens have one child, Her- 
bert C, born Sept. 14, 1883, at Sycamore. 



■3 e'"l'' ; ;';.- tf 

IV pM.' r 11 am Kirkpatrick, farmer, section 27, Clin- 
f-sllj'; ton Township, is a son of Jesse and Ruth 
(Smiley) Kirkpatrick. (See sketch of Jesse 
Kirkpatrick.) Hiram was born in Perry Co., 
Pa., July 23, 1827. He received a common- 
school education and lived on the parental 
homestead until 1845. He then apprenticed himself 
to learn the blacksmith trade and worked three 
years in Cumberland Co., Pa., under his indentures. 
After mastering his trade, he worked for his old em- 
ployer two years, and then entered into partnership 
with him. The partnership existed for one year, 
when it was dissolved by mutual consent. 

In the spring of 1852 Mr. K. moved to Dayton, 
Ohio, and was there employed in a machine shop for 
about one and a half years. In the summer of 1853 
he removed to Hagerstown, Ind., and for a year was 
foreman in a car shop, and also worked at his trade 
one year. 

In 1856 Mr. K. came to this county with his wife 
and child, and purchased 85 acres of land on sec- 
tions 22 and 27, Clinton Township, on which he set- 
tled and continuously resided until the present time. 
He is at present the owner of 400 acres of land, all 
situated in Clinton Township, 350 of which is in a 
good tillable condition. After coming to this county 
he followed his trade at his home until 1862. 

Mr. Kirkpatrick was united in marriage to Mary 
M. Thomas, in Carlisle, Cumberland Co., Pa., Nov. 
16, 1854. She was a daughter of William and 
Susanna (A ply) Thomas, natives of Vermont and 
Pennsylvania. They were married and resided in 
that State until the date of her father's death, March 
9,1839. After her father's death her mother came 



to this county and made her residence with her 
daughter, Mrs. K., until her death, June 8, 1874. 
They were the parents of four children, namely : 
Samuel, Caroline, William B. and Mary M. 

Mary M., wife of Mr. K., was born in Gettysburg, 
Pa., March 9, 183T, and is the mother of five chil- 
dren by Mr. K. The livingare : Arestes J., Ira T., 
Niles H. and Minnie M. One child died in infancy. 

Mr. Kirkpatrick has held the office of Highway 
Commissioner for several years, that of School Di- 
rector and other offices of minor import. In poli- 
tics he is a Republican. He and his wife are mem- 
bers of the Presbyterian Church. Mrs. K. united 
with the Methodist Church in York Co., Pa., when 
she was 15 years of age, and has been a communi- 
cant of that Church and the Presbyterian ever since. 

Mr. Kirkpatrick has been a resident of this county 
for nearly 30 years, and during that period has won 
the esteem and respect of a large circle of friends ex- 
tending throughout the county. As a worthy gentle- 
man and representative citizen of De Kalb County, 
we insert his portrait in this volume. 



-4 — ^\/w? 



4p^-wv~-i- 




ames Hunt, retired farmer at Malta, is a 

- native of county Waterford, Ireland, where 

Sp^* 1 he was born April 15, 1825. His parents 



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^,RT were natives of Ireland, and spent their lives 
%l' on the soil where they were born. They died 
about the year 1864. 
Mr. Hunt was reared a farmer, like his father be- 
fore him, and obtained such education as the com- 
mon schools of his native land afforded. When he 
reached man's estate he came to America. He was 
the youngest of four children — two boys and two 
girls — and is the only one of his family who left their 
native land. On his arrival in the United States he 
went to Charlemont, Mass., and was occupied there 
as a common laborer on various farms. He was 
married in that vicinity, to Mary Phipps. She was 
born Aug. 23, 1832, where she was afterward married, 
and where she spent her youth and girlhood. After 
the event of their marriage Mr. and Mrs. Hunt con- 
tinued to reside for a time there on a farm, coming 
West .to locate about 1854. They made their first 
settlement in Sugar Grove Township, Kane Co., 111., 
but decided on another transfer three years later, and 





DE KALB COUNTY 




came to De Kalb County to make a permanent resi- 
dence. Mr. Hunt purchased 160 aires of land on 
section 34, Malta Township, on which lie located and 
entered upon its improvement. It is now in 

(&j an advanced agricultural condition, and its value is 
materially increased by the addition of excellent farm 
buildings. In [881 Mr. Hunt leased the place and 
settled in Malta, where he purchased a house and 
lot. 

Mrs. Hunt died in January, 1SS1. She was a per- 
son of line mind, and exercised a wide influem e in 
ocial circle previous to the loss of her reason, 
some time before her decease. Every possible 
means was used for her restoration, but to no avail. 
and her life terminated at Elgin, where she was taken 
tor treatment. No children were born to Mr. and 
Mi -. Hunt. They adopted a daughter, Ida M., who 
« born May 23, 1862. Mr. Hunt is an adherent 
of the Democratic element in politics. 

orman H. Powers, deceased, was born in 
Vergennes, Vt., Aug. 20, 1819. He ac- 
companied his parents in childhood to 
Canada, and resided there from iS;2 to 1839. 
ffc In August of the latter year he moved to this 
' State and loi ated in La Salle County, where he 
iged in farming until 1849. At that date 
he c ame to this county and located on section ^^, 
Paw Paw Township. In 1852 he crossed the plains 
to California, and spent about a year and a half in 
the gold regions. Although he took a mining claim 
which subsequently proved to be very rich, he 
did not work it, as he preferred the slower and 
safer course, and engaged in getting out cord-wood 
and ship timber. This work proved profitable, and 
he returned to the "States" well satisfied with his 
venture. 

He carried on his farm till the breaking out of the 
late war, when he enlisted as a private of Co, I, 
fourth 111. Cav.,in August. 1861. He was promoted 
as Sergeant, and was seriously wounded by a burst- 
hi 11 at the battle of Pittsburg Landing, April 6, 
1862. The serious nature ol Ins wound disabled him 
for further duty, and he was given an honorable dis- 
charge in the following August. Within three days 
after his return to his home, his son Edward B. en- 

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Listed in the same company and regiment to which 

his father had belonged, and served till the close of 
the « a 1. 

Mr. Powers removed to Earl in 1875, and six years 
later he removed to Scranton, Greene Co., Iowa, in 
the spring of 1882, where he died suddenly while 
talking to his horse in the barn, June 7, 1882! His 
wife survives him and continues to reside at Scran- 
ton. Mr. Powers was married to Catharine Hart, 
daughter of James and Elizabeth Hart. Mrs. Powers 
was born in England, Oct. 1 r, 1816. They had a 
a family of live children, two boys and three girls: 
Edward B., born Sept. 16, 1841, married Nancy A. 
Weddell, and lives on the old homestead in Paw 
Paw Township; Christianna, born Feb. 22, 1846, is 
the wife of Hon. H. M. Boardman, of Paw Paw 
Township; Susan A., born July 29, 1847, is the wife 
of James E. Moss, of Greene Co., Iowa; Elizabeth, 
born April 3, 1S49, died April 13, 1S61; Horace E., 
born Sept. 21, 1850, married Nettie B. Porter, and 
lives at Blair, Neb. 

Mr. Powers returned from Canada to Illinois, and 
was engaged in farming in La Salle County till 1S49, 
when he moved to Paw Paw Township, De Kalb 
County, and settled on section 33. He served in 
various official capacities in Paw Paw Township, 
having been Township Supervisor, Assessor and 
Justice of the Peace several years each. He was a 
consistent Christian from early life, and was an influ- 
ential member of the Congregational Church. In 
early life he was a Whig in politics, but on the organ- 
ization of the Republican party he espoused that 
cause, and always afterward voted that ticket. 



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• ewell F. Butler, farmer and breeder of 
"ISpfC stock, residing at Malta, was born Aug. 5, 
Pf™ 1845, in Du Page Co., 111. Joseph Butler, 
t\^ his father, was born and reared in the State 
3 of New York and there followed the vocation 
farmer. He married Abigail West and soon 
after removed to Illinois, settling in Du Page County 
at a period when the State was in its pioneer condi- 
tion, and where he was among the first to locate in 
the township of Bloomingdale. He is the owner of 
320 acres of land where he first settled, and is one of 
the foremost citizens of the county. The mother died 

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there May 5, 1834, aged 62 years and eight months. 
The father is 68 years old. 

Mr. Butler continued to reside in his native county 
until he was 28 years of age. In 1873 he went to 
Buchanan Co., Iowa, where he was married March 
1 1, 1874, to Sarah, daughter of Andrew and Abigail 
(Peck) Payne. She was born March 15, 1849, in 
Delaware Co., N. Y., which was also the native place 
of her parents. The family went to Iowa when the 
daughter was seven years of age, and she was the 
youngest of ten children. Her father died a short 
time before her marriage. Her mother is 75 years of 
age, and is still a resident of the homestead in Bu- 
chanan County. 

Mr. and Mrs. Butler came to Malta immediately 
after their marriage and located in section 24, where 
they owned 135 acres, on which they carried on 
agricultural operations until May, 1S82. In that 
month the farm was leased and the family removed 
to the village of Malta. Mr. Butler purchased two 
acres of land within the village corporation, includ- 
ing an improved lot and available buildings. He is 
also the owner of 40 acres of land on section 23, one- 
half of which is within the incorporated limits of 
Malta. Mr. Butler is a Republican of decided 
stamp. 

The children of Mr. and Mrs. Butler are: Helen 
M., born Feb. 27, 187 1 ; Adelia, Sept. 4, 1S80, and 
Elijah, Jan. 15, 1884. 



ru}<~{; olomon V. Butter-field, farmer, section 20. 
'-. ( ■■'_ : > " Paw Paw Township, has 240 acres of land. 
'AWS The subject of this sketch is the oldest 
1\V) '' vm g representative of the pioneers of 1835 of 
this township. He was born in Cayuga Co., 
N. Y., Aug. 26, 1826, and is the son of Edward 
and Polly (Harris) Butterfield. He went to Michigan 
in 1830 with his parents, and came to Paw Paw- 
Township, De Kalb Co., 111., in July, 1835. He was 
brought up on a farm, and has made this township 
his home for 50 years. He was married in Paw Paw 
Township, Dec. 20, 1847, to Miss Polly Burch, daugh- 
ter of Zebulon Burch. Mrs. Butterfield was born 
in Washington Co., N. Y., about 1826. They had 
two children, Mary Belle, born April 5, 1852, wife of 
John Spier, of Earlville, 111. The youngest died in 




infancy. Mrs. Butterfield died in 1855. Mr. Butter- 
field was married again May 8, 1856, at Earlville, 
111., to Miss Helen M., daughter of Levi S. and 
Loretta (Brewer) Wales. Mrs. Butterfield was born 
in Schoharie Co., N. Y., June 21, 1834, and came 
West in 1855. They have had three children: 
Charles E., born March 31, 1858, died May 11,1858; 
Sidney E., born Oct. 30, 1859, married Ida Braith- 
waite, and lives at the old homestead ; John H, bom 
July 25, 1865, died in infancy. Mr. and Mrs. But- 
terfield are members of the Methodist Episcopal 
Church. In politics Mr. B. is a Democrat. 



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'UtjjfjjXames Lock, fanner, section 33, Malta Town- 
v lgj|# - ship, was born May 28, 1831, in Somerset- 
': "'■,.--- shire, England. His father, James Lock, 
k|fy senior, was a farmer in England and died 
son was but four years of age. 
some years under the care 
of his mother, Mary (Norman) Lock, supporting him- 
self after arriving at a suitable age. She died in 
1859. In 1857, in company with Robert Willis, who 
now lives in the township of South Grove, they left 
England for America, and pressed forward in their 
journey until they reached South Grove Township. 

Mr. Lock passed two years in farm labor, and in 
1859 purchased 80 acres of land in May field Town- 
ship. On this he operated three years, then selling 
out and removing to South Grove Township, where 
he bought 160 acres of land. He was there resident 
until February, 1869, when he came to Malta. He 
purchased 248 acres of land where he has since pur- 
sued his agricultural operations, improved the place 
and erected good farm buildings. He has yet 140 
acres, all under cultivation. He is a practical and 
prosperous stockman and farmer. He is a Republi- 
in political principles, and has held most of the town- 
ship offices. 

His marriage to Nancy Safford took place Sept. 15, 
1859. She was born in Pittsburg, Mass., Dec. 4, 
1842, and her parents, Oliver and Nancy (Andrews) 
Safford, were of New England origin and ancestry. 
Her father was a carpenter, and both her parents 
* died in South Grove Township, whither they had re- 
moved in the pioneer days of that township. Mrs. Lock 



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was foui years ol age when they became residents 
outh Grove, she has been the mother ol" 13 
children, two of whom are deceased. The) were 
born in the following order : Thomas, James, < 

:, Nam y, William, Marj . I !h irles, Mice, [ohn 
.iml Robert. Frank and George died in infancj 
The parents were reared under the regulations of the 
Chun li of England. 



aeob Morseh, farmer, section 29, Squaw 
- Grove Township, was born Oct. 29, 1833, 
P** in Germany. He has been a resident ol 
the State of Illinois since he came to the 
l nited States in 1847, when he was but 14 
years old. He- lived in La Salle County until 

[869, "hen he bought 440 acres of land in Squaw 

Grove Township, oi which he took immediate pos- 
•n and commenced the work of improving a 

farm. He has prospered by his industry and good 
judgment, .uu\ is now the owner of 600 acres of land 
:= in Squaw drove Township. 

He is a Republican in political affinity, and has 

3 been School Hire, tor and Highway Commissioner. 

<{x Mr. Morseh was married Nov. 25, [860, in Ottawa, 

^ 111., to Elizabeth Smith, a lady who, like himself, is a 

I native of Germany, and they have had 12 children, 

five of whom are still living, namely: Henry, J. 

William, John, Emma and Lizzie. The deceased 

are H. Hammond, Julia. Anna, and four who died 

unnamed in extreme infancy. 




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aniel D. Hunt, farmer, section 34, and 
Supervisor of He Kalb Township (1885), 

was born Sept. 19, 1835, in Wyoming Co., 

N. Y '., and is the son of Isaac and Martha 
(Ludington) Hunt. His parents were na- 
tives of Herkimei Co., \. Y., and became 
residents of I'e Kalb Township in 1857, where his 
father died within a year. The mother died April 
12, 1X1,5. 

\li Hunt accompanied his parents to De Kalb 
County, and he has continued to reside therein with- 
out intermission since. He is the owner of 160 acres 
of land in a creditable state of cultivation, and 




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sto, ked with 125 swine. 2<> head of cattle and eight 
He is a Republican in political sentiment 
and has been an occupant of responsible local posi- 
tions oi 1 1 ust lor many years. He officiated [6 years 

as S, ho '1 Trustee, and was elected Supervisor of his 
township in the spring of 1884. Mr. Hunt is a 
member of the Masonic fraternity, and belongs to 
Lodge No. 1 (4, !),■ K ilb Chapter, No. 52, and Syca 
more Commandery, K. T., No. 15. 

His marriage to Evaline L. Preston occurred Oct. 
28, 1856, in Wyoming Co., N. Y. She was bom in 
thai county Nov. 12, 1837. Earl H., only child of 
Mr. and Mrs. Hunt, was born July 24, 1857, and 
was married Feb. 9, 1885, to Lena Mixer, at Leslie, 
Mich. She was born at Machias, Cattaraugus Co., 
N. Y., March 17, 1863. 



aeob Doily, farmer, section 5, Malta Town- 
ship, has lived in De Kalb County since 
about the year 1850, when he came with 
his widowed mother to Pierce Township. He 
was born Nov. 22, 1845, in what is now Niles, 
Cook Co.. 111. John Deily, his father, was born 
in Germany and married Elizabeth B. Lipp after he 
came to America. 'The mother was a German by 
birth and came to Ohio with her parents from the 
" fatherland " when 11 years of age. They settled in 
Columbiana County, where they were married, and 
came thence to Chicago, where the father died, in 
1, ol cholera, which was then epidemic in that 
1 it) He was 33 years of age. The children born of this 
marriage included two daughters and two sons, Mr. 
Deily being the third child ; and he was four years of 
age when his father died. His mother married Jai ob 
F. Plapp, a farmer of Pierce 'Township, and is yet 
living. Mr. Deily entered the army of the United 
States to light for the Union, enlisting before he was 
of age, March 4, [864, as a recruit of Company K. 
15th 111. Vol. Infantry. He was in constant warfare 
to the collapse of the rebellion, his regiment being 
assigned to the command of Sherman and accom- 
panying him to the sea, marching with his legions of 
war through the Carolinas and to Alexandria. Mr. 
Deil) was honorably discharged Sept. 16, 1865, at 



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Fort Leavenworth, Kan. He was mustered out of 
service at Springfield, 111., and on returning to Pierce 
Township he began to work at the trade of a mason, 
and pursued that business at odd intervals for sev- 
(e)j eral years. After that he operated somewhat as a 
farmer, and in January, 1869, located on his farm in 
Malta Township. He had made his claim three 
years previous, which included 80 acres on section 5 
and now contains 40 acres additional. The place is 
all under excellent improvements, well cultivated, 
stocked with good grades of cattle and supplied with 
a creditable class of farm buildings. In his political 
convictions Mr. Deily is an inflexible and uncompro- 
mising Republican. 

His wife, to whom he was married June 16, 1867, 
was formerly Miss Caroline Buerer. She was the 
daughter of Gotlieb and Henrietta (Garlach) Buerer, 
who were born respectively in Baden and Wurtem- 
burg. After coining to America they located at 
Geneva, 111., where Mrs. Deily was born March 6, 
1849. Her parents removed when she was six weeks 
old to Pierce Township, De Kalb County, where she 
grew to womanhood on her father's farm and was 
taught in the common school. She has been the 
mother of six children, one of whom (John) is de- 






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M., David H, Mary E., Carrie A. and Frank E. 



™r saac Leonard Ellwood, oi De Kalb, is one 
I of the most prominent business men in the 
entire West, and his name is a synonym 
for one of the most important industries in . 
the country. He was born at Salt Springville, 
Montgomery Co., N. Y., Aug. 3, 1833. 
Mr. E. is the seventh son of Abraham and 
Sarah (Delong) Ellwood (see biography of C. Ell- 
wood for sketch of parents), and received from his 
parents a common-school education of the limited 
character of the times. Upon quitting his studies 
he commenced life for himself by driving a team on 
the Erie Canal at $to per month. Afterwards he 
became a clerk in a store where he was occupied 
until he reached the age of 18 years. In 1851 he 
went to California, where he remained between three 
and four years. He passed the first year in mining, 
after which he became a clerk in a store in Sacra- 

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mento. He had simple, unostentatious tastes and 
habits, and he saved his accumulations and returned 
East in 1855 with the means to start a hardware en- 
terprise of moderate dimensions, in the village of 
De Kalb. He gave his attention to his business, 
managed its relations to accommodate his patrons, 
and while he won general esteem he gradually 
placed his affairs on a substantial basis of prosperity, 
which he continued for about 20 years. During this 
time that he was engaged in the hardware business, 
he was extensively employed as auctioneer, locally 
at first ; but after a few years his success as a sales- 
man became so great that his services were fre- 
quently in demand in distant portions of the State, 
and for the time he was interested in this line no 
one ever achieved greater success than he. He 
had long considered the necessity which depressed 
the hopes of Western farmers, — that of the want of 
suitable fencing material; and it is impossible to con- 
sider the subject without a feeling of wonder that 40 
years of active agricultural exertions, with always the 
same need impending, elapsed before the simple de- 
vice that solved the difficulty entered the mind of 
man. 

In the year 1874 Mr. Ellwood invented and 
obtained one of the earliest patents on barbed fenc- 
ing, since which time he has been engaged in the 
manufacture, improvement and building up of the 
barbed-wire industry. Through his influence and by 
his foresight all of the underlying and first patents 
on barbed wire and machinery for making the same 
were combined together, enabling him with the as- 
sistance of others to build up one of the largest and 
most successful business enterprises in the his- 
tory of this country. For a time he was associated 
in the manufacture of barbed wire with Mr. J. F. 
Glidden, and later with the Washburn & Moen 
Manufacturing Company, of Worcester, Mass., but 
at present he is exclusive owner and proprietor of 
the large manufacturing establishment at De Kalb 
doing business under the firm name of I. L. Ellwood 
& Co. The capacity of these works at this time 
is nearly 12 car-loads of finished fencing each ten 
hours. While there have been a great many differ- 
ent persons engaged in the barbed-wire business, and 
manufactories are scattered all through the western 
country, Mr. Ellwood has been a recognized leader 
in the conduct of the business, and there is no ques- 
i tion with those who are acquainted with its details, 



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but that it is almost ex< lusively through liis efforts 
that the great success of the business has been 
achieved. 

It is but justice to Mr. Ellwood to say that no man 
ever pushed a meritorious enterprise to great sun ess 
with fewer motives of selfishness than lie. Genera- 
tions to come must know that no more unpretentious 
man ever lived than he ; and in all the prosperity 
that lias fallen to his lot, his chief delight and 
satisfaction is in having been the instrument of 
good to his fellow-men. A warm welcome will lie- 
accorded to the portrait of him whieh appears on a 
preceding page, and it is presented with a double 
satisfaction, for reasons whieh have direct reference 
to the fraternal relations of Mr. Ellwood, five of 
whose brothers resident in the county are similarly 
presented, and to his business relations, whieh ren- 
der him in a certain sense the property of his country 
and generation. 

The subject of this sketch, with limited education, 
inheriting little save integrity and ambition to achieve 
something in the world's work, conscientious, hum- 
ble, he met and recognized a great opportunity ; and 
it is eminently true of him that the prosperity which 
has resulted is looked upon as having fallen into de- 
serving hands, and therefore awakens no jealousy. 
Reading and observation, coupled with reflection and 
judgment, have furnished and disciplined a mind of 
uncommonly fine faculties, and he is in no rate the 
inferior of men who have spent their lives among 
books and in scholarly associations. He is self-reli- 
ant,' self-poised, self-respecting, and is esteemed ac- 
cordingly. An undeviating Republican in political 
sentiment, he has never sought or held a local office, 
save being elected for one or two terms to the City 
Council of De Kalb. No deserving man or woman 
has ever applied to Mr. Ellwood without receiving 
liberal aid, and his greatest pleasure is in doing sub- 
stantial acts of kindness for the poor in their vicinity. 

He was married to Harriet A. Miller, only daugh- 
ter of William A. Miller, at her father's residence in 
the village, now city, of De Kalb, Jan. 27, 1859. 
Seven children were born to Mr. and Mrs. Ell- 
wood, — three daughters and four sons, — of whom 
three daughters and two sons are still living. 

His eldest son, William L., has been engaged for 
several years in the importing and breeding of 
French draft horses, making annual trips to France 



and attending to the purchase of his stork in person ; 
and during this year (1885) he expects to import 
from 75 to 100 head. He also has entire charge of 
his father's stock farms in the vicinity of De Kalb, 
containing some 3,400 acres, all under a high state 
of cultivation, and with all modern improvements for 
stock-raising. 





bomas J. Tindall, stock-raiser and farmer, 
residing on section 15, Malta Township, 
was born in Tecumseh, Lenawee Co., Mich., 
June 29, U840. When Thomas was one year 
old his parents moved to Buffalo Grove, Ogle 
County, this State, and one year later came to 
this county and located on a farm in South Grove- 
Township. Here, Thomas assisted his father on the 
farm and attended the common schools until he at- 
tained the age of 17 years. At this age he entered 
the college at Wheaton, the county seat of Du Page 
County, this State, and pursued his studies in that 
institute for four years. From Wheaton College he 
went to college at Beloit, Wis., and there completed 
his course of study. Soon after leaving college, in 
October, 1864, Mr. Tindall enlisted in Co. K, 42d 
111. Vol. Inf., Capt. J. N. McClellan, to serve in the 
late Civil War. His company was in the Army of the 
Cumberland, and was in the Division commanded by 
Gen. Thomas. Mr. Tindall participated in all the 
battles in which his regiment was engaged, promin- 
ent among which were Spring Hill, Franklin and 
Nashville, Tenn.; and after faithfully serving his 
country for r4 months he received an honorable dis- 
charge at Lavaca, Texas, in December, 1865, and re- 
turned to the home of his father in South Grove 
Township, this county. 

The father of Mr. Tindall was of New England 
parentage, a farmer by occupation, and resided in 
New Jersey until i84r, when he came to this county, 
as stated. He died at his home in South Grove 
Township, July 8, 1880. Mr. Tindall's mother, 
Mary (Berber) Tindall, was born in " York State; " 
is of Yankee extraction and is living at present with 
her daughter, Mrs. J. B. Millner, of Lawrence, Kan. 
Mr. Tindall was united in marriage Feb. 27, 1S68, 
to Miss Mary lv, daughter of William T. and Louisa 
(Riddle) Kirk. See sketch of William T. Kirk. Mrs. 






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Tindall was the oldest of family of nine children, all 
of whom are yet living, and was born in Franklin 
Township, this county, March 24, 1843. Her years, 
prior to maturity, were spent at home assisting the 
mother, attending the common schools and the col- 
leges at Rockford and Wheaton. She acquired a 
good education and at the age of 20 years engaged in 
teaching, which profession she followed with success 
until her marriage. 

Two children are the issue of their union, namely : 
Edith, born Aug. 15, 1869, and Willie, born Feb. 18, 
1873. After marriage the husband and wife located 
on the farm on which they are at present living, and 
which was owned by Mr. Tindall prior to that event, 
The farm comprises 320 acres of good tillable land, 
and the entire tract is well improved. He has a 
good residence and substantial farm buildings on the 
place, and to the passer by everything indicates en- 
ergy and progress. 

Politically, Mr. Tindall is a Republican, and has 
held a number of the minor offices of his township. 
He and his wife are members of the Congregational 
Church. 




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ames Henderson, farmer on section 26, 
'-■ Victor Township, is also engaged in the 
dairy business. He was born Aug. 12, 
1834, in Perry Co., Pa. His parents were 
Hodgen and Nancy (White) Henderson. His 
father was born in Ireland and came to Amer- 
ica with his parents when he was 13 years old, grew 
to manhood and married a Pennsylvania lady. 

Mr. Henderson received only the limited educa- 
tion of the common schools, and remained at home 
until the years of his minority were passed. After 
arriving at the period of man's estate he worked out 
two years, and at the end of that time he married 
Eliza Hippie, and they had eight children, seven of 
whom are still living, — Sarah L., Ida N., John A., 
Matilda C, James F., Alvin C. and Martha A. John 
married Mary J. Cooper, of La Salle Co., 111., Dec. 
10, 1884. He is a farmer on section 27, Victor 
Township. Sarah married G. N. Price, Nov. 16, 
1880. They went to Nebraska, where Mr. Price 
died, Dec. 22, 1884. 

The first purchase of land made by Mr. Hender- 



son was the 80 acres on which he has since resided, 
now increased by an additional 80. His land was 
all in its primeval condition, and there were but few 
settlers in his vicinity. He has made important im- 
provements and built a fine residence, barn and 
other farm structures. 




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lbert Ashcraft, farmer, section 25, Malta 
Tp., was born Dec. 19, 1820, in Machias, 
Cattaraugus Co., N. Y. His father, Elijah T. 
Ashcraft, was a native of Brooklyn, Conn., 
and was the son of Nathan Ashcraft, a man of 
pure Yankee extraction. Betsey Curtis Ash- 
craft, wife of the latter, was of the same origin and 
ancestry, and died at the advanced age of 91 years. 
Betsey Ashcraft, the mother of Albert and wife of 
Elijah T., came of a long line of New England an- 
cestors. Her husband died when he was 82 years 
old. They had 12 children, and 10 reached ma- 
ture years. 

Mr. Ashcraft was the seventh child, and he passed 
the years of his minority in the manner usual to far- 
mers' sons, alternating farm labor with attendance 
at the common schools. On becoming of age he 
took the molding of his own career under his own 
management, operating for a few months as a gen- 
eral laborer. 

He was married on the first day of the week, 
month and year of 1843, to Helen M., daughter of 
David and Polly (Dow) Russell. The parents were 
natives of Vermont and the mother belonged to the 
same race with the eccentric preacher, Lorenzo Dow. 
Her father was a farmer and mechanic, and after re- 
siding at various places in the East, the family came 
to De Kalb County. The mother died in the town- 
ship of Cortland, in 1852. The father died at 
Chase, Lake Co., Mich., at the home of his son, and 
was 80 years of age at the time of his decease. Mrs. 
Ashcraft is the fourth of 13 children, and was reared 
and educated principally in the State of New York. 
Of her marriage 13 children have been bom, of 
whom five are deceased. Solon married Elizabeth 
Smith, is a resident at De Kalb village, and is a me- 
chanic. Alva married Antoinette Ellithorpe, a far- 
mer in Marshall Co., Kan. Burton married Mary 
Melvin and resides in Osage Co., Kan. ; Luella mar- 



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tied Ricliard S. Hooper and they Live at Ness City, 
' !o., Is. in., where the Later is holding the "hi' i 
.'i County Register. Laona is at Jacksonville, 111., 
ami is the wile of Peter S. Newell. She w. is married 
Feb. 5, i S85 . Charles, Edna and Marion H. are 
unmarried and inmates of the parental home 
Hiram C, Wallace \\\, Amanda, Malvina and Al- 
ba 1, Jr., are deceased. 

After their marriage Mr. and Mrs. Ashcraft lived 
in the State of New York until [848, the ye. 11 of 
their removal to Sycamore, De Kalb County, where 
they lived one year. Removing thence to Cortland 
Township, they spent two years there, and in 1852 
secured a claim of 160 acres of land by pre-emption 
in Malta Township, where the permanent home was 
established. The whole property was unbroken prairie 
and times were hard ; circumstances existed which 
tried the stuff of which a man was made; but the 
tide was stemmed by persistent energy and well di- 
<1 effort. The place was remote from other 
settlers, and deer were so unaccustomed to humanity 
that they roamed in close proximity without manifest 
fear. Mr. Ashcraft owns 80 acres, all in the most 
advanced cultivation. He assimilates with the Re- 
publican party element in politics, and was one of 
*v the first Justices of the Peace after the township 



was organized. He has also officiated as Township 
Treasurer of Schools. Mr. Ashcraft is one of the 
oldest resident settlers of the township, having lived 
here 33 years. 



[•^M 1 Hbrd Arnold, tanner and stockman, resi- 
dent on section 27, Victor Township, was 
born Dec. 10, 1S26, and is the son of John 
and Alice (Alford) Arnold, who were natives "I 
Lincolnshire, England. The family came to 
America in 1851, and located during the first 
ten months in Tompkins Co., N. Y. Their next re- 
moval was to Bat a via, on the Fox River, in Illinois, 
wheie they worked a farm on shares two years, remov- 
ing thence to Victor Township. There they operated 
a farm on section 28 for a year, when a farm was 
pun based on section 26, where the parents died, 
respectively in 1862 and in 1869. 

Vlford remained at home until he was 1 1 years of 
Mid received a common school-education. Af- 





ter that age he be< ame a farm laborer and spent four 
1 in that occupation, when he obtained a situa- 
tion as a shepherd and herder, in which two-fold ca- 
pai it\ he was occupied until he was 23 years of age. 
He came to the United States in 1850, landing at 
the port of New York, whence he went to Trumans- 
burg, Tompkins County. After spending 17 months 
there on a farm he pushed on West and worked a 
year on a farm near Batavia, Kane Co., 111., and was 
occupied during a second year in a machine-shop. 

lb was married Feb. 25, 1854,10 Lucy Hales. 
She was born in England and came two years before 
her marriage to America. Of the 12 children of 
whom Mr. and Mrs. \rnold became the parents, 
ei^ht are still living, — Man A, John H., Alfred A., 
Benjamin F., Edgar, Alice C, Emma K. and Luc y S. 
The three oldest children are married. 

After his marriage, Mr. Arnold worked a farm two 
years on shares, and subsequently came to Victor 
Township, vvhere he purchased 80 acres of land on 
section 27, which has sine e been his homestead. To 
this he has added 80 acres by subsequent purchase, 
two tracts adjoining each other. Mr. Arnold is a 
successful and prosperous fanner. He is a Repub- 
lican, and his wife is a member of the Baptist 
Chun h. 



^>OC50^ 




■ 



riel S. Morey, farmer, section 20, Malta 
Township, was born May 24, 1840, in the 
3£i ir '* township of South Columbia, Herkimer 
Co., N. Y., whence he came with his parents 
to De Kalb County in 1S53. He was then 
about 13 years ol age, and he continued a 
member of the home circle and acted as his father's 
assistant until the date of his marriage. That event 
took place May 24, 1 ■'S < > . ; . when Miss Elizabeth Van 
Vlack became his wile. Her parents, John and 
Anna M. (( >li\er) Van Vlack, were born in the State 
of New York, and were of German ancestry. They 
were descendants of families who were among the 
earliest settlers of the Empire- State. Mrs. Morey 
was born Aug. 4, 1842, in East Glenville, Schenectady 
Co., N. Y. Her father died when she was about 
nine years of age, and six years later (1857), she ac- 
companied her mother to De Kalb County, locating 
at Shabbona village. She is the youngest of three 
children and received a good education. The death 










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of her father occurred March 9, 1851, when he was 
40 years of age. Her mother died at Shabbona 
Grove, Feb. 6, 1863, at the age of 51 years. Mr. 
and Mrs. Morey have become the parents of five 
children, born as follows: Floyd, Aug. 31, 1865; 
Nettie, Oct. 31, 1869; Jessie, Sept. 18, 1875 ; Myra, 
Oct. 24, 1878; Lilla,t\vin sister of Myra, died when 
nine months old. 

Mr. and Mrs. Morey established their independent 
home life immediately after marriage and settled on 
a farm in Shabbona Township. On this place Mr. 
Morey conducted agricultural operations r6 years, 
when the family removed to Malta Township, where 
the father, in company with his brother, Wm. H., lo- 
cated on 264 acres of land on section 20. They have 
continued their joint labors, and have operated ex- 
tensively in agriculture and as stock-growers, ranking 
among the best and most progressive farmers of the 
township. They are Republicans in political faith 
and connections. 

Smith Morey, the father of Mr. Morey of this 
sketch, was born Sept. 9,1812, in Onondaga Co., 
N. Y. Jesse Morey, father of the former, was of 
French lineage and married Faith Wilcox. She was 
born in Connecticut, and was of purely Yankee ori- 
gin. Smith Morey married Jeannette Smith Jan. 1, 
1 839. She was born in Suffield, Conn., and died at 
the home of her son Dec. 17, 1S77, aged 64 years. 
Her three sons, Hiram D., of Shabbona, Ariel and W. 
H. survive her. The family were among the first set- 
tlers in Shabbona Township in 1853. He labored 
there as a farmer until 1869, when another transfer 
was made of the joint family interests of the father, 
eldest and youngest sons, to Malta Township, where 
they located on 264 acres of land and have since 
managed their farming interests together. 



J?©t apt - Martin V. Allen, druggist, residing 



§¥ at Shabbona, was born in St. Lawrence 

J^ Co., N. Y., Nov. 6, 1S32, and is a son of 

Reuben and Nancy (Andrews) Allen. In 

K 




1X45 his father's family left Sackett's Harbor, 
Jefferson Co., N. Y., in a sail vessel, cruised 
around the lakes, debarked at Chicago and came 
thence by steam to this county, arriving at Shabbona 
Grove June 2, 1S45. His father was consequently 



one of the pioneers of this county, and soon after he 
arrived here entered 320 acres of Government land 
on sections 19, Clinton Township, and 24, Shabbona 
Township, and entered vigorously on the laborious 
task of cultivating and improving it. 

Capt. Allen was brought up on his father's farm. 
He assisted in the farm labors and attended the 
common schools, and developed into manhood while 
under the parental roof-tree. Aug. 12, 1862, he en- 
tered the military service of the United States in 
the late Civil War with the commission of First Lieu- 
tenant of Co. E, 105th 111. Inf., and was promoted 
as Captain March 9, 1863. He was wounded at 
Atlanta, Aug. 16, 1864, receiving a gunshot wound 
in the right arm near the shoulder, which resulted in 
resection and causing the loss of about three inches 
of the bone. He was then, Jan. 22, 1865, discharged 
for physical disability. 

Capt. Allen suffered a far more serious misfortune 
as a result of being wounded than the loss of a 
portion of his arm. His wife, on. hearing of the 
casualty, proceeded to his side to nurse him. She 
found him at Chattanooga, Tenn., in an atmosphere 
infected with pestilence, and fell a victim to typhoid 
fever. She lived to reach home, in a delirious con- 
dition, and died in a few days. Their second child, 
a daughter, contracted the disease, and in a short 
time followed her mother to the land of everlasting 
peace. 

Captain Allen was married at Little Rock, 111., 
Oct. 7, 1856, to Miss Jane A. Hunter. She was a 
daughter of William and Janet Hunter, and was a 
native of Scotland. Three children were born to 
Mr. and Mrs. Allen : Cora A., Lida E. and Jennie 
M. The eldest, Cora A., is the wife of George C. 
Sanborn, a commission merchant at Chicago. The 
youngest daughter was adopted by H. E.Allen, of 
De Kalb, a brother of Capt. Allen. She grew to 
womanhood in his household, and is the wife of 
William Ellwobd, of that place. 

Mrs. Allen died Sept. 20, 1864, and Capt. Allen 
was again married Nov. 6, T867, at Shabbona. to 
Miss Lizzie, daughter of Giles M. and Eve (Claps.ul- 
dle) Alexander. She was born in Herkimer Co., 
N. Y., and is the mother of one child, a son, Bertie, 
aged 14 years. 

Soon after his return from the army Capt. Allen 
was elected Superintendent of Schools of De Kail' 



V) 






— r<:llD£llfl>>r-= 

DE KALB COUNTY. 



J tin 



County, which position lie held for a term of four 
years, from [865 to 1869. In 1873 he engaged in 
iie drug business at Shabbona, and Ins since cou- 
nted in the same. He carries a slock averaging 
' $2,000 and including everything pertaining to that 
business. In March, 1877, he was burned out, sus- 
taining a loss of about $1,500, with no insurance. He 
is a prominent Freemason, and was the first Master 
of Shabbona Lodge, No. 374, A. F. & A. M., and is 
holding that position at the present time (1885). 
He is also a member of De Kalb Chapter, No. 52, 
R. A. M., and of Aurora Commandery, No. 22, K. 
T. He is likewise Sen. V. C of T. S. Terry Post 
G. A. R., of Shabbona. 

Politically, Capt. Allen is a Republican. Relig- 
iously, he is a member of the Congregational Church. 
He is one of Shabbona's most liberal-minded and 
enterprising citizens, and is held in high esteem. 
Of no other citizen in the county could a portrait be 
more appropriately given in this work, and accord- 

£ ingly a line lithographic likeness of Capt. Allen is 

_X given on a page just preceding. 




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#*# 



. ohn Mutton, fanner, section 20, Malta, was 

!,- born about the year 1824 in the county of 

Cornwall, in the south of England. Richard 

Mutton, his father, was also of English birth, 

and his wife, Elizabeth Mutton, was a native 

of the same country, where they were married 

and passed all the years of their lives. 

Mr. Mutton has been an independent self-sustainer 
since he was r 5 years of age, at which time he began 
to operate as a laborer on a farm. He was married 
Au-. 15, 1847, in the county where he was born, to 
Elizabeth Bray. She was born in the same county, 
May 25, 1820. Her mother, Elizabeth (Herd) Bray' 
died when she was nine years of age, after which she 
had to earn her own living, Richard, her father, 
being left with a large family and unable to support 
them all from his meager savings. To her and her 
husband have been born the following children : John, 
Elizabeth J., Mary A., Rebecca, Emma, William and 
Silena. 

Mr. and \1 , 5. Mutton set out for America after 
their marriage and located at first in Ontario, Can. 




V-o~ -■"■ ""-»«>*» >" nisi hi wiuario, i_an. 
They were residents in Northumberland County 18 

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years, engaged in farming. In r86 S they removed to 
( 'resion, Ogle Co., 111., where they maintained a resi- 
dence three years, coming in the spring of 1868 to 
Malta Township, where Mr. Mutton became by pur- 
chase the proprietor of 105 acres of land. The place 
gives every evidence of skillful and judicious farming 
and the farm buildings are of excellent character. 
Politically, Mr. Mutton is a Republican. He has 
been for years active in the local offices of his town- 
ship. 

pnry Challand, farmer, section 6, Clinton 
Township, is a son of Charles and Ann 
(Freeman) Challand, both natives of Eng- 
land, and residents in that country until their 
death. They were the parents of a family of 
11 children, namely: Ann, Eliza, Charles, Wil- 
liam, Mary E., Reuben, Henry, Sarah, Maria, George 
and Joseph. 

Henry Challand, the subject of this biographical 
notice, was born in England, Feb. 3, 1S22. His edu- 
cation was received in the common schools of that 
country, and was limited on account of the financial 
condition of his parents. At the age of .2 years he 
set forth to carve a name and accumulate a compe- 
tency for himself, first working on a farm, and then 
as a drayman. In 1847 be emigrated to Canada, 
where he lived seven years, and in the spring of .r8 54 
1 ame to De Kalb County and settled in Shabbona 
Township, where he purchased S 9 acres of land. 
The land was situated partly in De Kalb and partly 
in Lee County, and after holding it for a year as 
owner he sold it. He " worked out " during that 
year, and purchased 80 acres in Afton Township, on 
which he located and lived for seven years, and then 
sold. 

In t 86r, Mr. Challand purchased 190 acres in 
Clinton Township. IK- moved on this land and, ul- 
tivated it until 1874, and then moved to the village 
of Waterman, still retaining possession of his land. 
He lived in the latter place some seven years and 
then moved back upon his farm. Residing there a 
year, he again returned to Waterman, and two years 
later moved upon the farm again. He has resided 
m Waterman and on his farm since 1861. He is the 
owner of 365 acres of land in Clinton and Shabbona 
Townships, most of which is in a good state of culti- 



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vation. That he is a man of great energy and per- 
severance, his accomplishment of a purpose formed 
when 12 years old, namely, to procure a competency, 
is certain and positive proof. He has certainly ac- 
complished that purpose, and to his own indomitable 
energy and pluck he may attribute its success. 

Mr. Challand was first married in England, to 
Miss Elizabeth Green, a native of that country. She 
emigrated with him to Canada, and there died, of 
" emigrant fever." She bore him two children, 
namely, Fredrick and Elizabeth. The second mar- 
riage of Mr. Challand occurred Oct. 31, 1849, and 
the lady of his choice was Miss Julia Bilney, of En- 
glish parentage, and born in Canada. She was the 
mother of 10 children by Mr. Challand, namely: 
Elizabeth A., Freeman, Mary, Jemima, Julia, Sarah, 
Margaret A., Walter, Esther R., Rosa and Eliza. 
Mrs. Challand died in Clinton Township, in July, 
1872. 

Mr. Challand was a third time married, at Sand- 
vrich, this county, Jan. 12, 1873, to Mrs. Emily Fas- 
sett, widow of Henry R. Fassett. He was born 
Nov. 7, 1836, and died May 4, 187 1. Mrs. C. rs the 
daughter of Elijah and Mary A. (Bilney) Hardiman. 
She was born in Canada, Sept. 19, 1842. By her 
first marriage she had two children: John H. and 
Antoinette, the latter of whom is deceased. The 
issue of her second marriage is three children : 
Frank W., Gracie A. and Charles H., all living. 

Mr. and Mrs. Challand are both members of the 
Wesleyan Methodist Church. Politically, Mr. Chal- 
land is a Democrat. He has held the office of Over- 
seer of Highways and School Director. 



ifSisC eorge Stimpson, deceased, was born in 

i'l piyjl, Carolton-on-Trent, Nottinghamshire, Eng- 
•JfljIjGp' k l ant j j i n November, 181 1, and was a son of 

3v John and Susan Stimpson, natives of that 

.1 country. 

Mr. Stimpson grew to manhood in his native 
country and engaged in the vocation of a maltster, 
which occupation he followed for many years. He 
was married at Norwell, Eng., Nov. 10, 1835, to Miss 
Sarah Weightman, a daughter of Thomas and Mary 
(Selby) Weightman, natives of that country. Her 
father was born in North Muskham, and her mother 




in Balderton, Eng. She was born at North Musk- 
ham, Eng., April 26, 1817. They emigrated to the 
United States in 1850, arriving at New York city in 
October of that year, after a tedious voyage of six 
weeks. From the latter place they went to Albany, 
N. Y., where they remained for about six months, and 
then removed to Genesee, Livingston County, that 
State, where they remained until 1853. During the 
latter year they came to this State and located at 
Aurora, where they remained for about two years, a 
greater portion of which time Mr. Stimpson was an 
invalid. From Aurora they moved upon a farm in 
that vicinity, and Mr. Stimpson was engaged in that 
vocation for about five years. At the expiration of 
that time, in 1862, he moved his family to Minne- 
sota, but the Indian massacres at New'Ulm and other 
places which were prevailing at that time in the 
vicinity in which he settled, and various unpleasant 
features of the country, induced him, after a sojourn 
of about two years, to return to this State. He re- 
turned to Aurora, and from thence, in 1864, came to 
Shabbona Township, this county. He located in what 
is called the " English Settlement," in the western 
part of the township, and purchased a fine farm of 
160 acres. He continued to cultivate this farm, 
meeting with success in his endeavors, until the date 
of his death, Nov. 17, 1872. Politically, he was a 
Republican, and socially was a member of the Order 
of Odd Fellows. 

Mr. and Mrs. Stimpson were the parents of 14 
children, eight of whom were born in England, name- 
ly : Edward, who married Mary Cox, " an English 
girl," and is at present living on Grand Prairie, Iro- 
quois County, this State. Thomas, who was a soldier 
in the late Civil War, enlisting in the 7 2d 111. Inf., 
was wounded at Vicksburg May 22, 1864, and died 
at Memphis, Tenn., six days later, from the effects of 
his wound. Rebecca, who is the wife of Theodore 
Porter and lives in Chicago. George married an En- 
glish lady and lives at Elgin. William was a black- 
smith in Shabbona Township, and was killed in his 
shop in July, 1870, by a man named Grover. Jane 
dieil in childhood. T. Weightman married Sarah A. 
Challand and resides in Shabbona. John died at 
home when 30 years of age. 

Of the six children born in this country, Mary J. 
and Sarah A. died in infancy; Elizabeth is the wife 
of John Houghtby, a resident of Shabbona Township. 
Henry B. married Hannah Nau, and lives in Shab- 



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bona; Linnetta is the wife of Emory A. Post, also a 
resident of Shabbona Township ; Frederick is living 
at home. 

Mrs. Stimpson survives her husband and resides 
in Shabbona. The old farm of 160 aires is hers 
during life. She has been a member of the Methodist 
Episcopal Church for upwards of 42 years. Looking 
luck upon the history of her past life, she read Ol 
trials and pleasures, of sorrows and happiness ; and as 
her days are drawing to a close she has the consola- 
tion of having spent a Christian life, a life of useful- 
ness. She is living in comfort .u Shabbona, where 
xpects to pass her remaining years, and where 
her body ma> be placed by the side of her companion. 

Alexander Southern, farmer, section 32, 
f Malta Township, was horn in Ashford, 
™ Kent Co., England, Feb. 28, 1836. Heisa 
prominent agriculturist of De Kalb County 
and affords a good example of what a man, 
born under another flag, may accomplish when 
transferred to a land whose standard floats over no 
classes of born distinction and inherited privileges. 
Alexander Southern, Sr., came of a good family 
which originated and had been perpetuated in Kent 
County, and belonged to the agricultural class. His 
w ile was Mary Thompson before marriage. The par- 
ents died when the son was in childhood, the death of 
the mother occurring soon after that of the father in 
1846. Alexander, Jr., was left homeless and depend- 
ent on his own resources. He was not of a race that 
was easily disheartened or overwhelmed by circum- 
stances, and as early as practicable he devoted his 
time and abilities to an acquisition of a knowledge of 
the trade of a stone and brick mason. He was thus 
employed three years. In 1856 he took a final leave 
of his native soil and kindred, and came alone to the 
United States. He landed at the port of New York 
and pressed on thence to Milwaukee. He passed 
three years in that city at work as a mason, and in 
1859 went to Chicago. He obtained employment at 
his accustomed business, and three years later went 
to Belvidere, Boone Co., 111. The character of his 
work and his industry served to win for him a good 
reputation as a (raftsman, and he had no difficulty 
in finding work in his various wanderings. Not long 



after coming to Illinois, in- came to Malta Township. 
Ile was employed sometime after as a mason, and 
was sent to various places, among others to Terre 
Haute, Ind., where he was the principal workman in 
1 In- construction of the Normal buildings. 

Ile was married in March, 1861, at De Kalb, to 
Mary J., daughter of John and Jane (Hancock) Rowe. 
She was born in Brownton, Devonshire, England, 
April 19, 1834. Her parents were natives of the 
same town and shire, and her father made a prelimi- 
nary visit to the United States, which resulted in his 
returning to England to bring his family, the follow- 
ing year. They remained a short time near Buffalo, 
N. Y., and in the spring of 185 1 came to the town- 
ship of Malta. The} are now quite aged and reside 
with a daughter at Creston, Ogle Co., III. The chil- 
dren of Mr. and Mrs. Southern are all living : Lillie 
J. married John Norton and resides in Chii 
They have two children : Reuben A. was born Oct. 
16, 1866. The youngest is William J. After the 
marriage <>f the parents they took the farm of the 
Misses Todd, which they conducted on shares four 
years. At the end of that time they located on 320 
acres of land, which the father had purchased in 
1868, and which has since been the homestead. It 
is all in a finely cultivated condition. In the spring 
of 1884, the wife and mother was seized with a ner- 
vous disease, from which she died three months later. 
She was a member of the Congregational Church, as 
is her bereaved husband. The latter is a Republi- 
can, and has held various township offices. He is a 
man of reliable integrity and much respected as a 
man and a citizen. 




\ : ev. Benoni Harris, deceased, the pioneer 
minister of Paw 1'aw Township, and one of 
JiKrsX"" the very earliest settlers of the township, was 
rlW bom in Cayuga Co., N. Y., and was the son 
of John Harris. He united with the Method- 
ist Episcopal Church in early life, was or- 
dained a minister and labored many years in the 
discharge of his duties. He was married in New 
York, to Thankful Miles, who was born in Cayuga 
Co., N. Y. They had a family of 12 children, six 
boys and six girls. 

In 1 83 1 he removed to Michigan, and in July, 1835, 
came to De Kalb Co., 111., and settled in what is now 



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Paw Paw Township. He was the first Methodist 
circuit preacher in this region, and also labored as a 
mission preacher. He was a Mason of high standing 
and a good citizen. His wife was the first white 
person to die in the new settlement in Paw Paw 
Township. Her death occurred in 1836. Mr. Har- 
ris died in 1845. 

His sons, Benjamin and Joseph, were among the 
very first settlers of this township. The Rev. 
Benoni Harris, Jr., came several years later. Ben- 
jamin Harris came to Paw Paw in the summer of 
1835 and settled in the western part of the township. 
He was married and removed to Black Hawk Co., 
Iowa, in 1854. He enlisted in the late war and died 
at his home in Iowa, from disease contracted in the 
army. Joseph Harris came to Paw Paw with his 
father and brother. In 1853 he removed to Iowa 
and later to Kansas, where he now resides. Rev. 
Benoni, Jr., moved ta Iowa in 1853, and died in that 
State. 




•"leeec©*®**— i&§ 



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A aijj^harles D. Patch, of the grocery and pro- 
vision house of Rowe, Norris & Patch, at 



W ■ 



3 d^" 1 

iij-/ Sycamore, was born Dec. 25, 1855, in North- 

JL umberland Co., Pa. He is the son of Sala- 
thiel C. and Margaret A. (Watson) Patch. 
The former was born Aug. 17, 1812, in New- 
ark, N. J. The latter is a native of Pennsylvania, 
and was born March 7, 1831. Both are still living 
at Sycamore. 

Mr. Patch is an only child. He passed the years 
of his minority on the homestead farm, 7 miles east 
of Sycamore. Before he was 21 years old he taught 
school during two winters in this State, and in the 
spring of 1877 came to Sycamore, and entered the 
store of which he is now one of • the proprietors, and 
acted two years in the capacity of clerk. 

In September, 1879, he entered the Law Depart- 
ment of the University of Michigan, at Ann Arbor, 
where he studied one term. Returning to Sycamore, 
he assumed editorial charge of the Daily Free Press 
during the Presidental campaign of 1880, continu- 
ing in that avenue of business until November. In 
April, 188 1, he again entered the provision house of 
which he is a member, as a salesman, and operated 



vj; 



in that capacity until April, 1883, when he bought a 
third interest in the stock. 

Mr. Patch was married June 1, 1SS1 , in Mi Gregor, 
Iowa, to Rosa B., daughter of Seymour and Laurinda 
Chilson. She was born east of Cortland, in De Kalb 
County, Feb. 28, 1861, and died Dec. 23, 1881, six 
months after marriage. 

Mr. Patch has been for some time the regular cor- 
respondent of the Chicago -Inter-Ocean, and has a 
decided taste and ability for newspaper work. 

*-— £^- — * 




9 









V) 



acob Spansail, a farmer situated on section 
W 24, Genoa Township, was born Dec. 16, 
1833, in Germany. His parents, Jacob 
and Elizabeth D. Spansail, were natives of 
Germany and in 1850 emigrated to America, 
locating in Ohio. They had a family of seven 
children, — Jacob, Sebastian, Rosa, George, Dora, 
Catherine and Fred. The father died in Michigan /^ 
while en route to Illinois to visit his son : the mother 
survives. 

Mr. Spansail was about 17 years of age when he 
accompanied his parents to America, and he lived in 
the Buckeye State three years, coming thence to 
Kane Co., 111. Two years later, in 1855, he removed 
to De Kalb County and became the owner by pur- 
chase of 40 acres in the township of Genoa, and has 
sirfce maintained his residence thereon. His home 
estate now includes 320 acres and nearly the entire 
acreage is under improvement. His herd of cattle 
includes 50 head on an average and he fattens about 
65 hogs yearly. 

Mr. Spansail was married March 29, 1857, to 
Elizabeth Vote, and they have seven children, — Mary 
E., George H., John M., Rosa (died when three 
months old), Dora J., Katie M. and Frederick W. 
Mrs. Spansail was born March 30, 1S37, in Craw- 
ford Co., Ohio, and is one of 10 children born to her 
parents, — Elizabeth, Mary A., John M., Anna W., 
Susan, William H., Jacob G., Margaret, Charles F. 
and Franklin P. The parents, John and Anna M. 
(Karn) Vote, are natives of Pennsylvania and Ger- 
many. 

Mr. Spansail is a Republican in politics and has 
been a prominent man in the local offices in his 
township, having held the position of Road Com- 




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646 



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Z># A^Z/? COUNTY. 



missioner 15 years and also that of School Director. 
He is .1 in in ol h knowledged business abilities and 

d is salesman for the patrons of the New Lebanon 
cheesi factorj for three years. In 1882 he was ap- 

ted Postmaster of New Lebanon. 
The portrait of Mr. Spansail accompanying this 
sketch is a representation of a worthy citizen of De 
Kalb County. 



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'■ ! (7^;ji W Lloyd, farmer, section 21, Malta 
Township, was born Dec. 14, 1836, in 
Hartford, Mass. His parents, Animus W. 
ana Parthenia (Haskell) Lloyd, changed their 
" residence from Hartford to Old Stockbridge in 
i the same State when the son was in youth, and 
) went thence soon after to Washington in the Bay 
p State. Mr. Lloyd was educated in the common 
•7S schools, and at the age of 20 years found himself at 
1 liberty to enter upon his unaided struggle with for- 
tune. He set out westward and finally reached 
Rockford. He had friends in that city, and he ob- 
tained employment in that locality, where he re- 
mained two years. Meanwhile, his father had re- 
moved to De Kalb County, then comparatively new, 
and here Mr. Lloyd rejoined the family in South' 
Grove Township. He remained at home but a short 
time, as he believed that the promises of the farther 
West foreshadowed opportunity for a venturesome 
and energetic man to get on in the world, and he ac- 
cordingly pressed on to the gold regions of California. 
He operated in mining two years, and then went to 
San Francisco, where he engaged in the livery busi- 
ness. Two years later, in 1863, he returned to De 
Kalb County and located on 160 acres of land, 
which he purchased and where he has since operated 
as a farmer. He has 120 acres of his original pur- 
chase, and has added to his estate until he is now 
the proprietor of 200 acres, in the best possible agri- 
> cultural condition. Mr. Lloyd was one of the first 
to consider the feasibility of a permanent settlement 
«|? in Malta Township, and he has been active in gener- 
al affairs since he has been one of its citizens. In 
addition to general farming he is largely interested 
in stock, and has home herds of cattle and hogs of ex- 
cellent grades. Mr. Lloyd is an ardent Republican, 



and has officiated in the local offices of his township. 
He was united in marriage March 5, 1865, in 
Malta Township, to Kate Spickerman. She was born 
in I .olumbia Co., N. Y.. and is the daughter of John 
and Mary E. (Rowley) Spickerman. While she was 
yet in her childhood the family removed to Spencer, 
N. Y. Her mother died when she was eight years 
of age, and she was then placed in the care of her 
grandparents in Nassau, Rensselaer Co., N. Y., 
where she obtained some degree of common-s< hool 
education. Her grandparents removed, while she was 
still a very young girl, to Oak I'ark, Cook Co., III., 
where she had the advantages of excellent school 
pnvileges'for two years. When she was r4 years old 
another transfer of residence, to the village of Malta, 
was made, and she was sent next to school at Rock- 
ford. On completing her studies she engaged in 
leaching in Milan Township, De Kalb County, when 
16 years of age. Of her marriage to Mr. Lloyd, five 
children have been born. Frank B. is a student at 
the Commercial College at Rockford, 111. ; Walter E., 
Animus A., Kittie E. and Olive O. are busy in ac- 
quiring their education. One of their sons— Ani- 
mus A.— is a boy of remarkable physical proportions, 
developed in stature and weighing 130 pounds, 
though only nine years of age. The family attend 
the Congregational Church, to which the mother be- 
longs. 




— .040*1 






illiam H. Keene is a farmer in Victor 
BgSpg Township, and is pursuing his agricultural 
y-> operations on sections 4 and 9. He was 
^ born March 4, 1820, at Esperance, Schoharie 
Co., N. Y. His parents, Bartholomew and 
Fanny (Van Schoonhoven) Keene, were also 
born in the State of New York. 

Mr. Keene passed the years of his minority in the 
manner common to farmers' sons, obtaining an educa- 
tion and a knowledge of farm labor. After reaching 
the period of his legal freedom, he worked three 
years on a farm. In 1844 he accompanied his 
parents and grandmother to Illinois. They first 
settled at Aurora and spent five years in farming, 
four miles north of that city. The cash capital of 
Mr. Keene on his arrival at his point of destination 
was $15. In 1849 he purchased 46 acres of land on 



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DE KALB COUNTY. 



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section 4, of which he took possession and bent his en- 
ergies to such good purposes that he was enabled in 
T850 to purchase 160 acres additional. He contin- 
ued to prosper, and in 1856 bought another 40 acres. 
He increased his possessions in 1881 by the pur- 
chase of 40 acres more, making an aggregate of 286 
acres, lying in an unbroken body. In addition to his 
several investments named, he has purchased and 
given 160 acres to his oldest son. He is a typical 
fanner, and has engaged continuously in the pursuit 
of mixed husbandry. He has trafficked in short- 
horn cattle for the past 20 years. In 1S50 he began 
to raise black-walnut trees, which are now in fine 
bearing order. • 

Mr. Keene is a Republican and greatly interested 
in the political affairs of his town, county and State, 
and also in national matters. He is one of the most 
prominent citizens of Victor Township, and has been 
active in local official positions. 

He was married Oct. 17, 1848, to Emily Pulver, a 
native of New York, and to them have been born 
eight children, — six of whom are still living : Julia E., 
Martha A., George M., Nancy M., Lewis A. and 
Laura B. Julia is the wife of S. L. Brewer, of Frank- 
lin Co., Kan. George married Malinda Merritt, and 
lives in Victor. Nancy M. married Jonathan E. 
Davis, and resides in Victor Township. 



■ r § :'(| ; !jndrew J. Johnson, farmer, section 35, Mal- 
ta Township, was born March 15, 1842, in 



Iff 3 * 
mi 

^JtM* * tne province of Smolen, Sweden. His 
Sm mother died when he was in childhood, and 
!|£ not long after that event the father came with 
I two 50ns to America, leaving behind a son and 
two daughters. They located at De Kalb, and Mr. 
Johnson entered the employment of a Mr. Stephens, 
with whom he remained nearly two years, after which 
he went to Franklin Township in the employment of 
Thomas Nelson, a farmer for whom he commenced 
^l to labor in June, 1855, remaining until October, 
1863. In the spring of 1867 he purchased 80 acres 
of land on section 35, Malta Township. At the time 
of the purchase, the place was in its original natural 
condition, and Mr. Johnson at once interested him- 
self in its improvement. He purchased 80 acres ad- 
ditional and has now the entire amount under im- 
provement. He is a skillful and industrious farmer, 



■"•» 



and besides fully improving his property has erected 
excellent farm buildings and good fences. His farm 
is stocked with good varieties of cattle and swine. 
Mr. Johnson is a Republican in political principle 
and is a Trustee in the Lutheran Church, to which 
he and his wife belong. 

He was married May 24, 1873, to Louise Sanniel- 
son, who was born April, 15, 1851, in Sweden, and 
came to America in 1870. She died at her home in 
Malta, Feb. i 6, 1 881, leaving four daughters : Minnie 
V., Mary and Martha (twins who bear to each other 
so close a resemblance that theia mother frequently 
made a mistake in their identity), and Martin M., 
Andrew J., Jennie M. and an infant child are de- 
ceased. The latter, after it was born, died with its 
mother. 

Mr. Johnson was again married in De Kalb, Dec. 
13, 1883, to Matilda Peterson, born in Sweden, March 
18, i860. She is the daughter of Jonas and Christina 
(Holkenson) Peterson, and came to the United States 
in August, 1882. Gusta E. is the name of her only 
child. 



^0006 




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" nomas Nicholson, farmer, section 15, Paw 

Paw Township; postoffice, East Paw Paw, 

De Kalb Co., has 240 acres. He was born 

'"(aeP in Phillipstown, Putnam Co., N. Y., Feb. 14, 

Cp 1807, and is the son of Joshua and Rebecca 

(Henyan) Nicholson. He removed to Dutch- 
ess Co., N. Y., with his parents when 14 years of age, 
and five years later to Tompkins Co., N. Y., where 
he was married, June 1, 1833, to Eunice, daughter 
of Abram Clark. Mrs. Nicholson was born in Con- 
necticut Aug. 20, 1812. They had 13 children, the 
seven older ones bom in New York and six born in 
Illinois. There were ten boys and three girls, as 
follows: Joshua, born March 8, 1834, and died aged 
46 years, still unmarried. David H.,born Oct. iS, 
1835, married Mary J. Jones and lives in Paw Paw 
Township; John W., born May n, 1836, married 
Carrie Emmons, and lives in Chicago; Charles W., 
born Oct. 18, 1837, married Mary J. Roff, and lives 
at Aurora; Clark, born June 10, 1839, died in child- 
hood; Lydia A., born Dec. 6, 1841, wife of Cyrus 
Fristoe, lives at Hot Springs, Ark. ; Susan R., born 
May 26, 1843, is the wife of Dexter V. Pratt, and 
lives in Paw Paw Township ; William L., born Jan 



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20, 1845, married Rachel Dunton, and lives in West 
Paw Paw; Catharine J., bom Sept. 21, 1847, is the 

twife of J. P. Hampton, and lives in Greene Co., Iowa; 
Edward J.,born Jan. 15, 1849, married Maria Greves, 
j and lives at Sandwich, 111.; George M.,l>orn Feb. 16, 
1 85 r, married Laura Braithwaite, and lives in Cal- 
houn Co., Iowa; Thomas C, bom April 22, 1853, is 
deceased ; Fremont, bom June 22, 1856, lives in Paw 
Paw Township. Mrs. Nicholson died Nov. 28, 1879. 
Mi. Nicholson came to Paw Paw Township, De 
K.illi Co., 111., in 1846, bought his land of the 
Government, on section 15, where he has made his 
home ever since. 




(. 



J ev. Levi H Davis, farmer, section 30, town- 
ship of Paw Paw, postofrice, Earlville, La 
Salle County, has 108 acres of land. He 
il'iy was Dorn ' n '' ie town of Providence, Saratoga 
Co., N. Y., Aug. 2, 1837, and is the son of 
Richard C. and Susan E. (Pawling) Davis, 
lie removed in the spring of 1S46 with his par- 
* ents to Oswego, 111., and in December of that year 
,£> came to Paw Paw Township, De Kalb Co., 111., and 
> located on the same section on which he now resides. 
'( ") He was brought up a farmer, and was married at 
Buchanan, Mich., Oct. 7, 1869, to Mrs. Mary J. 
Davis, widow of his brother, Alexander P. Davis, who 
was drowned in the Illinois River, July 24, 1864,3111! 
daughter of Thomas B. and Eliza (Hoag) Sawyer. 
Mrs. Davis was born in Schenectady Co., N. Y., Sept. 
20, 1834, and came to Illinois in April, 1857. She 
had one son by her former marriage, Charles A., born 
Feb. 8, 1858. He married Sene Hanson and resides 
in Paw Paw Township. One child was born of the 
present marriage, namely, Wynian P., Jan. 16, 1871. 
Mr. Davis united with the Baptist Church at the 
1 10 years. In 1861 he began laboring for the 
conversion of souls. He soon after joined the Sec- 
ond-Advent Christian Church and became a preacher 
of that faith in 1863, since which time he has labored 
continuously in that cause. Mrs. Davis united with 
the Baptist Chun h in early life, and since 1868 has 
been connected with the Second-Advent Christian 
Church. Mr. Davis has served his School District 
(No. 1) nine years as Director. In politics he is an 
earnest Republic an, with prohibition sympathies. 




In connection with the family history of Mr. Davis 
and the following named cousins, now resident of De 
Kalb County, — Mrs. Cyrenius Bailey, Mrs. Mary J. 
Y. Fonda, Mrs. Jane E. Sturgeon, Mr. Pawling A. 
Morey and Mr. A. Pawling Young — the following 
references to their relation to well known historical 
characters of Revolutionary times forms an appro- 
priate and interesting feature: 

Their great-grandfather, Alexander Wilson, was a 
cousin of Alexander Hamilton. The Wilsons were 
connected by marriage through Col. Pawling (an 
officer in Washington's army), with Governor James 
Clinton, of New York. This Alexander Wilson, of 
New York city, was of Sc otc h descent, and married 
Jane Armour, of Scotland. 'I "heir daughter, Jane, 
married Levi Pawling, whose brother, Col. Albert 
Pawling, was an officer in Washington's army, subse- 
quently the first Mayor of Troy. The children of Levi 
and Jane Pawling were the parents of the persons first 
named in this sketch. Their eldest daughter, Helen 
Pawling, married Winthrop Young, of New York, and 
was the mother of Mrs. Mary J. Y. Fonda and of 
Mr. A Pawling Young. Amanda Pawling married 
Jesse Morey, and was the mother of Mrs. Cyrenius 
Bailey and Pawling A. Morey. Susan E. married 
Richard C. Davis and was the mother of Alexander 
P. Davis, who was drowned in the Illinois River, 
July 24, 1864, and of William J. Davis, of Missouri 
Albeit P., of Livingston, M. T, and his twin brother, 
the Rev. Levi H. Davis, of Paw Paw Township, and 
of Jane E., wife of John D. Sturgeon, also of Paw 
Paw. 

An interesting anecdote of their great-grandmother 
Mrs. Jane Wilson, is traditionary in the family, and 
deserves preservation in connection with the fore- 
going. Mrs. Wilson, who was a devoted patriot, hav- 
ing lost her husband in New York city, removed to 
Salem, Washington County, where she married one 
McilT.it, of Tory sympathies. They carried on a store 
and farm, and among their employees had several 
'Tories. One day Mrs. Moffat discovered that she 
had been robbed of some valuables, including a gold 
watch. 'The absence of some of her Tory workmen 
led her to believe them to be the thieves and to sup- 
pose that they had sought safety in Burgoyne's camp 
at Saratoga. Mounting her horse, she rode to the 
British camp and demanded an audience of Gen. 
Burgoyne, which was granted, when she demanded 
a search lor her properly, which was at first refused, 






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whereupon she threatened to report the General. 
Burgoyne coolly asked to whom she would report 
him. Her answer was, "To the Congress of the 
United Colonies." The General, much amused 
at this storming of his camp by a patriot in petti- 
coats, he ordered a search. The stolen articles were 
found and restored to her with the exception of the 
watch, which an officer pocketed, with the remark 
that he would keep it for Mr. Moffat. 

At another time her husband, under pretense of 
danger to her safety in her home, packed their goods, 
mounted heron a horse with her baby in her arms and 
started for Albany. On the way she surmised, from 
a mysterious conversation between her husband and 
some well-known Tories, that she was being taken to 
the camp of the British army. Watching her oppor- 
tunity, she ordered her attendants back, while she led 
them and returned to her home. 

The tradition of these incidents go to prove the 
courage and patriotism of this lady ancestor, and is 
very properly remembered with pride by her descend- 
ants. 



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eft- 

ewis Bend, farmer, section 29, Victor Town- 
\ ship, was born Jan 5, 1831, in Lincolnshire, 
England, of which country his parents 
William and Sarah (Watson) Bend, were also 
natives. He received the education common 
to his class, and was reared at home through 
the years of his minority. On leaving home he came 
to seek a wider field of operation than that afforded 
1>\ the conditions which surrounded him in his native 
country. He made his way to Scottsville, Monroe 
Co., N. Y., where he worked by the month as a farm 
laborer a year and a half. He proceeded next to 
Ohio, where he remained six weeks only, the situa- 
tion not suiting his taste. He came to Illinois and 
passed three years in farm labor at various places, 
after which he located in De Kalb County, taking 
land in Victor Township to work on shares. After 
operating in this manner eight years, in 1866, he 
bought 160 acres of land, where he established his 
homestead, and which he still retains in his posses- 
sion. He also owns 97 acres on section 30. He has 
erected substantial and valuable buildings on his 
farm, and has a fine stock and grain barn constructed 




at an expense of $3,000. He is interested in raising, 
and in the sale of, fine graded stock. In political 
views and actions, Mr. Bend has until the election of 
1884 affiliated with the Republican party; in that 
year he c ast his vote for the Democratic ticket. He- 
has officiated as School Director. 

He was united in marriage Sept. 1, 1852, to Jane 
Sturges, and they have had 12 children, three of 
whom are deceased : Mary A., Lewis W., John T., 
Emma L., Esther E., Rosella, Joseph J., Metta J. 
and Lucy E. are still living. 

The portraits of Mr. and Mrs. Bend appear on 
other pages of this work. 




fnton Stollberg, farmer, section 25, Malta 

[ Township, was born Aug. 24, 1834, in 

^Prussia, Germany. He attended the schools 




^^§® 



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of his native country as the law required ; and, 
is the same regulation provided, on finishing the 
prescribed studies he learned the trade of wea- 
ver, commencing his apprenticeship when 14 years 
of age. When he was 20 years old he took leave of 
all his kindred in Germany and came alone to Amer- 
ica, to seek a livelihood under more favorable circum- 
stances than his native land afforded. His parents 
were quite aged and have since died. He first set- 
tled in Ontario, Canada, where he was engaged as a 
general laborer on farms in various places for a per- 
iod of six years. 

He was married in Petersburg, Canada, Jan. 4, 
1857, to Bertha Sass. She was born Dec. 13, 1840, 
in Mecklenburg, Germany, of German parents. Her 
mother died when she was 14 years of age, and dur- 
ing the year following she came alone to America, 
whither her father had preceded her a short time. 
She failed to find him as she expected, and she went 
to Waterloo Co., Out., and lived there with an ac- 
quaintance. She afterward ascertained that her fa- 
ther became a soldier in the Union army, and that 
he was killed at the battle of Gettysburg. He en- 
listed in Chicago in an Illinois regiment. 

Mr. and Mrs. Stollberg have three children. Mary 
married Lewis Johnson, a Norwegian, and they live 
on a farm in Malta Township. Louise is the wife of 
August Bahr, a mechanic in the barb-wire shops at 
De Kalb. Bertha married Charles Johnson, ami 
they reside in De Kalb. After marriage the parents 



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ed in Petersburg, Ont., which was their residence 
seven years, and they came thence to Detroit, Mich. 
Three years later they removed to Somonauk. Aftei 
their removal to De Kall> County, Mr. Stollberg 
worked as a farm Laborer .it various plai es until 1875, 
when he bought 80 acres o improved land in Malta 
Township, in whii li He has since prosecuted his ag- 
ricultural labors with satisfactory results. He is a 
Republican, and he belongs to the Baptist Church, 
as does also his wife. 



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on. George Stewart Robinson is a resi- 
dent of Sycamore. He was born June 24, 
1824, in Derby, Orleans Co., Vt., and is the 
son of George and Harriet (Stewart) Robinson. 
I lis father was a native of Connecticut, the son 
of Eber Robinson, a Captain in the War of the 
Revolution. His mother was a native of Vermont, 
the daughter of Rufus Stewart, a Major in the War 
of 18 12. The subject of this sketch was reared on a 
farm in his native town and acquired such education 
as was attainable in the public schools and semi- 
naries of the place at that period. He is the only 
survivor of a family of three children. His younger 
brother, Charles, died in Cuthbert, Ga., April 9, 
i860, and his brother Lucius died at Newport, Vt., 
Jan. 8, 1882. 

When 19 years of age he entered the law office of 
Hon. S. B. Colby, at Derby, and began his profes- 
sional studies. After reading under Mr. Colby's 
instruction for two years he finished his legal course 
with Hon. Lucius B. Peck, of Montpelier, and was 
admitted to practice in the Courts of his native State, 
November, 1846. On account of close application to 
his studies, his health failed, and, with the hope of 
its restoration, in 1847, he went South, where he was 
occupied in teaching. In 1853 he returned to Derby, 
and on the 13th day of October, 1853, was united in 
marriage with Olive A. Colby, the daughter of Ne- 
hemiah M. and Melinda (Larabee) Colby, born Dec. 
20, 1831. Her parents were natives of New Hamp- 
shire. 

Shortly after their marriage, Mr. and Mrs. Robin- 
son removed to Cuthbert, Ga., where they resided 
until 1866, Mr. Robinson engaged in the practice of 
his profession. On leaving Georgia they came direct 

hit v-'v •: ^^ — 9-±< ; n 



to Sycamore, where Mr. Robinson formed a partner- 
ship with Charles Kellum, at present Judge of the 
Circuit Court, which partnership was continued four 
years. He then continued alone until his election 
as County Judge, in 1877, which position he con- 
tinued to hold until 1882, when he resigned to attend 
to private business in Vermont. When Sycamore 
was organized as a city, he was elected one of its 
Aldermen, and held the position two terms. He was 
also City Attorney and drafted the ordinances under 
which the city was governed for years, many of which 
an- still in force. For several years prior to his elec- 
tion as Judge of the County Court, he held the posi- 
tion of Master in Chancery, which position he 
ned soon after his election. In 1869 he was 
appointed on the Board of State Commissioners of 
Public Charities for the State of Illinois, by Gov. 
John M. Palmer, was re-appointed by Gov. John L. 
Beveridge in 1874, and again by Gov. Shelby M. 
Cullom in 1S79. He continued upon, and was an 
active member of, the Board until March, 1884, when 
he resigned, being unable to attend to the duties of 
the position by reason of absence from the State on 
business demanding his entire time. He was a 
member of the Board for nearly 15 years, and was its 
President for nine years, devoting from two to three 
months of his time each year to its work without 
compensation. 

Judge Robinson is a man of more than ordinary 
ability, possessing a good legal mind and endowed 
with good common sense. He was always consid- 
ered an able lawyer and a safe counselor. Devoting 
himself to general practice and not to any special 
line of his profession, he has discharged his duties 
as an attorney in a faithful manner to his clients 
and has retained the respect of the Court. As 
Judge of the County and Probate Courts, no man has 
ever filled the position in a more satisfactory manner, 
being popular alike with the Bar and the people. 
As a member of the State Board of Public Charities, 
he has made a State reputation. Notwithstanding 
he received no compensation, he devoted his time 
just as faithfully and as energetically as though re- 
ceiving annually a handsome salary. That his ser- 
vices were appreciated, his re-appointment and long 
continued labors will attest. His service upon that 
Board shows that he had a heart to feel for the un- 
fortunate and realizes the responsibility of the State 
and people to care for them. As a citizen, the Judge 



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enjoys the respect of all. Ever ready to lend a help- 
ing hand to every public enterprise, he takes hold 
with a will, and what he does he does with all his 
might. Few men enjoy the confidence of the people 
in a greater degree. 

Of three children born to Judge and Mrs. Robin- 
son, only one survives. Hattie Melinda was born 
Dec. 22, 1856, at Cuthbert, Ga. She was married in 
June, 1881, to C. L. Buchan, of Chicago, and died 
Nov. 3, 1884, at Sycamore, leaving a babe two weeks 
old. Lucius Prentiss was born July 22, 1858, and 
died in infancy. Nellie Colby was born Feb. 9, 
1862. 



[■■ -. ■ ^ ~i . 

j obert F. Hampton, farmer, section 7, Paw 

Paw Township, has 160 acres of land; 

"''. ,? ' postoffice East Paw Paw, is the son of Rob- 




ert and Lydia (Zemmer) Hampton, and was 
born in Paw Paw Township, Feb. 3, 1852. He 
received an academic education and taught 
school several winters, while he was farming summers. 
He was married in Chicago, March 9, 1879, to 
Miss Elizabeth C, daughter of Casper and Magda- 
lena Dienst. Mrs. Hampton was born in La Salle 
Co., 111., Nov. 12, 1858. 

Mr. and Mrs. Hampton are members of the 
Methodist Episcopal Church of East Paw Paw, and 
Mr. H. is Republican in political views. 



*^ 



*♦— 3*VV- 



~f$ (f J illiam Hecox, farmer, section 22, 



m 




Malta 



Township, was born Aug. 26, 1825, in Bur- 
lington, Otsego Co., N. Y. Alexander 
Hecox, his father, was a native of Montgom- 
ery Co., N. Y., and a son of Samuel Hecox, 
J_, M. D., of Connecticut, of well-known and trace- 
able ancestry, his progenitors having came to America 
during the Colonial period to escape persecution in 
England, and they reached distinction through su- 
periorly of birth and culture. Dr. Hecox attained 
celebrity in medicine and politics, ranking in both 
without peer in his native State. He died at 96 years 
of age. His second wife, Betsey Flint, belonged to 
the class known as Mohawk Dutch, and who were 
located adjacent to Cherry Valley at the period when 



that section of the State of New York was made his- 
toric by the ravages of the Indians; and her immedi- 
ate relatives were among the refugees of that terrible 
epoch, occupying places of cruel exposure in the dead 
of winter to secure themselves from the tomahawk 
and the more dreadful fate of capture. Dr. Hecox' 
family included eight children, of whom Alexander 
was the second. The latter was born, lived and died 
on the same place, his demise occurring about 1838. 
His wife, Emma Hammond, was a native of Brattle- 
boro, Vt., and can.e of illustrious stock. Her father, 
Thomas Hammond, was a soldier of 181 2 and par- 
ti ipated in the battle of Queenstown, where he was 
captured. He was carried to England, where he 
was held a prisoner of war 18 months. He was a 
shoemaker, and died at an advanced age, as did his 
wife, in Montgomery Co., N. Y. 

William Hecox is the eldest of six children, all of 
whom are yet living and are prominent for health, 
activity and intelligence. His father died when he 
was 13 years old, and the widowed mother devoted 
herself to the' care and education of her children, 
everyone of whom is a living example of inherited 
merit and a testimony to the value of a sacrificing, 
judicious mother. The youngest child is a daughter, 
who is an inmate of her brother's home in New York. 
Another brother is resident there and two others live 
in Southern Nebraska. 

Mr. Hecox contributed his assistance to the main- 
tenance of the family until he was 21 years old, 
passing his time as a day laborer on neighboring 
farms. He also secured a fair degree of education, 
and by frugality was enabled to save a share of what 
he earned during the latter years of his minority. 

He was first married Oct. 19, 185 1, in Hart wick, 
Otsego Co., N. Y., to Julia A., daughter of Austin 
and Anna (King) Fuller. Her parents are natives of 
Otsego County, and are still living in Chenango Co., 
N. Y., although very aged. The daughter was born 
Nov. 5, 1826, in Hartwick, Otsego County. She was 
well and carefully educated and was for some years 
a teacher. She died (childless) in Malta, in 1876. 
Mr. Hecox was again married May 9, 1S81, in Ran- 
dallville, N. Y., to Mary, daughter of John and So- 
phronia (Hartshorn) White. Her parents are of 
genuine Yankee stock, born respectively in Connect- 
ii in and Massachusetts. The families of both 
settled early in the State of New York, where they 
were married. Mr. White, who was a cloth-dresser by 



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ion, died when his daughter was foui years of 
age, and the latter was brought up by her mother, 
who died in t S65. 

Mi. Hecox came to Illinois in 1859, and he at once 
ed on 160 acres in Malta Township. After his 
second marriage he sold his farm with the intention 
of establishing a permanent home in Nebraska : but 
after a trial, the associations of De Kalb proved too 
strong for him to resist, and lie returned alter a few 
months. He again became a land-holder in Malta 
by the purchase of 80 acres of land, which has proved 
a most desirable home, being well improved and cul- 
tivated and supplied with presentable and valuable 
farm buildings. Mr. Hecox is an adherent to the 
tenets and principles of the Republican party. His 
wife is a member of the Baptist Church. 



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i ev. William Nicholson, minister, residing 
at Shabbona, was in active service as a 
■(SP Pastor of the Methodist Episcopal Church 
A\A" om '^34 to '871, when, on account of being 
thrown from his horse, he was compelled to re- 
tire from active life. He was born in Newark, 
Nottinghamshire, Eng., July 13, 1806, and is a son 
of John and Charlotte (Riul) Nicholson. He was 
reared and educated in his native town and spent a 
portion of his early years in the lumber business. In 
1829 he was converted to the faith of the Methodist 
Episcopal Church, and spent five years as tract dis- 
tributor, benevolent visitor and teacher, and in 1834 
began preaching as a local preacher. 

He emigrated to the United States in 1842 and lo- 
cated in the Western Reserve in Ohio, where he be- 
gan preaching, at Nelson and Hiram Centers. In 
1849 he removed to a point 20 miles from Coldwater, 
in Branch Co., Mich. He preached in that county 
and in Indiana for six years, and then in 1854 came 
to this State and located at Aurora, where he as- 

Xsisted in charge of the Church located there. In 
1855 he went to Clinton Township, this county. In 
1856 he preached in Shabbona Grove, then a part of 
y the Paw Paw Circuit. During that year he pur- 
^> chased 80 acres of land in Shabbona Township, but 
continued to reside at Paw Paw, Lee County, until 
1859, when he removed to his farm. He has subse- 

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quentl) added to his original purchase until he be- 
came the owner of 200 acres. He was instrumental 
in the building of school-houses and establishing re- 
ligious meetings. 

In the spring of. 1876 Rev. Nicholson moved to 
the village of Shabbona, where he has since lived. 
He has filled the pulpit of both churches at that 
plai .■ at different times. Since the summer of [882 
he has retired from active work in the ministry on 
account of failing health and injuries received as 
stated. 

He was married Nov. 27, 1S2S, to Miss Maria, 
daughter of Henry and Mary (Gilbert) Radford. She 
was born in Nottinghamshire, England. They are 
the parents of nine children, seven of whom are liv- 
ing, viz.: Hannah, widow of James McCray, resides 
in Earl, 111.; Sarah is the wife of Ira Lyons, a resi- 
dent of Oregon ; Elizabeth died at the age of 19 years ; 
Josiah II. married Loie Nicholson and resides in 
Iowa; Mary is the wife of Dewitt Van Vliet and re- 
sides at Elk Grove, Mo.; Martha is the wife of John 
Mullins, and lives at Shabbona; John J. enlisted in 
Co. E, 105th 111. Inf., in the late Civil War, and died 
with fever at Chicago before leaving for the field of 
action; Charles W. married Miss Marion Houghtby 
and lives on the old homestead; Lucy M. is the 
wife of Dewitt Van Vel/.or, a resident of Shabbona. 

Politically, Mr. Nicholson has been identified with 
the Republican party since the days of Fremont. He 
has met with several severe accidents during his life. 
The last one of consequence occurred when he was 
65 years of age. He was thrown from his horse on 
the frozen ground and badly crippled. He is also 
the victim of acute rheumatism, from which he suffers 
greatly. With all his afflictions, he maintains a pa- 
tient faith that all is for the best, and still endeavor-, 
to impress the divine precepts of his religion upon 
all those who come within his influence. 



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r^ilf eorge W. Smiley, 
'M l and dealer in agricultural implements at 

T),\')~" K Malta, is also an extensive farmer, stock 

"vk* and grain dealer, owning two fine farms situ- 

{ ated on either side of the village. He is a 

* native of Sullivan Co., N. Y., whence he came 

with his parents to Illinois, locating in Kane County. 



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He lost his mother by death when nine years old, 
and from that period lie continued tinder the charge 
of his father in the States of New York and Pennsyl- 
vania. He was in the latter State about four years. 
After he was 13 years of age he maintained himself. 
He reached his majority in Kane County, but before 
he was 22 years of age he had traveled in 26 differ- 
ent States. He had spent a summer in Canada and 
visited Central America, Cuba and Mexico. While 
in Central America he was arrested on some triv- 
ial pretext and held a prisoner for some time by the 
suspicious authorities. In California he .was inter- 
ested in gold-mining, which proved a fortunate in- 
vestment. Returning thence via New Orleans to 
Illinois, he settled on a farm of 160 acres, which he 
had previously purchased in Kane County, where he 
pursued agriculture several years. In 1863 he came 
to the township of Malta and purchased 80 acres of 
farming land in Milan Township. Later on he 
bought another tract of similar extent, and soon after 
located in the village, where he has since conducted 
his business, at first engaging in the sale of coal, lum- 
ber and farming implements, in partnership with 
Charles W. Haish. They operated jointly five years. 
Since 1S70, Mr. Smiley has transacted a heavy busi- 
ness in the lines of traffic indicated. As an agricul- 
turist he ranks with two others as the best in De 
Kallj County, and has at one time been the leading 
dealer in fanning apparatus in the county, supplying 
fully a third of the demand. For the last 15 years he 
has shipped to market annually an average of 100 
car-loads of stock. He is the proprietor of 260 acres 
of land, all in advanced cultivation. His property 
in the village includes a stock and feed yard, a 
double store and grain warehouse, and the building 
and lot where he resides. His business transactions 
aggregate yearly $150,000. 

Mr. Smiley is a Democrat in political persuasion. 
He is present President of Malta Corporate Board, 
and has held all the local offices of the township and 
village. 

He was united in marriage to Arzoda Smith, Jan. 
6,1857, at Geneva, 111. Her parents, James and 
Arzoda Smith, were early settlers in Kane County, 
whither they came from Erie Co., Pa., in 1835. Her 
mother and father have been dead some years. Mrs. 
Smiley was bom Jan. 21, 1835, in Erie Co., Pa., 
and was eight months old when brought by her 
parents to Illinois. After obtaining her education 





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she managed the domestic part of her father's affairs 
until her marriage. Following is the record of five 
children, of whom she has been the mother: Burr B., 
born April 30, 1859, was married Oct. 21, 1880, in 
Malta, to Emily J. Peters, and they have one child 
— Eva, born July 3, 1882; B. B. Smiley is connected 
with his father in business; Thvrza was born June 
13, 1864; May and Myrtle, twins, were born June 
27, 1868; Budd D., born, Feb. 3, i86i,was accident- 
ally killed May 26, 1878, by a freight train on the 
railroad at Creston, Ogle Co., 111. 

y^avid West, a pioneer farmer of De Kalb 
II County, who resides on section 34, Syca- 
more Township, was born July 16, 1806, 
in Waterville, Oneida Co., N. Y., to which 
place his parents had removed from Massachu- 
setts in the same year. Asa West, his father, 
was born in 1769, in Williamstown, Berkshire Co., 
Mass., and married Sarah Parker, who was born 
April 25, 1773, in Deerfield, Franklin Co., Mass. 
In 1808 the family migrated to Madison Co., N. Y., 
where they were pioneers. The father bought a tract 
of timber land, where he built a log house, which was 
occupied by the family for a number of years. The 
senior West was a clothier by trade and a man of 
natural mechanical abilities, later in life becoming a 
cooper and following that business during the winter 
seasons after his removal to the State of New York. 
While the second struggle of the Colonies with Great 
Britain was in progress, he made wooden canteens 
for the soldiers. In 1815 his health failed, and after 
an illness of six years' duration, he died, in January, 
1821. The mother, with her children, resided some 
years after that event in Madison County, and re- 
moved thence in 1826 to Erie County, where she 
died, Dec. 2, 1828, aged 48 years. 

Mr. West is the sole survivor of nine children, five 
of whom preceded him in order of birth. After the 
death of his father, he was a member of the family 
of his brother-in-law, Daniel Hurd, of Georgetown, 
Madison Co., N. Y., until he was 20 years of age, 
when he went to Evans, Erie Co., N. Y., and oper- 
ated as a contractor in the for-jsts, clearing land and 
lumbering. On the 29th of April, 1829, he was mar- 
ried to Sarah Chapin, in Georgetown. She was th 



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daughter of Elias and Dirais (Chapman) Chapin, 
who remo\ ed from Stafford, Conn., to Madison County. 
The former was born Feb. 15, 1 75 1 , was a soldier of 
the Revolution and was with Washington at the 
evacuation ol the city of New York by the British. 
He died in Evans, Erie Co., N. Y., Feb. 4, 1839. 
The latter was born Oct. 15, 1774, and died in New 
Woodstock, Madison Co., N. Y., Oct. 12, i860. 

Alter his marriage, Mr. West purchased a trad oi 
land included in the " Holland Purchase," in Evans, 
built a house and barn and cleared 45 acres. He 
was a resident there until 1843, and in addition to 
his own clearing and farming operations he put in 
tillable condition about 350 acres of land. In the 
fall of [843 he sold his farm, and with his family, in- 
cluding his wife and five children, he started for 
Illinois, making the journey with a pair of horses and 
a wagon, and bringing with them a portion of their 
household goods. After 23 days of travel, exclusive 
of Sundays, they arrived in Sycamore and passed the 
ensuing winter with Aaron C. West, a brother, then 
resident on section 34. Mr. West bought a tract of 
land adjoining on section 34, and in the winter of 
1844-5 ' le huilt a smal l 'tame house for the accom- 
modation of his family. During the same winter he en- 
tered his claim. His first crop was raised on rented 
land in 1844, the same year in which he broke 20 
acres on his own property. In 1845 he raised a crop 
of grain on his own place. At that time Chicago was 
the nearest market, and also the nearest point to ob- 
tain necessary supplies. The nearest mill was at 
St. Charles in Kane County. The farm of Mr. West 
presents a wide contrast from its primitive condition. 
It comprises 107 acres under tillage, with an excel- 
lent class of farm buildings. The place is supplied 
with an apple orchard planted by the proprietor, 
some of the trees having been brought by him from 
the State of New York. The yard fronting the house 
is made pleasant and attractive by shade trees and 
ornamental shrubbery. 

The first wife of Mr. West was born Jan. 8, 1804, 
in Stafford, Conn., and of their union eight children 
were born, six of whom survive : Elias C. was born 
Nov. 25, (839, in Evans, Erie Co. N. Y., and has 
been a resident of Sycamore since he was four years 
of age. He entered the army of the United States 
during the War of the Rebellion, enlisting Sept. 2, 
1862, in Co. A, 105th 111. Inf. The command was 
attached to the 20th Army Corps, and he experienced 




the vicissitudes of the Atlanta campaign and march 
through Georgia and the Carolinas, participating in 
the Grand Review at Washington, 1). C, at the close 
of the war. He was slightly wounded at Kenesaw 
Mountain and at Atlanta. 

He was married June 17, 1872, to Ella A. Reese, 
and they have had three children,— May B., Roy C. 
and Gertie May. The oldest child died when about 
nine years of age. Mrs. West was born in Wisconsin, 
and is the daughter of Adam and Mary (Bass) 
Reese. He is associated with his father in dairying 
and raising fine stock, their joint ownership of land 
including 205 acres, all under improvement. The 
unmarried children of Mr. West are Alice C, Orrin, 
Asa P., Sarah L. and Miranda M. The mother died 
Jan. 23, 1849. Mr. West was a second time mar- 
ried, May 28, 1849, to Mrs. Lucinda (Rose) Wells, 
widow of Israel Wells, who died in March, 1845, 
leaving two children, — George M. and Ruth. The 
latter died when 26 years old. The former is a con- 
ductor on the Chicago & Northwestern Railroad. The 
mother was born in August, 1804, in Sherburn, 
Chenango Co., N. Y. Her parents, Joseph and 
Ruth (Whitney) Rose, were natives of Windhall, Vt., 
whence they removed to Sherburn. The former was 
born Dec. 25, 1760, the latter July 28, 1772. Mrs. 
West died April 10, 1884. 

On a preceding page in proximity a lithographic 
likeness of the above sketched venerable pioneer is 
given, which will doubtless be appreciated with a 
high degree of pleasure by the public in this part of 
the State. 

Most of the life of Mr. West has been of a pioneer 
character. Georgetown, in 1S26, the date of his re- 
moval thence, was still in the heart of a wilderness, 
and the same state of affairs existed in Erie County 
(Buffalo being comparatively a village), whence he 
came to De Kalb County, only to repeat his experi- 
ence in an undeveloped section of country. He has 
been active in the duties of his citizenship at Syca- 
more, and as Commissioner assisted in the construc- 
tion of the highways. He has been a factor in the 
organization of the school districts, and served his 
township several years as Assessor. When he was 
25 years of age he connected himself with the Con- 
gregational Church, in the town of Collins, Erie Co., 
N. Y., of which he remained a member until 1879, 
when he severed his relations therewith from con- 
scientious scruples, believing that the Bible, by pre- 






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cept, discountenances secret organizations, Masonry 
in particular. In the days when Sycamore was in its 
incipiency his house was the home of the clergy who 
came hither in the practice of their calling, and it 
was also a depot on the " Underground Railroad," 
Mr. West often being called on to aid the refugees 
from the South and help them on their way to aland 
of freedom. He has been a practical temperance 
man and a zealous advocate in the cause for many 
years, and has never used tobacco in any form. He 
raised a barn in Erie Co , N. Y., which was erected 
without the aid of whisky, about 1835. Mr. Wesl is 
a man of firm convictions and fearless in the practi- 
cal application of his opinions. He voted for James 
G. Birney for President at a time when the anti- 
slavery candidate of the district for Representative 
received but 40 votes. 

Asa P. West, second son of David West, was born 
May 16, 1837, in Evans, Erie Co., N. Y. He was 
educated with care, and fitted for entering upon a 
professional career. He entered the United States 
military service as a soldier for the Union, and was 
mustered in May 7.4, 1861, with his regiment, 13th 
111. Vol. Inf. At the battle of Chickasaw Bayou he 
was shot through the right lung, the ball shattering a 
rib and passing through the shoulder blade. He 
worked his finger into the wound to control the 
bleeding, and made his way unassisted to the rear 
of the line of battle. He was taken in charge by Dr. 
Henry T. Salter, Assistant Surgeon of his regiment, 
who put his own fingers in the wound and controlled 
the flow of blood until coagulation stopped the artery. 
Late in the afternoon he was carried on a stretcher 
to a hospital boat, where he was placed face down- 
ward on a straw mattress in the cabin and left to die, 
the surgeon in charge pronouncing his fate certain. 
After several days the surgeon remarked, " This fel- 
low won't die; we may as well do what we can for 
him." His wound was officially described as follows: 
" He is shot through the right lung, the ball striking 
the fourth rib, cutting it off, severing the branch 
artery and passing out through the inner curve of the 
scapula." His father had given him a white silk 
handkerchief for use in case he was wounded, and 
the surgeon inserted this in the wound by means of 
a probe and drew it out at the back. This was done 
several times, and repeated several successive days. 
The wounded were sent North, the installment to 



which Mr. West belonged reaching St. Louis Jan. 19, 
1863. The weather was very cold, and when he was 
carried into the hospital his feet and legs were found 
to be frozen nearly to his knees. There was talk of 
his losing them, but he was in charge of an experi- 
enced French nurse, who had been in the Crimea, 
and whose care saved his limbs and his life. After he 
recovered, he assisted about the hospital until he was 
taken with the small-pox. He lived through the 
attack, and was discharged from the hospital June 6, 
1863. He returned to Sycamore and entered upon 
the study of law. His wound had not healed, and 
he was obliged to undergo an operation to remove 
the diseased portions of the shoulder blade. 

In the winter of 1S64-5 he was again in the em- 
ployment of the Government, and had charge of a 
portion of a construction corps with the army of Gen- 
eral Sherman. He acted as engineer on the locomo- 
tive that took General Grant to Smithfield after the 
surrender of General Johnston, and went from there 
to Baltimore through the Dismal Swamp Canal, and 
thence to Washington, reaching there the day before 
the Grand Review. Mr. West is engaged in the 
practice of law at Geneva, Kane Co., 111. Nov. 7, 
1882, he fell from a tree and crushed the 10th and 
nth vertebrae of the back-bone, throwing the spine 
six inches out of place, tearirrg the two lower perma- 
nent ribs from the breast-bone and driving them 
through the flesh. The bones of the heel of the 
right foot were also crushed. Surgical skill saved 
his life again. The case of Mr. West forms one of 
the most remarkable instances of the surgical his- 
tory of the war. 

He was married June 22, 1867, to Maria, daughter 
of John and Grace Wilson. She was born in Hali- 
fax, Yorkshire, England. Her father was for 17 years 
the publisher of the Kane County Advertiser. 




—5- 



#~# 




Vy.eKry Ijanan, a farmer on section 4, May- 

III field Township, is a son of John and Mar- 
garet Lanan, natives of Belgium, who 
emigrated to America and settled first in Al- 
bany, N. Y., and came to Illinois in 1837, 
I locating in De Kalb County; they died in the 
township of Mayfield, in 1862, the father March 16, 
and the mother June 16. 



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Mr. Henry Lanan was also born in Belgium 
Man li 25, 182 1, C ime to this county with his parents 
and has since lived in May field Township. He 
owns 280 acres of good farming land. Politically he 
is a Democrat, and in religion he is a Catholic, as is 
also Ins wife. He was married in Chicago, 111., 
March _•.(, 1X5.1, to Anna M. Gregory, daughter of 

and Christine Gregory, natives of German} 
She was born April 26, [825, also in Germany. Mr. 
and Mrs. Lanan have five children, namel) : Martha, 
bom Jan. 28, 1856; Caroline, April 9, 1857, became 
the wife of George Tower, April n, 1876; Joseph, 
born Feb. 3, i860, married July 4, 1881, to Hattie 
Tower; Henry was horn May 11, 1868. 



r j? (i |R illiam H. Corey, farmer, section 35, 
jl^a;, Malta Township, was born in Hancock, 
Jjfe^p Berkshire Co., Mass., March 13, 1834, 
■ CS^rY Hamilton Corey, his father, was of New Eng- 
/faT 1 land birth and Scotch descent, and a farmei 
t b\ occupation and inheritance. He married 

Lydia Streeter, and a few years before their death 
they settled in Columbia Co., N. Y. The former died 
Aug. 19, 1854; the latter, April 1 8, of the same year. 
He was born April 24, 1807, and she was 1,10m Oct. 
22, 1806. 

Mr. Corey is the youngest of their four children, 
all of whom are living, as follows : Lydia I. is the old- 
est child; Julius lives at Rockford, 111.; Olive R. 
married J. E Me< 11111, and resides at Dalton, Mass. 
Mr. Corey lived with his parents until he was 18 
years of age, attending school, and two years later 
his lather died. After that event he engaged for a 
short time as a clerk in Columbia County, coming 
when he was • i years of age to Rockford, 111., where 
his brother had located Some years before. He pu'r- 
1 hased an interest in a carpenter's shop and set him- 
self about learning the use of tools. After pursuing 
the business a few years he 1 ame to South Grove 
Township and purchased 80 aires of land. It was 
chiefly in its original unbroken condition, and he 



rt* operated on the place four years, making necessary 
rt j) improvements, and ((inverting it into a good farm. 
vf In 1S67 he sold the place and purchased the farm 
(@) on which he has since operated in Malta Township, 
\^ with satisfactory results. He owns 160 acres, and is 



considered a skillful and practical farmer. He makes 
a specialty of 1 >urham cattle and Poland-China s« ine 

Mr. Cony is .1 Republii an. 

He was' fust united in marriage, Sept. 9, 1862, at 
Rockford, to Jennie ( >. Dwight. She was born near 
Springfield, Mass., and came West after reaching 
womanhood. Her death transpired April 9, 1 87 1 , 
after she became the mother of four children: 
laira, the oldest, was born July 21, 1864, and mar- 
ried George Kempson, a farmer in Malta Township. 
Mn\ I), was born Oct. 24, 1865; Kllie died when 
five months old. Henry I), was bom Nov. 12, 187 1, 
and died Feb. 12, 1882. Mr. Corey was again mar- 
ried March 10, 1876, in De Kalb, to Irene A., daugh- 

tei "i Solomon and Nancj (G lell) Hollister. The 

former was born in New York, the latter in Connecti- 
cut. They were among the early settlers in the 
township and county of De Kalb, and the father is 
now de< eased. His widow resides with a son in Da- 
kota. Mis. Corey was born Feb. 7, 1849, in De 
Kalb, and was less than two years old when she lost 
her father. She lived after that with her mother, at- 
tending school at De Kalb until she was 19 \ears of 
age, when she commenced teaching, in which she 
was engaged until her marriage. Two children are 
now included in the home circle: Jennie, bom March 
21, 1877, and Dan E., Nov. 20, 1883. Mrs. Corey 
belongs to the Baptist Church. 



fUsltaenry L. Rand, resident on section 31, South 
Grove Township, has lived in De Kalb 
County from his boyhood. He was born 
Jan. 7, 1832, in Genesee Co., N. Y., and is die 
son of Aaron and Permelia (Ainsworth) Rand, 
who were natives respei lively of Massachusetts 
and New York. The former was a farmer during 
his active business life, and came to Illinois in 1839, 
settling in St. Clair County, where the mother died 
in 1840. The father is now 95 years of age, and re- 
sides alternately in the counties of Green and 
Jasper, Iowa, with a son and daughter. He was a 
soldier of the War of 1812 and is the recipient of a 
pension. 

Mr. Rand was a member of his father's household 
until he was 26 years of age. He acquired a thor- 
ough knowledge of the vocation of his father, and 
also secured a good district-school education. In 



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1858 he made a purchase of 80 acres of land with a 
view to settling in independent life. The land was 
in its original prairie condition, and he entered ener- 
getically into the work of improvement and cultiva- 
tion. On this he resided until 1879, when he sold 
and bought a similar acreage on the same section, 
where he established a permanent home. 

The marriage of Mr. Rand to Laura A. Pritchard 
took place Nov. 20, 1857, in Franklin Township, 
Mrs. Rand was born July 9, 1833, in Plattsburg, 
State of New York, and is the daughter of Henry 
and Mary (Blackmer) Pritchard. Her parents were 
both of English descent, and were born respectively 
in Vermont and New York. Late in life they 
left their native States and settled in De Kalb 
County, where the former died, in April, 1875. The 
mother is 81 years of age (1885). Mrs. Rand pre- 
ceded her parents in her removal to Illinois and be- 
came a member of the household of her aunt, Mrs. 
Roxofna Moon, of South Grove Township, with whom 
she lived until her marriage. One of four children 
born of that event is deceased. Herbert B. is mar- 
ried and engaged in farming in South Grove Town- 
ship. Herman H. and Amie A. are unmarried. Mr. 
and Mrs. Rand are members of the Methodist Epis- 
copal Church. 




harles Newsham, farmer, section 24, Mal- 
. ta Township, was born Nov. 2, 1835, in 
il?P" *" Pittsburg, Pa. Charles Newsham, senior, 
removed his family in 1838 to a farm in Erie 
County in the same State. The latter married 
Mary Ward, a native of the city of London, 
England. The father was born and bred in York- 
shire, England, and their marriage took place after 
their removal to the United States, and they resided 
in Erie County, Pa. The mother died in November, 
1882, and the father has since married Mrs. Betsey 
(Henton) Brace. He is 77 years of age. 

Mr. Newsham is the oldest of nine children, seven 
of whom yet survive. He was bred to the occupation 
of a farmer on his father's homestead in Pennsylvania, 
and he acquired a fair common-school education. He 
was married Oct. 6, 1856, in Erie Co., Pa., to Sarah 
Barton. She was born Oct. 3, 1838, in Trenton, Onei- 
ida.Co., N. Y.,and is a daughter of Thomas P. and 




Rhoda (Calkins) Barton. In 1848 Mrs. Newsham re- 
moved with her parents to Erie Co., Pa., where both 
died after long and useful lives. Five children have 
been born to Mr. and Mrs. Newsham — May, Nellie, 
George H., Jennie V. and Kiltie D. 

After their marriage Mr. and Mrs. Newsham set 
out for the West to seek to build up a home and for- 
tune, and they first fixed their residence at Broad- 
head, Greene Co., Wis., where they engaged in farm- 
ing, operating as renters. In the winter of 1864 Mr. 
Newsham went to the oil regions of the Keystone 
State, where he was occupied two years, and during 
two years subsequent he resided in Erie County, in 
the vicinity of his father's homestead. The family 
came to Illinois in the summer of 1867 and settled 
in Milan Township, De Kalb County, where they 
continued six years, and at the end of that time re- 
turned to Pennsylvania for a year's stay at Erie City, 
after which they settled permanently in Malta Town- 
ship. Mr. Newsham is conducting the farm interests 
of Mrs. Thomas Holderness. In political connection 
he is a Republican. 



!,apt. A. Levi Wells, dealer in lumber, 

. building material, stone, coal, etc., at 

{IP" ^ Shabbona, established his present business 

h June 1, 1880, as successor to Wm. Deacon. 




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]?\ He was born in Charlotte, Chautauqua Co., N. 
Y., Sept. 16, 1836, the son of Royal and Betsey 
(Larkin) Wells, and received a common-school edu- 
cation. He engaged in clerking until 1857, when he 
came to Albany, Whiteside Co., 111., and one year 
afterward removed to Kaneville, Kane Co., 111., con- 
tinuing in the same business. 

He enlisted in the cause of the Government Sept. 
18, 1 86 1, in the Eighth 111. Vol. Cav., Co. I, and on 
its organization was appointed Corporal. In Decem- 
ber following he was elected First Sergeant, served 
as such till Sept. 1, 1862, when he was commissioned 
First Lieutenant, and April 3,1863, was commissioned 
Captain of Co. I, above referred to, his commission 
to date back to Aug. 29, 1S62. In this capacity he 
served till Sept. 27, 1864. He was wounded at the 
battle of Falling Waters, July 14, 1863, by a 
gunshot in the left breast, the ball passing around 
to the shoulder blade and thence outward. Capt. 
Wells was in 85 different engagements in all, in- 



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DE KALB COUNTY. 



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eluding all those in which the Army of the Potomac 
participated up to December, 1S64. 

Alter his return from the war. in the spring of 1 866, 
he settled in the town of Mil. in, De Kalb County, 
ami engaged in farming. Continuing in that busi- 
ness until March 1 S 7 8 , he removed to Shabbona vil- 
. formed a partnership with S. G. Gilbert in the 
grocery trade, and followed that business until June, 
1880, when he entered upon his present business, in 
which he is prospering. 

He was Supervisor of Milan Township four years, 
Township School Treasurer eight years. In his 
views of national policy he is a Republican. 

Mr. Wells was married at Kaneville, 111., Sept. 7, 
1S63, to Miss Nancy C. Fink, daughter of J. A. and 
Nancy B. (Norris) Fink. She is a native of Onondaga 
Co . V Y. Mr. and Mrs. Wells have five children, 
namely, Rille M., Jessie M., Clarence N., Marion H. 
and Lizzie. 

The publishers of this Album take pleasure in 
presenting to the public a fine lithographic portrait 
of the subject of the foregoing brief biographical 
sketch, upon a page in proximity. 



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,1 manufacturers 

Ff5 J ^4 




O.harles Whitney, one of the inventors and 
of the Marsh-Whitney 
Platform Binders, resident at Sycamore, 
was bom Jan. 30, 1834, in Almond, Alle- 
gany Co., N. Y., and is the son of David and 
Margaret (Karr) Whitney. The former was 
born March 4, 1796, in Chittenden Co., Vt., was a 
farmer by vocation and became a resident of Alle- 
gan) Co., N. Y., in 1814. He married and contin- 
ued a resident of that county until his removal in 
the fall of 1836 to Ohio. He went later to Roches- 
ter, Minn., and eventually to Carthage, Jasper Co., 
Mo., where he died, in the fall of 1876. The mother 
is a native of the Mohawk Valley in the Empire 
State, and was born in the year 1800. She is still 
living, in Allegany County. They had eight chil- 
dren, five of whom are deceased: Matilda is the 
wife of H. O. Nearing, a farmer of Delta, Ohio. Car- 
oline is the widow of Oscar Snyder, formerly a farmer 
of Massillon, Ohio. 

Mr. Whitney was brought up on his father's farm 
until he was 18, when he went to California, then in 



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the height of its notoriety as the Golden State, and 
offering a wonderful field of successful operation to 
such as sought its opportunities in cool, well balanced 
judgment, instead of being impelled by the spirit of 
adventure which so frequently gives a false impetus 
toward unexplored and undeveloped regions. Mr. 
Whitney made his way to the El Dorado of the 
Pacific coast under the guidance of the former im- 
pulse, and operated in the gold fields nearly three 
years, meeting with a reasonable degree of success. 
Early in 1855 he returned to the Buckeye State, and 
was married on the 25th of March of the same year, 
at Waterville, Lucas County, to Orilla Paine. Soon 
after that event Mr. and Mrs. Whitney located at 
Rochester, Minn., where three sons were born to 
them: George was born March 25, 1856. Fred 
was born Oct. 7, 1857, and died July 5, 188 r, at 
Sycamore. Frank was born April 7, i860. Mrs. 
Whitney was born May 20, 1834, in Huron Co., 
Ohio, and is the daughter of Henry A. and Esther 
(Middleton) Paine. 

On his removal to Minnesota, Mr. Whitney pre- 
empted a claim of 160 acres of prairie, and not long 
afterward, associated with Z. J. Cowles, he engaged 
in the manufacture and sale of furniture, in which he 
continued to operate until 1869. Mr. Whitney pos- 
sesses keen powers of observation, and a mental 
organism of a reflective character, coupled with in- 
ventive genius of a practical type; and the feasibility 
of ill kinds of agricultural machinery in prairie farm- 
ing was with him a foregone conclusion from the 
beginning of enterprise in that direction. In 1869 
he sold his interest in the traffic in k which he had 
been engaged for 14 years, and, in company with his 
brother John, gave scope to the bent of his inventive 
proclivities in manufacturing and experimenting with 
platform binders. They pursued their operations in 
Minnesota until 1871, with varying success, and in 
that year went to St. Louis, Mo., and continued their 
business in that line several years, their joint opera- 
tions being terminated in the spring of 1876 by the 
death of John Whitney. 

Charles Whitney came to Sycamore in 1877, and 
became interested in perfecting and manufacturing 
the Marsh-Whitney platform binder. The machine 
in its completeness was first put into market in 1S82, 
and was received with all the favor it merited. Its 
popularity grew and sales multiplied in proportion 

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until [une, 1884, when the manufacturers were com- 
pelled to suspend operations by the collapse of other 
business houses of heavy capital witli which they 
were connected. 

Mr. Whitney has patented several principles con- 
nected with his inventions, which he is engaged in 
introducing to manufacturers, who are recognizing 
the merits, and becoming interested in the con- 
struction, of the machines. 



m eorge Chapel, farmer and stock-raiser, sec- 
tion 22, Malta Township, was born in 
"l£J|}~ K Washington Township, Berkshire Co., 
fyf* Mass., Oct. 6, 1829. Joseph Chapel, his fa- 
ther, was a native of the same township and 
I a farmer by occupation, and his father, Jona- 
) than Chapel, was born in Connecticut and also fol- 
;» lowed the vocation of a farmer. 

The Chapel family were of English extraction and 
early settlers in this country. Jonathan, grand- 
father of our subject, was a soldier in the war of 
1812, and Mr. Chapel of this notice still retains in 
itt his family, as a memento of those " trying days," the 






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old musket his grandfather used. The grandfather 
died in Berkshire Co., Mass., at an advanced age. 

The father of Mr. Chapel came West in 1868 and 
lived with his children until the date of his death, 
which occurred at the residence of his daughter, Mrs. 
E. A. Watkins, in Malta, May 13, 1874. The mother 
and grandmother of Mr. Chapel were both natives of 
New York. The latter died in Berkshire Co., Mass., 
about 1847, at an advanced age, and the mother, 
Amanda (Chapel) Chapel, also died in that county, 
in 1880, aged 79 years. 

George Chapel lived at home, and assisted the 
father in the cultivation of the farm and attending 
the common schools, until he attained the age of 22 
years. At this period in his life, Mr. Chapel was 
united in marriage. That event occurred at Lebanon 
Springs, Columbia Co., N. Y., Aug. 26, 1852, and the 
life companion he chose was Miss Mary E. Watkins. 
She was a daughter of Millen and Barbara (Arm- 
strong) Watkins, natives of Massachusetts and Scot- 
land, respectively. Her grandfather and grandmother, 
Zack and Olive (Brown) Watkins, were natives of 
Massachusetts, of English extraction, and died in 



Berkshire Co., that State, the former in ^52 and the 
latter in 1874, aged respectively 73 and 92 years. 

The parents of Mrs. Chapel came to this county 
in 1858 and located in Malta Township, where her 
father died in September, 1867, and her mother in 
September, 1874, aged 68 and 83 years respectively. 
Mrs. Chapel remained a member of her father's fam- 
ily until the date of her marriage. 

After marriage Mr. Chapel lived in his native State 
and county until the year 1858, when he came to 
this county and located in South Grove Township. 
He remained on that farm six years, until 1864, 
when he moved to Malta Township and purchased 
186 acres of land approximate to the village of Malta. 
The land was only partially improved at the time he 
made his purchase, but he has since improved the 
entire tract and has the same under a good state of 
cultivation. 

Mr. and Mrs. Chapel are the parents of five chil- 
dren, one of whom is deceased. The living are 
Emma A., born March 16, 1856, and married David 
Radcliff, Dec. 12, 1875, at Malta; Will D., born 
Dec. 3, 1858, married Miss Iola Chandler, Dec. 1, 
r 87 8, and resides on the homestead; Barbara, born 
July 24, 1863, resides with her parents; and George 
E., born July 26, 1869, also resides on the farm. 

Mr. and Mrs. Chapel are members of the Congre- 
gational Church, of which Mr. Chapel is a Trustee 
and Deacon. 

Politically, Mr. Chapel is a Republican. He has 
been Assessor of his township for 10 years, and is at 
present acting in that capacity. 



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t iles M. Alexander, general merchant at 

Shabbona, was born in Paris, Oneida Co., 

He 




N. Y., July 15, 1323. He is a son of 
Henry and Betsy (Gallup) Alexander, who 
soon after the birth of their son moved to 
Herkimer County, that State, and settled on a 
farm. Mr. Alexander, of this sketch, was brought 
up on his father's farm in Herkimer County. His 
years of minority were passed in farm labor and in 
attendance at the common schools. In the fall of 
1845, m Herkimer County, he was married to Miss 
Eve, daughter of Dennis and Elizabeth Clapsaddle. 
She was born in Herkimer County, N. Y., May 28. 



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1822. Two children were the issue of their union, 
namely : Elizabeth ('., wife of M. V. Allen, of 
Shabbona, and Eva M., wife, of W. \V. Bouslough, 

residing at Shabbona. Mrs. Alexander died in the 
fall of 1 85 8. 

In the spring of 1854 Mr. Alexander, with his 
family, tame to this county and located on section 
34, Shabbona Township. He entered at once on the 
improvements and cultivation of his land and con- 
tinued to reside on it until 1875. In the spring of 
that year he moved to Shabbona village and engaged 
in the drug business. Two years later, sold his busi- 
ness to ('apt. M. V. Allen, and in October, 1878, en- 
gaged in the mercantile business which he has con- 
tinued to the present time. He carries a full line of 
general merchandise and is conducting a growing 
and prosperous business. 

Mr. Alexander contracted a second marriage in 
Herkimer County, N. Y., in October, 1859, the lady 
chosen for his wife being a Miss Maryett, daughter of 
Lawrence and Margaret (Hess) Clapsaddle. 

Politic ally, Mr. Alexander is a Republican. He 
has held various public- offices, was Supervisor of 
Shabbona Township two years and Justice of the 
Peace 1 1 years, and is at present holding the latter 
office. He is one of the oldest Masons in this vi- 
cinity and was prominently instrumental in establish- 
ing Shabbona Lodge, No. 374, and was elected its 
first Master after the charter was organized. 



3 » if ■ * < £ 




illiam D. Seeley, mechanic and retired 
farmer on section 3, Franklin Township, 
' was born Nov. 18, 1816, in Easton Town- 
ship, Bristol Co., Mass. He was brought 
up to the vocation of a farmer, and on attain- 
ing his majority he found himself with the dis- 
posal of his future on his hands. Mr. Seeley came 
to Boone Co., 111., in 1851. He became the owner 
of 60 acres of land in that county, where he pursued 
agriculture with success and profit. In 1870 he sold 
the place and located where he has since resided and 
where he owns 18 acres of land. On making sale of 
his land in Boone County he put the money at inter- 
est, and the accumulated sum is now a practical 
competency for a man of moderate requirements. He 
lives in solitude, engaged at times in farming and 



working also as a blacksmith and carpenter. He is 
a natural mechanic, with an aptitude for the use of 
tools which was not acquired under the directions or 
guidance of a craftsman, lie enjoys his solitary cir- 
cumstances, and he has been an expert in flute-play- 
ing, but is now deprived of the pleasure of his favor- 
ite recreation, having received an injury to one of his 
hands which resulted in necrosis of the bone, neces- 
sitating amputation of his arm below the elbow. His 
natural ingenuity is manifest from the fact that he is 
still a skillful workman as a mechanic. 

He was married in early manhood, but circum- 
stances compelled a separation from his wife. They 
had two children, — Sarah F. and William IL, — who 
remained in the State of New York. 



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.J.arlos Lattin, deceased, a former pioneer 
■3 of De Kalb County, was born May 30, 



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1813, iii Reading, Conn., of which State his 
parents, Abner and Sarah Lattin, were both 
natives. The family removed to the State of 
New York in 1815 and settled in that part of 
Chemung County now included in Schuyler County, 
where Mr. Lattin grew to manhood and was reared 
on a farm. His parents had six children, and when 
he was nine years of age he became an inmate of the 
family of Jesse Lyon, under whose charge he contin- 
ued until 1834. In that year he came to Illinois, 
going at first to the southern part of the State. He 
came to De Kalb County in the spring of 1835 and 
took possession of a claim including the west part of 
the present site of Sycamore. When the land came 
into market, Mr. Lattin, with other settlers in De 
Kalb County, went to Chicago and entered a claim 
to 160 acres of land, now within the city limits. He 
built a log house in Sycamore, on Main Street, near 
the present location of the National Bank. This was 
his home for ten years. He next erected a brick 
house on High Street, which he occupied ten years. 
His next residence was a large frame house, which 
he built on the corner of Somonauk and High Streets. 
Mr. Lattin was a resident of Sycamore 41 years, and 
was a witness of, and a participant in, its career of 
splendid progress. He was atmember of the Metho- 
dist Church, and a most zealous supporter of the 
society at Sycamore. He donated the land now oc- 



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cupied by the church edifice and the two parsonages, 
besides a great deal of money. He gave $1,000 to- 
ward the present church. He was one of its first 
members, and when the first church was built he and 
Joseph Sixbury, as Trustees, assumed the heavy in- 
debtedness, of which he afterwards paid $500. 

In the days of his early political belief he was a 
Whig, but on the organization of the Republican 
party he adopted its principles and issues. The first 
political meeting at Sycamore was held at the home 
of Mr. Lattin. He was one of the first instigators of 
the movement which established the county seat at 
Sycamore. He was engaged for a number of years 
in traffic in grain and lumber, his farm being leased. 
His death took place at Sycamore, April, 20, 1876. 

Mr. Lattin was married Sept. 5, 1839, to Nancy, 
daughter of James and Ruth (Pierce) Cartwright. 
She was born Aug. 9, 1820, in the town of Perinton, 
Monroe Co., N. Y. Mr. and Mrs. Lattin became 
the parents of seven children, — Jesse L., Ellen D., 
John W., Carlos Orlando, Marion Ella, Charles W. 
and Sadie A. All are deceased but the two youngest. 

Charles W. was born March 6, 1855. He was 
educated in the public schools of Sycamore, and in 
the Gem City College, where he was graduated in 
1873. He was married Oct. 10, 1883, to Emily E. t 
daughter of George E. and Christina (Young) Stafford, 
born in the township of Cortland. C. W. is the own- 
er of 190 acres of finely improved land situated on 
sections 30 and 31, formerly the property of his father. 
The youngest child— Sadie A. — married Frank E. 
Stephens, a banker and attorney at Huron, Dak. 




tional course, he taught school one term, and then 
came to Hinckley and purchased a third interest in 
the Review and remained in company with Tomblin 
Brothers, the former proprietors, from May, 1880, to 
May, 1882, when he became sole proprietor by pur- 
chase and has since conducted the paper alone. 
Politically he is a Republican. 

He was married Sept. 24, 1884, in Hinckley, to 
Nellie, daughter of William M. and Rosetta Sebree. 
(See sketch of W. M. Sebree.) Mrs. Fay was born 
in Squaw Grove Township, Dec. 21, 1864. 

The grandfather of Mr. Fay, Horace W. Fay, was 
a civil engineer on the Illinois & Michigan Canal 
and an early surveyor of De Kalb County, laying out 
nearly the entire county. He became prominent in 
public affairs and was a member of the Legislature 
of Illinois from 1848 to 1850. He died at Vicks- 
burg, Miss., during the course of the Civil War, 
while officiating as an army chaplain. H. W. Fay 
has been Village Clerk of Hinckley, since 1881, and 
Town Clerk of Squaw Grove Township since 1882. 

Mr. Fay is the youngest editor in De Kalb County. 
He is a young man of versatile talents, has a decided 
predilection for a literary career and is an accom- 
plished draughtsman, showing some fine specimens 
from his pencil. He possesses a fine discriminating 
taste in artistic matters. 



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Herbert W. Fay, editor of the Hinckley 
\Reinew and of the Waterman Leader, was 
born Feb. 28, 1859, in Squaw Grove Town- 
ship, and is the son of Edwin and Ann (Hay- 
wood) Fay, the former a native of New York, 
the latter of Maine. His father settled in De Kalb 
County in 1849, on a soldier's land warrant obtained 
for services in the Mexican War. The mother died 
Nov. 11, 1884. The father resides in the township 
of Squaw Grove. 

Mr. Fay obtained his primary education in the 
common schools, and was a student four years at the 
college at Monmouth. After completing his educa- 



*@§^OTzr»\~ -w~^ 



"ames L. Hamilton, farmer and stock-raiser, 

A section n, Malta Township, was born 
in Delaware Co., N. Y., Dec. 1, 1844. The 
grandfather of James L., Robert Hamilton, 
was a native of Glasgow, Scotland, and emi- 
grated to America, settling in Delaware Co., 
N. Y., about the year 1800. He was one of the first 
to settle in that county and was a soldier in the war 
of 1 81 2. He died on the old homestead on which 
he originally settled. 

John Hamilton, father of James L., was born on 
the homestead of his father, Robert, assisted him on 
the farm and remained thereon, developing into 
manhood. He married Miss Mary Scott, a native 
of New York and of Scotch extraction. She was his 
faithful and loving companion until February, 1861, 
when death called her to a better home. They were 
the parents of four children, namely: James I,., 




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Robert S., Mary J. and William C. William C. died 
at Albany in 1873, aged -'.) years. Robert is living 
with lames L. on his farm on section 11, Malta 
Township. Mary J. is married and lives on the old 
homestead in Delaware Co., N. Y. 

lames I,. Hamilton, the subject of this notice, was 
brought up on the old homestead in Delaware Co., 
N. Y. He remained on the farm assisting his father 
in its cultivation and attendingthe village school at 
Andes, that county, until he attained the age of ma- 
turity. On arriving at this age he went forth to bat- 
tle against the trials and difficulties of life's journey, 
single-handed and alone. He came to this county 
and remained for a year at the village of Malta 
when, in 1870, he and his brother purchased 120 
acres of land in Malta Township, He then went to 
Iowa where he remained nearly a year. From Iowa 
he came to Chicago, thence back to Malta. Re- 
, maining in the latter 'place one summer, he went 
east to the old homestead again. His next move 
was to Albany, N. Y., where he engaged with 
Messrs. Wilcox & Gibbs, in the sewing-machine 
business, and with whom he remained for three 
years. Severing his connection with the "Wilcox & 
Gibbs," he engaged with the Domestic Co., and dur- 
ing a greater portion of his time was engaged in their 
office. After leaving the latter company he traveled 
for the Burlington Cork Co., New York. His deal- 
ing was with wholesale houses throughout the East- 
ern and Western States. Remaining in the employ 
of the company for about a year, he severed his con- 
nection and again came to this county. 

On arriving in the county, he ■ at once purchased 
his brother's interest in the land they had jointly 
owned in Malta Township, which he traded for 120 
acres on section n. He has since added, by a sub- 
sequent purchase, another 120 acres to his landed 
possessions and is at present the owner of 240 acres. 
I lis entire ai reage is in a good state of cultivation, ex- 
cluding pasturage, and well stocked. His time and 
resources are divided between cereal production arid 
stock-raising, and of the latter he is [a considerable 
shipper. 

Mr. Hamilton was married at Chatham. Columbia 
Co., N. Y., Feb. 10, 1873, to Miss Hattie A. Spicker- 
man, daughter of John V. and Mary (Rowley) Spick- 
erman, a nativeofNew York and of German des< int. 
Her father was a horse dealer and trader. He died 



at Oak l'ark, 111., on his way home from St. I 
Mo., where he had been to dispose of a shipment of 
horses. Her mother died in York State when Mrs. 
11. was only 18 months old. 

Mrs. H. was the youngest of a family of four chil- 
dren, was born in 1855, and after the death of her 
mother lived with her grandfather. She remained 
in his family, attending the common schools and as- 
sisting in the household duties, until her marriage. 

Four children are the issue of the marriage, name- 
ly: John C, born Nov. 7, 1874; Mary G, born 
May 28, 1876; Alma B., born Dec. 11, 1879; and 
Hattie L., April 29, 187-. 

The family attend the Congregational Church, of 
which Mrs. H. is a member. 

Mr. Hamilton, politically, is a Republican. He 
has been chosen delegate to the County Convention, 
has been Township Collector and held other minor 
offices. 



— wS»^@v H 




'VTMi illiam Dowling Atchison, Pastor of the 
,' li^lS^ Methodist Episcopal Church at Sycamore, 
JE&&-J * was born Feb. 19, 1832, at West Salem, 
f|S><i' Mercer Co., Pa., and is the son of Matthew 
A\Y^ Calvin and Mary (Dowling) Atchison. His 
parents were of Scotch descent and were both 
natives of Pennsylvania. His father was a land- 
holder and combined agricultural pursuits with the 
duties of a carpenter and millwright. He died when 
his son was live years of age. He and his wife were 
devoted members of the United Presbyterian Church, 
the sect formerly known as Scotch Seceders. They 
had five sons and four daughters. After the death 
of the father and husband, the children were kept to- 
gether and brought up with care by their mother. 

Mr. Atchison was brought up on the farm and 
attended the district school until he was 18 years of 
age. He joined the Church of which his parents had 
been zealous members, when he was r6 years of age. 
At the age of 18 years he began his career as a pub- 
lic lecturer, speaking on the subject of temperance 
reform and giving Bible readings. He attended 
school, taught school and studied classics with pri- 
vate tutors. He also studied languages at Beloit 
College, Wisconsin. 

In 1854 he joined the Methodist Episcopal Church 



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at Mt. Pleasant, near Galena, III., and at the same 
time was licensed to preach. In 1858 he was or- 
dained an Elder at Waukegan, 111., and has been 
constantly in the ministry since that date. In 1859 
he was appointed to Belvidere, 111. In 1864 he was 
made Chaplain of the 45th Regt. 111. Vol. Inf., and 
accompanied the Army of the Tennessee through 
Georgia and the Carolinas to Washington. He was 
mustered out of the service in July, 1865, at Louis- 
ville, Ky. His ministerial appointments since that 
date have been Elgin, Kankakee, Aurora, Oak Park, 
Waukegan, Sterling and Princeton, where he officiated 
three years respectively except at Oak Park, where 
he preached one year. In 1864 he assumed pastoral 
charge of the Methodist Episcopal society at Syca- 
more. 

Mr. Atchison was married Jan. 4, 1855, to H. Jen- 
nie, daughter of John and Martha (Bennett) Cook. 
Her parents were born in England, and she is a na- 
tive of Elizabeth, Jo Daviess Co., 111. Mr. and Mrs. 
Atchison have six children, viz.: John E. is a lumber 
merchant at Scandia, Kan.; Wilbur F. is officiating as 
Pastor of the Methodist Episcopal Church at Des 
Plaines, 111.; Hugh is a student at the Northwestern 
University at Evanston, 111.; Florence J., George B. 
and Robert H. are the names of the youngest chil- 
dren, and they are at home. 



-<~2- 



-S~>- 




nos Whitmore, deceased, a pioneer of De 
Kalb County, was born Nov. 27, 1805, in 
Weathersfield, Windsor Co., Vt., and he 
5S. there passed the years of his minority, acquiring 
1 a common-school education and a knowledge of 
J agricultural pursuits. He also passed some time 
in a woolen factory in his native town, of which he 
was proprietor. He was married April 7, 1836, 
to Celina Reed. She was born at Windsor, Windsor 
Co., Vt., Nov. 23, 1815. Five years subsequent to 
their marriage they went from Weathersfield to Pom- 
fret and located on a farm. The place was sold in 
1847 and the family removed to De Kalb County, 
coming by canal and steamboat on the lakes to Chi- 
cago, whence they traveled to their destination in a 
private conveyance. Mr. Whitmore purchased 160 
acres of unimproved land on section 35, Mayfield 
Township, where he built a good frame house and 




at once set about improving his estate. He lived 
to see De Kalb County rank in development with 
the best counties in Illinois, and was a factor in its 
progress. His death occurred May 1, 1877. His 
first wife died Aug. 16, 186 1. He was married in 
1867, to Lovonia Skeels, who died Dec. 1, 1876. Fol- 
lowing is the record of their children : Louisa mar- 
ried A. G. Weeden (see sketch). Howard resides in 
Mayfield. Harrison is a lawyer and lives in Frank- 
lin Co., Neb. ; Harry O. is a farmer in Mayfield; Lavi- 
na was born March 21, 1858, and died Feb. 6, 1861. 




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^jf|n|>an. F. Poai 
t'mMf> in Malta, 



Peas, merchant and farmer, residing 
, ... ^alta, was born in Middlefield, Hamp- 
shire Co., Mass., Dec. 30, 1826. His 
jgiv father, Dan. Peas, Sr., was also a native ot 
^ that State and was born in the same town. He 
* was of New England parentage, a farmer by oc- 
cupation and resided in his native county until the 
date of his death, July 8, 1883, at which time he had 
attained the venerable age of 81 years. The mother 
of our subject, Mary (Root) Peas, was a native of the 
same State and county as her husband and son, and 
there resided until her death, which occurred July 12, 
1872. 

Dan. F. Peas was the oldest of seven children 

1 

four boys and three girls, all of whom are living. He 
lived on the homestead, in Massachusetts, assisting 
in the cultivation of the farm and attending the com- 
mon schools until he arrived at the age of maturity. 

On arriving at man's estate, Mr. Peas purchased 
a farm in his native county, which he successfully- 
cultivated for about six years and worked out five 
years, or until he arrived at the age of 32 years, 
when he came to this county. He purchased a farm 
of 40 acres in Malta Township, which he added to 
and sold from at subsequent purchases and sales, 
owning at times some 700 acres in the county. He 
is at present the owner of 80 acres of land in a good 
state of cultivation. 

In the spring of 1867 Mr. Peas moved to the vil- 
lage of Malta. He there engaged in the general 
mercantile business, in 1873, in a store room he had 
previously purchased. His stock averages about 
$5,000 and his annual trade amounts to $20,000. 
He has also three houses and lots in the village. 

Mr. Peas was united in marriage Aug. 7, i860, to 



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Miss Rachel Burgess in the village of Malta. She 
was born in Buffalo, Erie Co., N. Y., May iS, 1836. 
Her parents were natives of France and emigrated to 
Canada Her father died at Genoa, this county, 
in [873, and her mother is still living, with her son 
at Genoa. 

Mrs. Peas came to this State with her parents 
when she was about eight years of age, and lived 
with them in Genoa Township, this county, attend- 
ing the common schools and assisting in the house- 
hold duties, until she attained the age of maturity. 
She is the mother of 1 [ children by Mr. Peas, four of 
whom are deceased. The living are: Julia, wife of 
H. H. Morris, editor of the Rochelle H,i -ald\ Jennie, 
Frank, Charles, Nettie, Emma and Henry. All the 
children received the advantages of a good educa- 
tion and Henry is exceptionally learned in mathe- 
matics. 

Mr. Peas has been honored with the offices of 
Supervisor and Collector, and has been Justice of 
the Peace for some years. Politically, he is a staunch, 
active and energetic Republican. 




ilbert A. Maxfield, of Sycamore, was born 
May 17, 1828, in Crawford Co., Ohio. His 
father, John Maxfield, was born in Fair- 
fax, Vt., in 1791, and removed to Crawford Co., 
Ohio, where he was married Nov. 27, 18 [6, to 
i Anna Pond, who was also a native of the Green 
Mountain State. 

He was a pioneer of Crawford County, where he 
settled after marriage on a tract of timbered land 
which he bought of the Government. With his wife 
he took possession of a log house which he built on 
his farm and entered with energy upon the work of 
clearing away the forest. In 1837 he sold his prop- 
erty in the Buckeye State, and, equipped with five 
yokes of oxen, two wagons, a horse and carriage and 
the household goods, the family came to De Kalb 
§\ County, camping at night while on their way hither. 
On arrival Mr. Maxfield, senior, made a claim on 
a section 16, in town 41, range 5 east, which is now 
Sycamore Township. The family lived in tents and 
in wagons until a log house was built for their ac- 
commodation. The doors were constructed of lum- 
ber which was purchased in Chicago when they 




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passed through that city. For a number of years the 
nearest market and place of supplies was Chicago. 
A large farm in< hiding nearly 400 acres was placed 
under excellent improvements by the father, on which 
he resided until a short time previous to his death, 
which occurred May 25, 1875. The mother died 
June 27, 1878. 

They had five children, and the subject of this 
sketch is the only one now living. William Munson, 
the eldest son, was born Dec. 5, 1817. He accom- 
panied his parents to De Kalb County, and entered 
a ilaiin adjoining that of his father on the east. 
When it came into market in January, 1843, they 
went together to Chicago and secured their Govern- 
ment title. He went back to Ohio in 1846 and on 
the 6th of October was married to Caroline Plummer. 
He returned to his land on which he lived until he 
improved the property in a creditable manner, re- 
moving thence to Sycamore. He died June 27, 1872, 
in Odin, Marion County, where his widow now re- 
side s. He left two children — Lymna 0. and Forrest. 
James M., the second child, was born in Ohio in 
1820 and died there in 1823. John Nelson was born 
Sept. 5, 1824. He was married June 1, 1847, to 
Mary A. Crocker, and settled on the homestead, his 
parents becoming members of his household. His 
wife died April 22, 1867, leaving three children — 
Carlos M., Frank A. and Mary V. He was married 
a second time in Ohio, to Rebecca Hosford and they 
had one child — Flora Belle. He died Jan. 23, 1873, 
and the widowed mother resides in Galion, Ohio. 
Carlos K., youngest brother of Mr. Maxfield, was born 
in 1S33 and died in 1847. 

The senior Maxfield divided his property in 1854 
between his three children then living, and after the 
death of his son, John Nelson, he lived with his remain- 
ing son until his death. In his political belief and con- 
nection he was originally a Whig, and on the expira- 
tion of the issues of that element became a member 
of the Free-Soil party and later a Republican. The 
first Abolition meeting held in this county convened 
at his home. The candidate of the Free-Soil ele- 
ment for Representative in the State Legislature who 
was then in the field received only seven votes in 
Syc amore. 

Mr. Maxfield was nine years of age when he ac- 
companied his parents to De Kalb County, and he 
attained to man's estate on his father's farm, obtain- 

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ing such education as he could in the pioneer schools. 
Jan. ro, 1850, in company with two others, he started 
for California by way of New Orleans. They crossed 
the Isthmus on the river Chagres in a bark canoe, up 
the river by boat to Cruces, thence to Panama on 
foot, and to San Francisco in a sail vessel called 
"Glenmore " (which name he afterward gave to his 
oldest son). lie returned home in the latter part of 
the winter of 1S5 1. 

His marriage to S. Eleanor Crocker occurred Dec. 
14, 1S52, and they settled on a portion of the home- 
stead estate. Five children have been born to them 
— Frederick G., Anna M. and George G., and two 
who died in infancy. Mrs. Maxfield was born July 
21, 1832, in the State of New York. 

The family resided on the farm until 1870, when 
he bought a residence at Sycamore, whither he re- 
moved. He rents a portion of his farm which in- 
cludes the original claim, and the remainder is under 
his own control and operated by hired assistants. 
Mr. and Mrs. Maxfield were among the earliest 
members of the Methodist Episcopal Church. Mr. 
Maxfield, having been a Republican since the party 
was organized, was one of 20 who cast their votes for 
prohibition in the town of Sycamore in 1884, out of 
900 votes cast. 



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hilip I. Cromwell, M. D., homeopathic 
%rM physician at De Kalb, was born July 12, 
t^I-!^C 1848, at Queensbury, Warren Co., N. Y. 



>j His parents, James and Sarah C. (Bradshaw) 



Cromwell, were born in the same State, where 
the latter is still resident. His father was a 
physician and practiced medicine more than 40 
years, dying at Lake George, N. Y., Dec. 5, 1876. 
Their children were born in the following order : 
Ellen B., Edward A. (killed in the second battle of 
Bull Run), John B., Philip I., James J. and Mary E. 
When Dr. Cromwell was eight years of age he 
went to live with an uncle in Otsego County in his 
native State, where he remained three years. At the 
end of that time he returned to his parents and 
passed the next five years as an assistant on his 
father's farm and in attendance at school as his health 
permitted, unremitted study being inadmissible from 
a tendency to an invalid condition. At the age of 





16 years he attended the academy at Glens Falls, 
studying there about a year, and going thence to Gil- 
more 's private school at Ballston Springs in his native 
State. His attendance there was interrupted at the 
end of two months by the destruction of the building 
by fire. In the fall following he entered the Medical 
College at Albany and attended one term of lectures. 
He went to the University of New York, where he 
gave his attention to medical instruction during a 
similar period, after which, his health again becom- 
ing precarious, he sought relaxation from mental la- 
bor and recuperation of physical powers in a mackerel 
fishing expedition, on which he was absent some 
weeks. After a few months interim he again re- 
sumed attendance upon the lecture course at Albany, 
and four months later began his career as a medical 
practitioner at Patten's Mills, N. Y., operating there 
several months and returning to Albany for his de- 
gree and credentials, which he received in December, 
1870. He obtained the appointment of resident 
physician in the Albany City Dispensary, in which 
position he officiated eight months. He went thence 
to Salem, Washington Co., N. Y., where he estab- 
lished himself in the practice of his profession. He 
was not satisfied with the' location, and after a trial 
of four months he proceeded to Cleveland, Oswego 
Co., N. Y., where he embarked in the twofold duties 
of druggist and physician. He prosecuted his busi- 
ness there until July, 1S73, when he came to Chi- 
cago, and soon after to De Kalb, where he has since 
continued the career of a practitioner of homeopathy 
without intermission, and is the only representative of 
that school of medicine at that place. 

Dr. Cromwell is a Republican in political views 
and connections. He belongs to Lodge No. 155, I. 
O. O. F. 

He was married at Cleveland, N. Y., Nov. 5, 1874, 
to Kate, daughter of Christopher and Sybil Halle- 
ghan. The latter was born in Maine, the former in 
Ireland. Mrs. Cromwell was born in Oswego Co., 
N. Y., in 1854. Following is the record of the chil- 
dren born to Dr. and Mrs. Cromwell : Edward G. 
was born July 19, 1876; Harry D. was born Jan. 15, 
1880; Clinton B., June 22, 1882; George G., Aug. 
2, 1884. A daughter died when four months old. 

As one of the prominent and representative pro- 
fessional men of the county, we give Dr. Cromwell's 
portrait in this Album and opposite to this sketch. 



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artin C. Dedrick, farrder and general 
-raiser, residing on se< tion m. Malta 
Township, was born in Ghent, Columbia 
Co., X. V., April 26, 1824. His father, 
Christian Dedrick, was born in the same State 
and on the same farm as his sun. In fact, the 
farm on which the father and son were born had 
been in possession of the Dedricks for three genera- 
tions. Christian Dedrick, the great-grandfather of the 
father "four subject, pre-empted it, and it is at pres- 
ent in the hands of Henry Dedrick, a brother of our 
subject. The family were originally from Holland. 
The father of Martin -C. died on the homestead in 
1833, .11 the age of 60 years, when Martin was 14 
years old. His mother, Hannah (Bener) Dedrick, 
was a native of New York, < if Holland extraction 
and died in her native State, about 1839, aged 63 
M mi 5. Shi was the mother of four children, Martin, 
Henry, Phillip and Eliza. The last two are ' de- 
ceased. Sixteen years elapsed between the birth of 
the two oldest and the two. youngest, and Martin C. 
is the youngest of the four. 

He lived at home, assisted his father on the farm 
and attended the common schools until the death 
of his father. At this point in his life's history, 
when 14 years of age, he started on his journey 
alone. He engaged with a Mr. Stickles to learn the 
bool nid shoe making trade, with whom he remained 
for three years. Discovering that his health was 
failing, he left the shop and returned to the home- 
stead, and he and his brother worked the same for 
five years in partnership, at which time Martin sold 
his interest to his brother and engaged in tbe grocery 
business at Kinderhook. He remained at the latter 
place, successfully prosecuting the business stated. 
for 1 2 years. 

In 1S57 Mr. Dedrick tame to this county and 
purchased 160 acres of land, which he has made his 
home until the present time. After making some 
improvements on his land, in i860, Mr. Dedrick re- 
turned to his native State after his family and 
brought them to his new home in the West. He has 
since added 80 acres, by subsequent purchase, to his 
original tract, and is now the owner of 240 acres. 
His farm is a gocd one, the land being productive, 

^^ — ^^m 



with no waste, and all under a high state of cultiva- 
tion. He has a line and coolly residence, and his 
barn and out-buildings are emblematical of good 
1 1 i'- .ind prosperity. 

Mr. Dedrick is certainly one of the representative 
men of the county. He is a man of popularity, as 
evinced l>\ his constituents electing him for 17 years 
as their Supervisor, in which capacity he is at present 
serving. He was also Assessor of his township and 
threi limes assessed the same, [n fact, every year 
(except the first) since 1857, the year became to the 
county, Mr. Dedrick lias held some office. Politically 
lie is an active, energetic working Republican. 

May 14, 1S49, Mr. Dedrick was united in marriage 
tn Miss Elizabeth Fowler, daughter of Delaware and 
Poll) (Head) Fowler, natives of New York. She 
was born at Kinderhook, Columbia Co., N. Y., March 
24, 1823. Her father followed the occupation of a 
farmer and the daughter remained under their care, 
on the farm, assisting her mother in the household 
duties and attending the common schools until her 
marriage. She is the mother by Mr. Dedrick of four 
children, born as follows: Freeling H., born March 
26, 1850, was married Sept. 20, 1882, to Miss Sarah 
Modeland, ami at present resides at Glidden, Carroll 
Co., Iowa. Adelphia, born Dec. 25, 1852; Anna 
Stella, born Jan. 29, 1856; and Charles H., born 
Oct. 24, 1858. 



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jtiram Holeomb, of Sycamore Township, 
ind President of the De Kalb County Ag- 
^^f* ricultural Society, was born Oct. 30, 1838, 
p in Newstead, Erie Co., N. Y. George Holeomb, 
i his father, was born June 8, 1798, in Sangerfield, 
Oneida Co , N. Y. Orator Holeomb, father of 
George, was a native of Massachusetts and married 
Hannah Terry, who was born in Connecticut. They 
removed from Erie to Canandaigua, Ontario Co., N. 
Y., in 1805, whence they went after four years to that 
part of Genesee County, now included in Attica, Wy- 
oming County. He there bought a tract of land in- 
cluded within the immense acreage sold by Robert 
Morris to the Amsterdam Company and known as 
the "Holland Purchase," which comprised 3,500,000 

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acres lying west of the dividing line between the 
States of New York and Massachusetts. 

George Holcomb passed the years of his minority 
there and assisted his father in clearing a farm. In 
18 1 9 he was married to Beulah Hosingting, and he 
started out in life as the head of a family, settling on 
60 acres of timber land given him by his father. A 
house of basswood logs was built, in which the young 
pair began their housekeeping. A few years later 
the place was sold, and Mr. Holcomb moved to 
Darien, an adjoining town, where he bought another 
farm, which he sold three years later and returned to 
Attica. He bought a farm adjoining his father's 
homestead, whence he went soon after to Orange- 
ville, making another removal not long after to 
Daiien. He again became a land-holder there, and 
in 1836 his wife died. In 1837 he was married to 
Caroline A. Hebbard. and they settled on a farm in 
Newstead, Erie County. In 184S they sold out 
preparatory to removal to Illinois, whither they made 
an overland journey from their former home to Buf- 
falo, and there embarked — team and all — on a 
steamer for Chicago, coming thence with their team 
to De Kalb County. 

Mr. Holcomb bought 80 acres of land on sections 
34 and 35, Sycamore Township, for which they paid 
$S an acre. There was on it a log house and a straw 
stable. A neat frame structure soon supplied the 
place of the former, and additional improvements 
were soon made. Mr. Holcomb continued to occupy 
the place until his death, in October, 1878. His sec- 
ond wife died meanwhile, and he was again married 
to Harriet Stillwell. 

Hiram Holcomb is the older of two children born 
of the second marriage. He was born in the State 
of New York, and was 10 years of age when he came 
to De Kalb County with his parents, and there he 
has lived since, obtaining a common-school educa- 
tion and a thorough knowledge of agricultural pur- 
suits. He was married Feb. 4, 1863, to Clara Ben- 
ton Dow, daughter of Agrippa Dow. He settled on 
the homestead which he owns and occupies with his 
brother, Orator F. They own together 227 acres of 
land, which is improved and comprises ro acres of 
timber. The farm contains double sets of frame 
buildings. The brothers are engaged in raising stock 
and in the pursuit of general agriculture. Mr. Hol- 
comb has been a member of the Agricultural Society 

^0!1 




since its organization, of which he is now the Presi- 
dent, and he is a member of the Farmers' Alliance. 
He and his wife are the parents of five children, — 
George D., Sanford A., Frank T., Arthur H. and 
Millie Florence. 



[nomas W. Dodge, farmer, section 10, Malta 
Township, was born in Mt. Holly Town- 
ship, Rutland Co., Vt., May 30, 1838. His 
f kg father, Thomas, Sr., was of "York State " par- 
T entage, of English extraction, and was born in 
the province of Quebec. His parents left 
Canada for Vermont just prior to the war of 1812, 
and when the son was but two years of age. Thomas, 
Sr., came to this county in 1863, and is at present 
residing here, aged 76 years. The mother of Thomas 
W. was born in Townsend, Mass., was of New Eng- 
land parentage, and came to this county with her 
husband, Thomas, Sr., in 1863. She resided here 
until March 22, 1875, when death separated her from 
her loved ones, and 67 well spent years marked the 
period of her earthly existence. Together they reared 
a family of three children, all of whom are yet living, 
and the elder of whom is the subject of this notice. 

Thomas W. lived under the parental roof-tree, 
assisting the father on the farm and taking advan- 
tage afforded by the common schools of the county 
until he attained the age of maturity. 

On attaining his majority, Mr. Dodge engaged in 
the occupation of teaching, which vocation he fol- 
lowed, witli no small degree of success, in the com- 
mon schools of his native county until 1867. During 
the summer of that year he came to De Kalb, this 
county, and the following year moved to Malta 
Township. He purchased 160 acres of partly im- 
proved land, situated on section 10, that township, 
and at once entered on the laborious task of improv- 
ing the same. How well his energetic labors have 
succeeded is observable in the line condition of his 
farm to-day. The entire tract is in a good state of 
cultivation, and the farm is well supplied with all 
necessary farm buildings, including a small but com- 
fortable residence. 

Mr. Dodge was united in marriage July 1, 1S67, 
in Windham Co., Vt., to Miss Eugenia Upham, 
daughter of Gardner and Eunice (Emory) Upham, 
natives of New England, <>!' English extraction, and 






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date the origin of their family in the United States to 
the early English settlements in Massachusetts. Her 
father follows the vocation of a farmer, ami still re- 
sales in Windham Co., Vt., having attained the ven- 
erable age of 87 years. Her mother died in the lat- 
ter county in 184S, while in her 46th year. 

Mrs. Dodge was horn Mar. h 4, 1 843, and remained 
at her father's home, attending the common schools 
of her native county, until her marriage. Prior to 
the latter event she engaged in teaching, which voca- 
tion she began when 15 years of age, and a number 
of years (until her marriage) followed with success. 

Mr. and Mrs. Dodge are the parents of live chil- 
dren, namely: James W., born July 25, 1868; Ma- 
bel E., born May 1, 187 1 ; Arthur U., born Aug. 3, 
1875 ; Edmond Roy, born Dec. 29, 1878, and Nellie 
E., born April 10, 1881. The family attend the 
Congregational Church, of which Mrs. Dodge is a 
member. Politically, Mr. Dodge affiliates with the 
Republican party, and has held some of the minor 
offices of his township. 



acob Siglin, farmer, section 15, Sycamore 
f Township, was born in Chestnut Hill, 
5 Northampton (now Monroe) Cj., Pa., July 



1 




19, 1 8 10, and is the son of Jacob and Susan 
(Singer) Siglin. His father was born in New 
Jersey, and settled in Pennsylvania with his 
parents when he was young. His mother was also 
a native of the same State. 

Mr. Siglin was reared on his father's farm, and 
lived in his native town until his marriage in March, 
1832, to Hannah J. Setzer. She was born in Ham- 
ilton Township, then Northampton County. Her 
great-grandfather was horn in Germany, ami his 
wife was a native of Paris, France. Both her grand- 
sires were soldiers in the Revolutionary war. 

After their marriage, Mr. and Mrs. Siglin settled 
on a farm he owned at Chestnut Hill, which he had 
previously purchased, and on which they resided un- 
til 1853, when Mr. Siglin sold out and came to De 
Kail 1 County. He bought a farm on section 15, Syc- 
amore Township, of which 75 acres was broken to the 
plow, and the place was provided with a small log 
house. It now contains 216 acres fenced and mostly 
improved, and he has erected good frame buildings 
and set out orchards of apples and small fruits. 





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They have ten children. Rachel married Thomas 
Marshall, of Sycamore Township. Mary is the wife 
of Royal Wright and lives in Floyd Co., Iowa. Jacob 
is a practicing attorney at Marshfield, State of Ore- 
gon, and is serving his second term as a Senator of 
that State. Susan is the wife of Albert Olmstead, 
and lives in Genoa Township, De Kalb County. 
Joshua married Delia Dean and lives at Sycamore. 
Isaiah married Sarah Scott and resides in Crawford 
Co., Iowa. Taylor is in the employ of the Govern- 
ment in Oregon. Michael married Lottie Lawrence 
and lives in Dallas Co., Iowa. Jennie is the wife of 
Harvey Barlow, of Dallas Co., Iowa, and Ellen mar- 
ried William Whipple, of Sycamore. 

«*«|£®B&*— 

arnion Paine, a citizen of Sycamore, was 
, born July 25, 1822, in the town of German 

HIP*** Flats ' Herkimi -' r C °-> N - Y- His father, 
£j Chester Paine, was born Aug. 21, 1792, in Con- 
i necticut, and when in infancy was taken by his 
parents to the State of New York, the removal 
being accomplished by means of ox teams. Chester 
Paine grew to manhood in Herkimer County and 
married Angeline Vedder, who was born in the Em- 
pire State, Jan. 16, 1786. After their union they lo- 
cated on a farm in German Flats, where they were 
the first cheese-makers. Angeline (Vedder) Paine 
died Sept. 5, 1822, and Chester Paine Sept. 10, 1850. 
Harmon, the subject of this sketch, was brought 
up on his father's farm, and was married Jan. 13, 
1842, in Springfield, Otsego Co., N. Y., to Clarinda 
Van Home, a native of that place, born Feb. 26, 
1824. After a residence of a year's duration at Ger- 
man Flats, they bought a farm near Stone Mills, Jef- 
ferson Co., N. Y., which they sold after three years 
and went back to the home of their early married 
life, where they settled on the homestead and lived 
until 1855. In that year the family removed to Syc- 
amore, and Mr. Paine bought the Wyoming House, 
which was built by Marshall Stark, on the present 
site of the Ward House. This was conducted as 
" Paine's Hotel " 14 years, when the proprietor sold 
out, and, in company with E. F. Dutton, he engaged 
in agricultural pursuits, in which he has since contin- 
ued, though he has remained a resident of Sycamore. 
He has also trafficked in farm produce. During the 

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war he was occupied in buying horses for the United 
States Government. In 1876 he bought the site for 
his residence in Sycamore. 

Following is the record of the children of Mr. and 
Mrs. Paine: Julia A. was born Jan. 29, 1843, and 
died March 20 following. Rosa A. is the wife of E. 
F. Dutlon (see sketch). William B. was born Aug. 
29, 1847, at Orleans, Jefferson Co., N. Y. He mar- 
ried Sadie Ellwood and resides at Sycamore. Ida 
I), was born at German Flats, May 1, 1850, and is 
the wife of Edward Boynton, of Sycamore. 



#~* 




PlnTohn Henaughan, farmer, section 20, Pierce 
ffllk-i Township, is one of the pioneer settlers of 
I >e Kalb County. He was born in June, 
1828, in County Mayo, Ireland. He was 
]T brought up on the farm where his parents 
'ived and was sent to the subscription school, 
His parents, Malachi and Mary (Gibbons) Henaug- 
han, were both natives of County Mayo, and in 1849 
the family sailed from Ireland for America. After a 
sailing voyage of seven weeks and four days, they 
landed at New Orleans, and proceeded thence up the 
Mississippi to the Illinois River, by which they came 
to Peru in La Salle County, and from there on the 
canal to Ottawa. His father came with a part of the 
family to De Kalb County, making the journey with a 
team. The family of Micliael Walsh, who were 
friends and neighbors in the "Green Isle," had lo- 
cated a home in the township of Pierce, and thither 
they made their way. A purchase of 160 acres of 
land on section 19 was made, and the necessary steps 
taken to secure the claim from the Government. 

Mr. Henaughan, of this sketch, had obtained a job 
in Ottawa, where he passed two months before join- 
ing the family of his father in their new home. The 
latter, with the aid of his sons, improved a home- 
stead. They lived at first in a rude, hastily con- 
structed shanty, which they occupied a year, and 
afterward erected a more comfortable shelter. The 
first year the father broke ten acres of prairie and 
sowed it the next year to wheat. The yield was 
about 30 bushels to the acre. In the year following 
a much larger acreage was sown, and the surplus 
marketed at St. Charles. The parents lived on this 



place until death. That of the father occurred 
Dec. 31, 1875, when he was 88 years of age. The 
death of the mother took place in July, 1879, at 
which timr she was 79 years of age. 

Mr. Henaughan was married Nov. 26, 1853, to 
Mary, daughter of Michael and Ellen (I'hilbien) 
Walsh, and they lived with his parents until 1858, 
when he settled on his farm on section 20, now well 
tilled and valuable from the skill and good judg- 
ment exercised in its management. The buildings 
are of a good type, and the place has a good orchard, 
including small fruits of several varieties. The pro- 
prietor is interested in the production of both grain 
and stock. The family includes n living children. — 
Malachi L., Michael J., Stephen M., Patrick J., El- 
len A., Mary A., John, Thomas, Mark, Bridget and 
James. The first-born son is married and lives in 
Greene Co., Iowa. Michael is a merchant at De Kalb. 
The family belong to the Roman Catholic Church. 

Mr. Henaughan is a leading agriculturist and a 
prominent citizen of his township. He has been a 
School Director nearly 25 years, and lias served as 
Assessor and Road Commissioner. In 1878 he re- 
turned to Ireland to rest his eyes once more on the 
place of his nativity and to renew friendly ties with 
those to whom he is allied by association and con- 
sanguinity. 




-S3 



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^FjSySiLaptain John H. Luther, a citizen of Syc- 
tiifcHJ? amore, was born Dec. 16, r82c, at Somer- 
§J ( K/ a set, Bristol Co., Mass., and is the son of 

$|fe Wheaton and Mary A. (Hood) Luther. His 
W parents were born in Massachusetts, and in 
i the paternal line he is a descendant from two 
ancestors named Luther, who came from Germany 
to America in the 17th century. His grandfather 
Luther was born in Swansea, Mass., and was a Revo- 
lutionary soldier, and during the closing years of his 
life drew a pension. His mother's father was a sol- 
dier in the War of 1812, and an officer. Wheaton 
Luther, then but 15 years of age, was aid on his staff, 
and later married his daughter. His wife is still liv- 
ing and receives a pension. 

Captain Luther was brought up in his native town, 
and passed his earlier years on the farm and in at- 
tendance at the public schools. He became a sailor 

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before the mast when he was 17 years ol age, but he 
soon worked his way up the scale of promotion and 
eventually became master of a sailing vessel, and 
was in the merchant service until 1870, engaged in 
the South American and European trade. 

On leaving his maritime calling, Captain Luther 
came to Sycamore and bought an interest in the flax- 
mill with Mr. Loomis. He was married Oct. 16, 
1856, to Josephine, daughter of Daniel A. and Abby 
E. (Windsor) Brown. She was born in Providence, 
R. [., of which State the pre< eding generations of her 
family were natives and were of English descent, 
Mr. and Mrs. Luther have three children, — Amy 
LOWard, J"hn H., Jr., and Mary A. 



rederick Love, deceased, was one of the 
pioneer settlers of this county, and was 
bom Oct. 18, 1793, in New York State. 

f'l'he maiden name of his wife was Jane De- 
, Mott, ami after marriage, which occurred 
M.nch 7, 1813, they settled in Chautauqua 
Co., N. Y., where they resided until 1833. During 
that year they moved to this State and located in 

\S Kane County. In 1835 they pushed further West 
' and loc ated on section 6, now known as De Kalb 

-1 ) Township, this county. After the land was surveyed 
and was offered to settlers, he entered it and at once 
commenced vigorously the- laborious task of improv- 
ing it. He lived on this land until [862. In 1853 
he made an overland journey to California, to visit a 
son. He returned via the Isthmus, after an absence 
of about a year. In 1862 he again attempted to 
c io-,s the plains, but turned back after he had crossed 
the Missouri Riser. He then moved to De Kalb. 
He was a man of considerable attainment, for that 
age, being kind and generous, and popular among 
hi> fellow nun. He held \ arious offices of trust and 
was the first Superintendent of Sc hools in De Kalb 
County. His death 0( 1 cured at De Kalb about June, 
1874. He and his wife were the parents of nine 
children, only two of whom survive, namely : Lewis, 
a resilient of Portland, Oregon; and Melinda, wife of 
F. 1'. Wright, who lives iii East Pierre, Dak. 

Frederick Love, son of Frederick, Sr., and Jane 
(DeMott) Love, was bom in Chautauqua Co., N. Y., 
Nov. 11, 1.S27, and was in his eighth year when his 
parents moved to this State. He grew to manhood 



^ 




in De Kalb Township, working on the farm and at- 
tending the common schools. He was married 
March 31, 1853, to Alice C, daughter of David and 
Sarah (Chapin) West, pioneers of De Kalb County. 
He purchased .So acres of land on section 7, Cort- 
land Township, built good frame buildings, planted 
fruit, shade and ornamental trees thereon and en- 
tered on the task of cultivating the land. He was 
industrious, a good manager and soon added to his 
landed possessions, and in 1862 purchased the old 
homestead of his father in De Kalb Township, on 
which he moved his family. He continued to operate 
both farms until the date of his death, March 15, 
1865. He and his wife were the parents of seven 
children, five of w hnin, two sons and three daughters, 
survive. They are all married except the youngest 
son, and living in comfortable homes of their own. 
Their names are Lewis D.; Carrie E., wife of Robert 
VVhittaker, resident of Cortland Township; Sarah J., 
wife of M. D. Barber, resident of Cortland 'Township; 
Alice M., wife of George E. Robinson, resident of 
Cortland Township; and Frederick C. 

Lewis IV, tht eldest son, was born July 7, 1855. 
He received his early education in the schools of De 
Kalb and matriculated at Gem City College, Quincy, 
111. After completing his studies at the latter place- 
he' returned home and assumed the management of 
the homestead farm, on which he is at present re- 
siding. He was married June 31, 1877, to Miss 
Minnie- I., daughter of Sylvester and Elizabeth 
(Badger) Taylor. She was bom in De Kalb Town- 
ship, Nov. 16, 1858. 'They are the parents of three- 
children. Frederick D., Zuelra A. and Marion Joy. 
The youngest son, Frederick, matriculated at Hills- 
dale College, Mil h., and is at present a teacher in 
the schools at I >e Kalb. 



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ames C. Fulkerson, of Sycamore, was 
born in the township of Greenwood, Craw- 
's ford Co., Pa., July 30, 1822. His father, 
V' Cornelius Fulkerson, was born in New Jersey, 
and married Annie Custard, who was a native 
of Pennsylvania. 'They removed during the 
infancy of their son, to Chautauqua Co., N. Y., 
where the father bought timber land in the town of 
Busti. He improved a farm there and died in 1836. 
James C. is the oldest of six children, and alter 



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tilt- decease of his father lie spent some yearS ill aid- 
ing in the support of the family. He operated as a 
farm assistant and worked the first year at %.\ pel 
month. The second year he obtained an advani e oi 
$2 on his monthly wages. Between the ages of 16 
and 20 years he worked for a man named Eliakim 
Garfield, engaged in farming and lumbering. The 
year before he was 21 he went with his mother on 
a visit to Crawford Co., Pa., and after a brief stay 
returned to "York" State. In the winter following 
he went to Crawford Co., on foot, and engaged as a 
laborer on his uncle's farm. He was married there, 
Jan 23, 1845, to Olive E. Moyers, a native of that 
county. In February, 1846, he went to the State of 
New York, where he was engaged for a month in 
lumbering and rafting, and when the river opened 
he went with a raft down the Allegheny River to 
Pittsburg, and thence to Cincinnati. He went from 
there to the Mississippi on a steamer and then up 
that river to Galena. At that place, in company 
with five others, he went by hired conveyance to 
Freeport. He set out thence to walk to Belvidere, 
but his feet became sore, and after he had walked 
12 miles he took the stage. The coach was full, 
and he was obliged to take an outside seat, which 
was far from pleasant, as the day was rainy. Three 
miles out from Rockford the stage became fast in a 
slough, an incident which characterized every journey 
in the early days of Illinois. But a " breaking " team 
was at hand, and the difficulty overcome. Belvidere 
was reached, and there the traveler spent the night, 
setting out on foot the following morning for Genoa, 
in De Kalb County. Reaching Deer Creek, he found 
the water high and no bridge available. He 
took off his clothes, strapped them on his shoulders 
and swam across. He stayed a ievf days with some 
friends in Genoa, and proceeded to Burlington, Kane 
County, where he remained until July, when he re- 
turned to Pennsylvania, by way of Chicago and the 
lakes to Cleveland. He started to go from thereto 
his home on foot, — a distance of 90 miles. At the 
close of the first day he was seized with ague and 
hired a man to take him home. In the spring of 
1847 ne started with his family for Kane County, 
driving the entire distance with a span of horses and 
a covered wagon. On the 23d of May they arrived 
in Burlington, where Mr. Fulkerson rented a piece of 
and and raised a good crop of com. In the spring 
of 1848 he came to De Kalb County and rented 





land in Kingston Township, which method of opera- 
tion he continued until 1857, when he bought 80 
acres of unimproved land on section 4, in the town- 
ship of Mayfield. He at once erected a frame 
house and proceeded to reclaim his land, and in the 
course of a few years he had the entire place im- 
proved and well supplied with necessary farm build- 
ings. In 1 S59 he drove through lo Pike's Peak, and 
after spending two months there in the mines he re- 
turned home. He went back in i860 and returned 
to his farm in De Kalb County in [861. In 1869 he 
rented his farm and removed to Sycamore, where he 
bought two lots and a residence. To the latter he- 
has made additions, and has built another dwelling 
on his land. After settling at Sycamore he engaged 
in the lumber business with James Harrington, in 
which he was engaged five years. After that he was 
employed by the Marsh Harvester Company as an 
expert in machinery. 

Four children are living: Ann E. is the wife of 
Wentworth Sivwright. Sophia married John W. Os- 
terbout, of Johnson Co., Neb. David E. lives in 
Chicago. George P. resides at Sycamore. James 
Harvey, oldest child, died in 1872, aged 22 years. 

-I9s~— 

( ?\ h athew Nisbet, deceased, was a pioneer of 

;', ts£i|i£al_ Paw Paw Township of 1841. He was 

fifH^-' 1 born in Glasgow, Scotland, ApriT'i, 1820, 

J >x_ '"\ and was the son of William and Isabella 

°,J (Drew) Nisbet. He emigrated from Scotland 

I to America in 1840 and made his home near 

London, Canada West. 

In 1841 he came to Paw Paw Township, De Kalb 
Co., 111., on foot from Chicago, searching for a site for 
a home. In passing through this township he was 
delighted by the beautiful appearance of the country 
about Ross Grove, but he continued on farther wot, 
crossed the Mississippi into Iowa, and traveled sev- 
eral weeks. Not finding anything to suit him better, 
he returned to Ross Grove and made a claim at the 
south side of the Grove on section 22, taking up 160 
acres of land, which he entered at Government price. 
He continued to occupy the home of his choice to 
the time of his death, which occurred March 23, 
1874. He had increased his acreage to 360 acres. 
He was married at Ross Grove, 111., May 3, 1847, 



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to Vgn Harper, daughter of James and Elizabeth 
(Black) Harper. Mrs. Nisbet was born in the town 
ol Vrgyle, Washington Co, V If., May .^. 1825. and 
came to Illinois in September, 1845. ^' v children 
were bom of their union, — three boys and three 
girls: Elizabeth, bom Feb ,}, [848, is the wife of 
James Harper (son oi Robert Harper), residing in 
Paw Paw Township; Isabella, born March 1, 1849, 
is the wife of William Hyde, and is living in Taylor 
Co., [owa; William, bom Jan. 28, 1851, married 
Lillian Laporl and lives in Pa« Paw Township; 
lames, Imrn Oct. 28, 1853, married Lemira Bartlett, 
and is also a resident of Paw Paw Township; Mary, 
born Nov. 28, 1855, is the wife of Charles V. Wed- 
dell, of Taw Taw Township; Lawrence, born Sept. 
14, i860, single, is living at home. 

Mr. Nisbet was a man of upright principles, and 

held in highesteemby a wide circle of acquaintances. 

Although not a member of any Church, he was a fre- 

1 ) quent attendant at the United Presbyterian Church 

^ of Ross drove. He was one of the most liberal 

if% contributors toward the building of that churi h, and 

=a subsequently a generous supporter of it. 

His estimable wife survives him, and with her 
youngest son occupies the old homestead, of 200 
acres. She is a consistent Christian and at present 
a member of the United Presbyterian Church of 
Freeland. 



^ 




' esse Alden, of Sycamore, was born March 
2, 1 82 1, in Lyme, Grafton Co., N. H., and 
is the son of Ezra and Clarissa (Beal) Al- 
den. He is a descendant from the first Al- 
liens who came to the New World, whose unique 
\ courtship has handed their names down to 
posterity, and is in the seventh generation from the 
John who told his story to Priscilla in behalf of 
another man. He lived in Lyme until the years of 
his minority were passed, and at 21 he went to 
Natick, Mass. He there obtained employment in 
the shoe factory of the Hon. Henry Wilson. He 
continued there three years, when impaired health 
compelled his return to his native place. He lived 
at Lyme until 1855, when he came West and located 
in De Kalb County, buying a farm on sections 1 and 
2, in De Kalb Township. He greatly improved the 



pi e and resided upon it until 1862. In that year 
lie sold it ami removed to tin- village ol" Sycamore, 
where he embarked in the provision business, and 
was occupied in its relations three years. Mean- 
while he bought a farm in Mayfield Township, and 
superintended its management. In 1875 he bought 
the farm he now occupies, situated on section 31, 
Sy< amore Township. It contains 1 to acres of land, 
and is situated adjoining the 1 iiy. It is well im- 
proved, and the buildings are of an excellent class. 
He was mariied Sept. 12, 1847, to Mary E. Dur- 
kee, who was born in Hanover, N. II., Sept. 12, 
1826. Mr. and Mrs. Alden have three children: 
Clara E. is the wife of John F. Tudor, of Sycamore ; 
Flora R. married John A. Rankin, a lawyer of 
Girard, Kan. Mary H. is a teacher in the High 
School at Sycamore. She is a graduate from the 
Normal School at Oswego, N. Y., and has been a 
teacher in California. 




o~.cfrf 

imothy Solon, general farmer, section 13 
Malta 'Township, was born May 15, 1822, 
in ('( unity Mayo, Ireland. He is of un- 
mixed Irish blood and descent, his parents, 
Patrick and Sarah (Craby) Solon, having been 
bom of Celtic parentage in the same country. 
They died in County Mayo, where they passed their 
entire lives. 

Mr. Solon passed his entire minority in his native 
county and was married there Feb. 7, 1848, to Mary 
Welch. She was born in County Mayo in 1823, and is 
the daughter of Martin and Mary (Kelley) Welch, 
both of whom have been some years deceased. To 
Mr. and Mrs. Solon nine children have been born, 
five of whom are no longer living: John S., Anna, 
William and Ella, are the names of the children yet 
surviving. Michael, Mary, Thomas, Sarah and Jane 
are deceased. 

Mr. Solon was 25 years of age when he became 
the head ol a family, and soon after the incident of 
his marriage he set out with his wife to seek a home 
in what was to him the land of promise. Proceeding 
from New York, the port of landing, they first located 
in Herkimer Co., N. Y., where they continued four 
years. They came thence to Elgin, 111., where the) 
were some time residents, while Mr. Solon operated 



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as a section man on the line of the Northwestern 
Railroad. Two years later he accepted the position 
of foreman of a construction corps on the main line 
owned by the Northwestern corporation, his route ex- 
tending from "Turner's" to Rochelle, a distance of 
46 miles. He acted as section foreman between De 
Kalb and Creston from the completion of the road in 
1854 to 1873. Meanwhile, in 1864, he purchased 
160 acres of land near Malta, which he rented to 
others until 1872, in which year he settled with his 
family on the place. Since 1874 he has devoted his 
time exclusively to agriculture, and his improved 
farm is a testimony to the quality of the effort and 
judgment he has exercised. In political views Mr. 
Solon is a Democrat. 

— .s9>- 

iynjj;Tulius Chapman, farmer and miller.resident 
^Jlg - in the township of Kingston, was born Nov. 
1 23, 1 81 2, in Morgan, Ashtabula Co., Ohio. 
He passed the first 23 years of his life in his 
native town, obtaining as good an education as 
was possible in those days. He came in 
March, 1837, to De Kalb County, which was then 
included in Kane County for municipal purposes. 
He had learned the trade of carpenter in Ohio, and 
during the first 10 years which he spent in Illinois 
he followed that branch of business. He entered a 
claim of 40 acres of land in what is now the town- 
ship of Genoa, in 1S41, which he afterwards sold. 
About 1S43, in the year in which the land came into 
market, he obtained a claim of 240 acres of land on 
sections 14 and 15, Kingston Township, which is 
still in his possession. He has added to his estate 
until he now owns 1,400 acres in De Kalb County, 
nearly all of which is under improvement. He set- 
tled upon section 14 in the spring of 1844, and en- 
entered with vigor into the work of improving his 
property and adding to his estate, and operated from 
that point until [877, when he removed to the village 
of Kingston, where the family resided one year. 
They returned in 1S78 to the farm and resumed 
united associations and their accustomed avenues of 
employment, in which they continued two years. At 
the end of that time they went to Kingston village 
for a permanent residence. 

In the summer of 1876 Mr. Chapman erected a 

— <^^D!1 




grist-mill in the vicinity of his residence, and he has 
since been engaged mostly in its management. He 
has also built a grist-mill, at a cost of $10,000, at 
Millbank, Grant Co., Dak. In i88r he constructed 
a business block of brick, which is located near the 
center of the village, and is a credit alike to the 
place and to the enterprise of the builder. In 1880 
he built the cheese factory near the limits of Kings- 
ton, which is at present under the management of a 
company in Elgin, 111. He also constructed the 
wooden bridge over the creek near his home. 

Caleb Chapman, his father, was a native of VVin- 
sted, Conn., where the wife and mother, Deborah 
(Knowlton), was also born. They settled in Ohio 
after their marriage, where the father died, in January, 
1875. The mother died in January, 1885. The 
son, who is the subject of this sketch, is the oldest of 
1 2 children. 

He was married Sept. 14, 1843, in the township of 
Genoa, to Sarah, daughter of Henry and Jane (Wa- 
ger) Durham. Her parents were natives of Dela- 
ware Co., N. Y., and they settled in the township of 
Genoa in 1838. Her father died there Feb. 12, 1855, 
and her mother's demise followed Nov. 4, of the 
same year. They had 10 children, of whom Mrs- 
Chapman is the second, and is the oldest daughter. 
She was born March 5, 1823, and has been a resi- 
dent of De Kalb County since her 15th year. 

Mr. Chapman is a Democrat in political princi- 
ple. He has officiated eight years as Justice of the 
Peace, two years as Assessor, and held other local 
offices. 

The -lithographic likeness of Mr. Chapman, on a 
page just preceding, is considered an essential addi- 
tion to the collection of portraits of representative 
men of De Kalb County. 



-««•- 



It eorge H. Gurler, son of Benjamin (see 
MMj sketch) and Harriet (Hopkins) Gurler, is a 
l^p" manager of a creamery, and resides in the 
?'W^ village of De Kalb. He was born in Chester- 
field, Cheshire Co., N. H., March 29, 1845, 
and was 12 years of age when his parents 
emigrated with the family to the West, locating in 
this county. Here he grew up to manhood, working 
upon his father's farm and attending school. 

In February, 1865, he enlisted in the cause of the. 



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DE KALB COUNTY. 



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Government of his country, in Co. II, 15th 111. Vol. 
Inf., and went to Morehead City, N. C, under Gen. 
Sherman's command; thence he marched with the 
army to Washington, where lie participated in the 
' . Grand Review; next he was ordered to the Western 
plains, to Fori Kearney and Leavenworth, and was 
linalK discharged with the regiment at Springfield. 
Returning home in the spring of 1S66, he engaged in 
the grocer} trade, in partnership with his brother, 
Henry B., for two years; he then conducted the 
• business alone for nine years ; the next three years 
he acted as a clerk in Hiram Ellwood's drug store; 
was then one year in the produce and poultry busi- 
ness. In 1882, in company with his brother above 
mentioned, he engaged in the creamery business, 
having four establishments, namely, at Hinckley, 
South Grove, De Kalb and Malta. 

Mr. Curler was married Jan. 1, 1867, to Zilla 
Newitt, who was born in the village of Thames, Eng- 
land, and they have two children, — Charles H. and 
Bertha B. 






1 



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lbert Eugene Hix, a citizen of Sycamore, 
was born June 24, 1843, m Alabama, Gen- 



Irish, and they have two children, — Laura A. and 
Orvis R. Mrs. Hix is a native of Canada, where she 
was born March 16, 1843, a daughter of Daniel and 
Janet Irish. Daniel Irish is a native of Vermont, 
and Janet (\I> Lean) Irish was born in Ireland, her 
family emigrating- to Canada when she was about 
seven years of . 



-13- 



-es- 




esee Co., N. Y., and is the youngest son of 
Ephraim and Laura W. (Williams) Hix. 
When he was five years of age his parents 
came to De Kalb County. He was educated 
the district schools, and afterwards attended 
Wheaton College two terms. In the winters of 1861 
and 1862 he was employed in teaching in Kingston 
Township, after which he was variously employed, 
operating at times as a fanner and also as a travel- 
ing salesman and buying farm produce. In October, 
1869, he removed to Sycamore and entered the em- 
ployment of the Marsh Harvester Company, and in 
187 1 was made foreman of their warehouse. In 
1S73 he became shipping clerk, and operated in 
their interests until October, 1883. Upon the or- 
ganization of the Fourth Ward in April, 1878, he was 
elected one of its Aldermen for one year, and in 
1S79 was re-elected for a full term of two years. In 
April, 1S84, he entered the employment of E. B. 
Shurtliff, as book-keeper and shipping clerk, and is 
at present officiating in that capacity. 

He was married in September, 1S63, to Eleanor 



eorge Terwilliger, resident at De Kalb, 
was born in Ulster Co., N. Y., May ir, 
1842, and is a son of Levi H. and Fanny 
Terwilliger, natives of " York State." When 
14 \ears of age Mr. Terwilliger set forth on the 
road of adversity to battle against the trials of 
life alone. He 1 ame to this State and engaged to a 
cousin, Lewis McEwen, to work on his farm and con- 
tinued in that vocation until 1869. During the latter 
year he came to De Kalb, and, in company with A. 
B. Pollock, built an elevator, and entered upon the 
business of buying grain. In 1872 the present firm 
of L. M. McEwen & Co. was formed and Mr. Ter- 
williger became a member of it and still retains his 
connection. They deal in grain, lumber, coal, live 
stock, lime, hair, etc. 

He was married Nov. 6, 1873, to Miss Genevra, 
daughter of Perley B. and Lois Snow. They had five 
children, — Roy L., Fay L., Perley S., Covell G. and 
Nevie H. Mr. Terwilliger was a member of the 
Board of Trustees for a number of terms. Politic ally 
he is a believerin and supporter of the principles and 
doctrines of the Republican party. 



Syaji ichard Parks, tanner, resident on section 

§5^! 32, Victor Township, was born Dec. 5, 

'"'• 1837, in Niagara Co., N. Y. His parents, 

Edward and Sarah (Davidson) Parks, were 

natives of Ireland, and emigrated thence to 

Canada in 1S32. After being there one year 

they moved to New York State. They came to 

Illinois in 1873, and are now living at Leland, La 

Salle Co., 111., aged respectively S4 and 80 years. 

Mr. Talks was reared b\ his parents and instructed 
in practical farming, remaining at home until he was 
22 years of age. In 1858 he came to Illinois and 



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DE KALB COUNTY. 



began his career as an independent farmer in the 
township of Victor, where he is now the owner of 169 
acres of land. His farm is in fine agricultural con- 
dition, supplied with good and necessary buildings 
and well stocked. The proprietor is a representative 
farmer of his township, and has held several offices 
of trust and responsibility. He is a Republican and 
takes an interest in local and national affairs incum- 
bent upon his citizenship, and is active in affording 
aid in the furtherance of ^.ny cause or enterprise for 
the general welfare. 

Feb. 13, i860, he contracted a matrimonial alliance 
with Mary S. Parks, of Youngstown, N. Y., and they 
have had seven children, four of whom are living, — 
William H, Hattie M., Bert L. and Charlie R. 
Three children died unnamed in infancy. Mrs. 
Parks has been a member of the Methodist Episcopal 
Church since 1852. 



i-hauncey Rose, a pioneer of De Kalb 

iEl|jf County, was born March 31, 1800, in 

E/ 3 * Chenango Co., N. Y. He was brought 




up a farmer, and married Salina E. Porter, 
also a native of Chenango County. Soon af- 
ter marriage they set out to seek a home, and 
located in Evans, Erie Co., N. Y., where he bought a 
farm and continued to reside until 1843, when he 
again took up his march westward, with a span 
of horses and a wagon, and, accompanied by his fam- 
ily, he came to De Kalb County. He entered a 
claim in Sycamore Township, which included a part 
of the Norwegian Grove, and began to improve a 
farm, on which he died Aug. 3, 1846. His widow 
died Aug. 14, 1878, aged 76 years and 14 days. 



jr" J. Conde, a resident at Sycamore, was born 
Jan. 19, 1 81 7, in the city of Schenectady, 
N. Y., and is the son of Isaac S. and Mary 

(Bradford) Conde. He was reared and edu- 
"%Z cated in the schools of his native city, and 

when he was 14 years of age was apprenticed 
to a hatter and served five years, which included 
nearly all the time he worked at that business, as 
hand-made hats were soon afterward supplanted by 
those made by machinery. He next operated as a 





traveling salesman for John Benedict, in Saratoga 
County, for whom he drove a two-horse team and 
supplied the farmers with tin- ware and Yankee no- 
tions. He conducted that line of business 11 years, 
after which he removed to Monroe Co., Mich., going 
there in 1845. He bought timber land in the town- 
ship of Milan, intending to make a permanent set- 
tlement ; but, the entire family becoming ill, he sold 
the place in 1848 and returned to Schenectady. He 
obtained a situation as lock-tender on the Erie Canal, 
in which capacity he was occupied three years; and 
in 185 1 he established a grocery trade three miles 
west of Schenectady on the Erie Canal, where he 
was engaged five years. About 1856 he sold out 
and removed to De Kalb County and settled on a 
farm in Shabbona Township, where he was engaged 
in agricultural pursuits until 1866, when he sold out 
and bought a place on State Street in Sycamore, 
where he opened a restaurant. He managed the re- 
lations of that business about 13 years, when he 
again sold out and embarked in the provision busi- 
ness, in which he has since been engaged. 

Mr. Conde was married in 1847, to Philela Ketch- 
am. She was born in Glenville, Schenectady Co., 
N. Y. She died in Shabbona Township in 1865, 
leaving five children, — Mary J., Chauncey, Jane 
Amanda, Sadie and Porter. Mr. Conde was a second 
lime married in September, 1869, to Eliza Van Pat- 
ten. She was born in the same place as her prede- 
cessor, the first wife of Mr. Conde. 





Lenry H. Harrington, deceased, was form- 
s' erly a farmer on section 16, Malta Town- 
ship. He was born Aug. 2, 1839, in Erie 
A Co., N. Y., and was the son of Sydney P. Har- 
I rington, a farmer of the Empire State. His 
mother, Polly (Hicks) Harrington, was also a 
native of the State of New York, and the parents came 
to De Kalb Co., 111., in 1840, locating in Franklin 
Township. (See sketch of S. A. Harrington.) The 
father is now a resident of Kirkland, in that town- 
ship, where Henry was reared and attended the com- 
mon schools. He was married Sept. 23, 1862, to 
Jane A. Jones. Her parents, Edmund and Ann 
(Barber) Jones, were of Welsh and German extrac- 
tion, and were natives respectively of New England 



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and New Vork. The) were of the farming fraternity 
and came in the early historj ol the "West" to 
lliii dali Co., Mich. The poinl where the) fust lo- 
cated is now the flourishing and well-known village 
of fonesville, near tin: city ol Hillsdale, which re- 
d its name from Mrs. Harrington's father, who 
was the first permanent white settler. The daughter 
was born there March tr, 1843. When sin was 
11 years of age her parents came to Illinois and 
located in Franklin Township, I'e Kalb County, 
at a time when the inhabitants where resident on 
sections widely separated. Nine children have been 
born to Mr. and Mrs. Harrington, six of whom are 
living: Frank L., horn Dec. 19, 1864, is attending a 
business college at Rockford, 111.; Beulah A. was 
horn July |. [866; Edward E., Feb. 26, 1868, is at 
si hool al Bement, Piatt Co., 111.; Susan L., Jan. 1, 
[871; Maitlia I,., Oct. 25, 1872, and Guy H., Sept. 
25. iS 7 S. 

Mi Harrington died Aug. 12, r88i, when he was 
ten days past 42 \ ears of age. He was a skillful 

ter and stock-grower, and during the last years of 

his life was extensivel) interested in the latter busi- 
ness. After his (hath .Mrs. Harrington continued to 
conduct the homestead until the autumn of 1884, 
when she leased the place and removed to Malta 
village for the purpose of educating her children. 

Mr. Harrington was an adherent of the Republi- 
1 an party. He held during his life several positions 
of important e and trust. 



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—i- 



homas M. Hopkins, attorney at law, De 
Kalb, was born in the town of Salem, 
If 2 * Washington Co., N. Y., April 23, 1818. 
He received his early education at the public 
schools and at Washington Academy three 
years. In 1S35 he commenced the study of 
law, and was admitted to practice by the Supreme 
Court of the State at Albany in January, 1842, Judge 
Samuel Nelson presiding. After that time he prac- 
ticed law in Salem one year. 

In 1843 he came to Illinois, and after spending a 
summer in this State he went to Missouri, where he 
resided until February, 1846, when he came to this 
county and made a 1 laim on section 13 of De Kalb 
Township, and afterward entered the same from the 



Government. He immediately commenced building 
and improving the land, and engaged in raising the 
usual farm products ; and. having been admitted to 
the Bar of this State by the Supreme Court, — Chief 
Justice Caton and Judge Richard M. Young, — May 
2, [843, he also prosecuted to some extent his pro- 
fession as an attorney. In 1865 he came to the vil- 
lage ol De Kalb and opened a law office, and has 
since devoted his whole time to legal practice. 

He was married April 23, 1836, to Miss Julia A. 
Hawken, who was born in St. Louis, Mo., the daugh- 
ter oi Jacob Hawken, a native of Maryland. By this 
marriage there have been live children, namely; 
Montgomery, now a resident of Sycamore; Charles, 
a farmer in this county ; Christopher H., a physician 
at Wall Lake, Iowa; Alice C; and Jacob, the young- 
est, is a student at Knox College, Galeshurg. 

Mi. Hopkins has been and is a prominent and in- 
fluential citizen of De Kalb. 



jlfamesVan Dusen, a pioneer settler of Syca- 
■ >?■ more Township, now deceased, located on 



section 15 of township 41, range 5, as it 
was then designated, in 1842, and was thence- 
forward a resident of De Kalb County as long 
as he lived. On taking possession of his farm, 
he built the customary pioneer house — a log cabin 
with puncheon floor and clapboard roof. He har- 
vested his first crop of grain in 1844, which was 
threshed with oxen, several yoke being driven over 
the grain, which was spread in a circle. He con- 
tinued to make improvements until he had placed 
130 acres under the plow. 

He was born in the State of New York, in 1795, 
where he attained to the age of manhood. He was 
married there to Bethiah Sprague, who was born in 
the same State in 1799. They located at first at 
Penn Yan, whence, after a short residence, they 
went to Cuyahoga Co., Ohio, and settled near Cleve- 
land, where they were pioneers, having taken up 
their residence there about 1820. They continued 
to live there about a score of years, and improved a 
farm. They removed thence to Crawford Co., Ohio, 
whence they came, as has been stated, to De Kalb 
County. Mr. Van Dusen died in 1861, leaving six 
children, — Eliza, James Riley, Oliver, Simeon, Au- 



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rilla and Martha Ann. Eliza and Aurilla are now 
deceased ; James lives in Dakota ; Olivet is in Dodge 
Co., Minn ; Martha is the wife of L. W. Miller, of 
Madison Co., Neb. 

Simeon Van Dusen was born April 1 r, 1832, in 
Cuyahoga Co., Ohio, and was 10 years of age when 
his parents came to Illinois and settled in De Kalb 
County. He was married in 1858, to Mary J., daugh- 
ter of Harris and Lavina (Snow) Sibley. Mrs. Van 
Dusen was born in Clarendon, N. Y., and when she 
was yet in childhood they came to Illinois and lo- 
cated at St. Charles, in Kane County. Their chil- 
dren are named Willie and Frank. Mr. and Mrs. 
Van Dusen settled at first on the Van Dusen home- 
stead, on section 15, and continued there until 1870' 
when the farm they now occupy was purchased, and 
which contains 191 acres situated on sections 21,22 
and 23. The place is all under improvements, with 
good buildings, orchard and modern farm fixtures. 




«&as>OM\r§r 



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'heodore Klein, farmer, section 35, Pierce 
Township, has been a land-holder since 
February, 1868, when he bought land on 
section 16. In 1875 he bought his present 
farm on section 35. He was born April 27, 
1832, in Prussia, and went to school from the 
age of 6 to 14 years, according to the law of his na- 
tive land. He was then employed on his father's 
farm until he was 2 1 years of age, when he set out to 
find a home and fortune in the New World. He 
sailed for New York and landed at that port after a 
journey of 63 days, which he remembers as a stormy, 
anxious time. On arrival in the great city he had a 
surplus cash capital of only $12, but he bestowed 
nearly all of that on his needy fellow passengers. He 
went up the Hudson River to Catskill, where he 
worked in the harvest field a few days, receiving a 
recompense of $1 a day. He proceeded thence to 
Chicago, where he obtained employment in alumber- 
/ g\ yard three months, after which he went to Michigan 
and chopped wood through one winter. He came 
then to Aurora and worked by the month for four 
years, receiving $14 a month. He next went to 
California, going from the city of New York by the 
Isthmus to San Francisco, where he operated alter- 
nately in mining and farming. He left the Golden 



a 



State in 1865 and returned to Kane Co., III. April 5 
[866, he was married to Caroline Ahart, and they 
have six children — Mary J., Ida May, Emma A., 
Cora, Frank T. and Theadore O. Mr. and Mrs. 
Klein lived in Kane County two years, bought a 
farm of P. McDole, which was originally located by 
Benjamin McDole. The place contains 440 ai 
all under cultivation and with two sets of farm build- 
ings of excellent type. For some years Mr. Klein 
has been interested in the purchase and sale of 
Stock, for Chicago markets. Mrs. Klein is the daugh- 
ter of Christoph and Maria Ahart, and was brought 
from Wurtemburg, Germany, by her parents when an 
infant. 



|®ij|<|yron F. Wyman, farmer, section 36, Syca- 
JUl^ more Township, a life-long resident of De 
Kalb County, was born March 19, 1839, 
:§ in Sycamore Township. Ralph Wyman, his 
father, was a pioneer of De Kalb County, 
whither he came in 1836. At that date the 
townships were designated under the regulations by 
which they were located previous to being put upon 
the market by the United States Government, and 
the senior Wyman made a claim on section 36, town 
41, range 5, and also on section r of town 40, range 5. 
He was born in 18 13, in Weathersfield, Windsor 
Co., Vt. His parents, Asa and Sally (Searls) Wy- 
man, were natives of the Bay State, and settled after 
their marriage in Vermont. When he was two years 
of age they went to Worcester, Mass., removing 
thence after a brief residence to Middletown, Rut- 
land Co., Vt., where the son attained to man's estate, 
and was married in 1837 to Susan Dayton. He came 
to De Kalb County, as stated, and after making his 
claims he returned to Vermont for his wife and set- 
tled in town 41, where he built a log house and com- 
menced the work of improving his property. In 1842 
he made a trip to his native State, and on the third 
day of December, of the same year, he set out as agent 
for a cloth-manufacturing firm, with a span of horses 
and a large sleigh loaded with woolen goods, to sell 
in their interest. The snow had disappeared when 
he reached Western New York, and he exchanged 
his sleigh for a wagon and pressed on to De Kalb 
County, passing through Chicago on the day when 
the land sale of the county began, Jan. 29, 1S43. 



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On reaching his destination he exchanged his « 
for wheat, of which the farmers had abundance, but 
little money; and the opportunity wa> one they 
heartily appreciated. Mr. Wyman took the wheal to 
St. ("hades, where it was converted into flour, and 
was shipped to the East. He resided on his farm 
until i860, wlun be bought a lot in Sycamore, built 
.1 house thereon, in which he lived until his death, in 
February, 1864. To him and his wife who survives 
him 1 1 children were horn, eight of whom are still 
living: Henry D., Byron 1'., Helen G. (Mrs. Coch- 
rane Black), Cecil (Mrs. V C. Colton), [da (Mrs. A. 
N. Wheeler), Frank \V„ Eva (Mrs. Henry Knights) 
and Susie. 

B. F. Wyman was reared to manhood in his native 
count) and township, where he was edunated prima- 
rily in the common schools, obtaining further ad- 
vantages l>\ one term of attendance at Rock River 
Seminary, Mt. Morris, and three terms of study at 
select schools in De Kalb and Sycamore. 

He had just passed his 22cl birthday when the 
nation was involved in a struggle for existence, and 
he was one of the first to enroll after the call of 

•tV President Lincoln, May 4, 1861, for three-year men. 

=c As Illinois was permitted to furnish only six regi- 
ments, places in the ranks were at a premium. Mr. 
Wyman enlisted, and on the 9th of May, 186 1 , the 
) 13th Illinois regiment was organized at Dixon, and 
he was made First Corporal of Co. F. On the 24th 
the regiment >vas mustered into the service of the 
United States, and after a few weeks of necessary 
preparation it was transferred to the field of action. 
Mr. Wyman served until the expiration of his period 
of enlistment, and received an honorable discharge, 
June 18, 1864. In September, 1862, he was promo- 
ted as Sergeant. Among the engagements in which 
he took active part were Chickasaw Bayou (where he 
was severely wounded), siege of Vicksburg, Jackson, 
Tuscumbia, Lookout Mountain, Mission Ridge and 
Ringgold, Ga. At the latter, one-half the members 
of his company who were involved in the action were 
killed or wounded. He marched an aggregate of 
3,500 miles. 

After being relieved from the military service of 
his country, be returned to De Kalb County and 
operated a few months as a clerk at Sycamore. In 
1867 he went to Sauk Co., Wis., where he engaged 

>^ in hop-raising about two years. In the spring of 




1869 he returned to s V i amore, to the place he now 
owns and occupies, and where he has since been a 
resident. He has put the plai e in the best of order 
and has rebuilt the farm structures, including the 
house, bam and granary. Mr. Wyman is a Repub- 
lican in political views, and is at present (i 885) hold- 
ing the position of Assistant Supervisor, in which he- 
has officiated two years. He acted several years as 
Township Trustee arid also as School Director. In 
1880 he was also Census Enumerator for the < ity of 

S\ 1 .inn n c 

His marriage to Nettie S. Lowell occurred Oct. 19, 
1865, and they are the parents of six children, — 
Ralph L., Luther E., Frank E., Bernard A., Vincent 
I), and Edmond Stanley. Mrs. Wyman was born in 
Moretown, Washington Co., Vt. With her husband, 
she is a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church, 
and he has been Superintendent of the Sundav- 
school a number of years. 



V6) 




kltephen Santee, a farmer on section 26, 
_^Jj, Kingston Township, was born April 30, 
t^ 1 1 84 1, in Luzerne Co., Pa. Simon and Mary 
(Hoffecker) Santee, his parents, were born in 
Pennsylvania and still reside in that State, in 
advanced age. Mr. Santee passed the first 23 
years of his life on his father's farm as an assistant 
after reaching a suitable age, and previous to that 
lime in attending school. He was then married and 
located on the homestead, which he conducted three 
years. In March, 1867, he came to Illinois and 
operated one year as a laborer on the farm of his 
father-in-law. In the autumn of that year, he pur- 
chased 135 acres of land, and in 1868 he took posses- 
sion of his property on which he has since labored, 
and all of which he has improved with the exception 
of 10 acres which is in timber. Mr. Santee is a Re- 
publican in political affinity, has been School Director 
and Overseer of Highways, and in the spring of 1884 
was elected Highway Commissioner. 

He was married Dec. 25, 1863, in Luzerne Co., 
Pa., to Susan, daughter of John and Elizabeth 
(Wood) Uplinger. She was born Sept. 25, 1847, in 
the county where she was married, and which was 



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the native place of her parents. The names of the 
children of Mr. and Mrs. Santee are Ario, Amlin, 
Simon, Ida, Mary, Clara, Eva, John H. and Charles F. 



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fMl i,liam L Pond - attorney at law, De Kalb, 
■*SasL was born in the town of Genoa, this coun- 
m^n ' ty, Feb. 11, i860. His parents, Americus 
I^S' H. and Amy N. (Hollembeak) Pond, were 
early settlers in Genoa Township, where the 
subject of this sketch was reared and received 
his education. He graduated at the Genoa High 
School June 10, 1881, in the first class that graduated 
there. He next taught the High School at Kirkland 
a year, then entered the law office of Carnes & 
Denton at Sycamore, completed a course of law- 
studies, was admitted to the Bar at Ottawa in June, 
1S84, and commenced the practice of his chosen pro- 
?• fession at De Kalb in September of that year. He is 
/•^ a young gentleman of much promise, having great 
° " honor even in his own country." 



<P 







^.dward Butterfleld, deceased, one of the 
first pioneers of Paw Paw Township, was 
born in Vermont. He left Vermont with 
jgSx. his parents, and went to Canada, where he re- 
i sided till of age, when he returned to the United 
States, locating in Cayuga Co., N. Y., and en- 
gaged in farming. 

He married Polly Harris, daughter of Rev. Benoni 
and Thankful Harris, about 18 19. They had ten 
children, six sons and four daughters, namely : Solo- 
mon V., Benoni, Thankful, Marion D., 'Sarah J., 
Mary A. and Alexander H., who grew to be heads of 
families; the others died in childhood. Of those 
named only three are now living — Solomon V., a 
farmer of Paw Paw, and the oldest surviving repre- 
sentative of the pioneers of 1835, is still a resident 
of the township; Sarah J. is the wife of J. A. Edgett 
and lives in Carroll Co., Iowa; Mary A. is the widow 
of Lorenzo Chesley, and lives in West Paw Paw, Lee 
County. . 

Mr. Butterfield moved to Michigan in 1830 and 
settled on what was known as Sturgis Prairie.- He en- 
listed in the Black Hawk War, and was commissioned 




First Lieutenant in Capt. Hunter's company, Co. I, 
and served till the close of the war. He spent one 
winter in Michigan after his return from tlie war, and 
then moved to Ottawa, 111. The following summer 
(July, 1 83=5) he came with his family to Paw l'.iw 
Township, De Kalb Co., 111. He was accompanied 
by his father-in-law, Rev. Benoni Harris, and his 
family, and several young single men. He made a 
claim on section 19, of this town, where he lived till 
1852, when he removed to Iowa. He returned to 
Paw Paw in 1864, and died May 28, 1867. 

Mr. Butterfield was a Democrat in politics. He 
served as Deputy Sheriff four years, was Collector 14 
years and Constable many years. In early days the 
struggle for claims and the natural turbulence of 
society on the frontier, furnished a plenty of busi- 
ness for justices and officers, and Mr. Butterfield was 
actively employed in the discharge of his duties over 
a wide range of territory. 



llliam Loomis, senior member of the busi- 
ness firm of Loomis & Luther, at Sycamore, 
was born Sept. 3, 181 3, in Georgia, Frank- 
in Co.,Vt, and is the son of Jonah and Ora 
(Barnard) Loomis. His parents were both 
natives of the Green Mountain State. Mr. 
Loomis was reared and educated in the town where 
he was born, and was there married June 23, 1836, 
to Eliza D., daughter of Zina D. and Betsey (Bowen) 
Stannard. She was born in Georgia, Vt., Sept. 30, 
1 816. Her father was born in Connecticut, her 
mother in Vermont. 

After his marriage, Mr. Loomis bought a farm, in 
company with his brother in Georgia, and they man- 
aged it jointly four years, when he sold his interest. 
In 1 85 1 he bought a farm in the town of St. Albans, 
in the same county, where he lived with his family 
until 1S57. In that year he again sold out and 
went to Grand Rapids, Mich., where he engaged in 
banking. He was burned out, and he finally dis- 
posed of his business relations and went to Newaygo 
Co., Mich., where, in company with his brother, 
Henry Loomis, he engaged in the lumber business. 
Their land lay remote from the Muskegon River, and 
in order to transport their logs to the stream they 
built a railroad, two and one-fourth miles long, on 




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which the motive power was furnished by horses. 
This was the first railroad built for the purpose and 
operated by horses in Michigan. 

In 1S64 he sold his interest there and came to 
Sycamore, where he bought city property and built 
his present residence. He bought the lumber yard 
ut' II. James, and was engaged 14 years in the lum- 
ber trade, being associated a part of the time with 
his brother, Samuel Loomis. Afterward he bought 
an interest in the flax-mill, which he still retains. 
This establishment is one of the earliest business 
ventures at Sycamore, having been put in operation 
about 1838, and has been run since with little inter- 
ruption. 

Mr. Loomis has been prominently identified with 
the manufacturing interests at Sycamore, owning 
stock in the Marsh Harvester Company and in the 
Kllwood Manufacturing Company, and being a 
director in each, He is at present the Vice-Presi- 
dent of the latter, lie is popular in public esteem 
from meritorious character, having been a decided 
and consistent advocate and supporter of the prin- 
1 iples of moraltt) and religion. He has been a 
Trustee in the Methodist Episcopal Church about 
seven years, of which denomination his wife is also a 
member. He was a Whig originally, but on the 
organization of the Republican party became its 
adherent. hive children born to Mr. and Mrs 
I .in urns are living. 



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esse C. Kellogg, deceased, was a pioneer 
'. citizen of He Kalb Count)', and came to 
Illinois in its earliest days, setting out from 
Vermont with his bride of a few weeks to find 
In 1 in in the Prairie State. They started 
from Stowe, Lamoille County, and went by pri- 
vate conveyance to Vergennes, then the only city in 
the Green Mountain State anil only a few hundred 
rods square. The absurd little metropolis is a lake 
port, and Mr. and Mrs. Kellogg embarked on Lake 
Champlain and went theme via Champlain Canal to 
Albany, whence they traveled by the Erie Canal to 
Buffalo and thence by the lakes to Chicago. They 
passed 17 days between the two ports. After a few- 
days spent in the Garden City, then showing scarcely 
a shadow of its present splendid prominence, they 




.1. 



went to Plainfield, Will County, where Mr. Kellogg 
rented a farm. 

In the spring of 1S36 he visited the part of Kane 
County, now converted by separation and independ- 
ent municipal regulations into De Kalb County, 1 

mule a claim of sections S and 9, in what is now 
nine Township. This was seven years previ- 
vious to the survey, and when the land was placed 
on the market he entered a claim of 160 acres. In 
the summer succeeding his locating here he broke a 
few acres of land and built a log cabin 14 feet 
si pure, floored with "puncheons" and roofed with 
"shakes." He soon became prominent in local af- 
fairs, and in 1837 was elected County Recorder. He 
was re-elected in 1 841 and in 1842, and also in 
1S45, serving in the same office until 1S4.S. He was 
one of the fust Postmasters at Sycamore, and was 
one of the founders of the Congregational Church at 
that place, of which he was the first Deacon and 
held the position as long as he lived. He was for a 
long period of years President of the De Kalb 
County Bible Society, and was held in the highest 
esteem for his character of uniform Christian consist- 
ency. He was elected Trustee of the city on the 
temperance issue, as he was a strong advocate of 
the principles of the temperance reform. He was an 
active Abolitionist anil was a powerful adjunct of the 
"Underground Railroad," one of whose prominent 
stations was at Sycamore. He was for many years 
Deputy Clerk, and in all passed 35 official years in 
the Court-House at Sycamore. In 1841 he took up 
his residence at Sycamore. A pan of the land he 
entered was included within the corporation, but he 
never engaged to any great extent in personal effort 
on the place, operating in the way of renting until 
his sons were sufficiently grown to work it. 

Mr. Kellogg was a man of superior mental and 
executive abilities. He had a good education, 
which was found especially valuable in the formative 
period in whii h he came to De Kalb County, and he 
was an interesting contributor to the local press of his 
native State during those early days. He also wrote 
much on occasions for the Sycamore papers, by 
which valuable reminiscences were preserved. 

He was born April 10, 1806, in Stowe, Vt. His 
father, Aaron Kellogg, was a rVative of Connecticut 
and was a pioneer of Lamoille Co., Vt. He was edu- 
cated at the district schools and at Randolph Acad- 
emy, one of the most thorough educational institu- 



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tions of the State. His father died when he was 
five years of age, and he lived witli an older brother, 
who assisted him in obtaining an education. He 
began his struggle with the world by teaching in the 
public school at $8 a month, one-half to be paid in 
cash and one-half in grain ; and he boarded among 
the patrons of the school. He worked at farming 
summers and taught winters, and paid his way at 
the academy with his earnings. While studying at 
Randolph he became acquainted with Phebe, daugh- 
ter of Zachariah Wood, of Tunbridge, herself a 
student and teacher. They were married Feb. 5, 
1 834, and their subsequent history has already been 
told. The wife died in February, 1873, and the 
husband in March, 1874. Following is the record of 
their five children: Emily J. was born Jan. 18, 
1S37, and married C. T. Pierce. She lived many 
years in De Kalb County, and died in March, 1877, 
in Erie, Whiteside Co., 111.; Hiram J., Henry W., 
Hem an A. and Homer W. were born in the order 
named. Henry W. is Auditor of Greene Co., Iowa. 
Heman A. is a resident of Anderson Co., Kan. 
The youngest son died at Jefferson, Greene Co., 
Iowa, July 5, 1883. 






ra Vail Randall, attorney at De Kalb, and 
whose portrait is on the opposite page, was 
' born in Mount Holly, Vt., March 2, 1820. 
His father, Isaac Randall, a farmer, was a 
native of the same county, and died when the 
subject of this sketch was in his 1 6th year, 
leaving him without home or means, and only a 
moderate common-school education. The grand- 
father of Ira was Snow Randall, who came from En- 
gland after the Colonies had gained their indepen- 
dence. Snow Randall was a Quaker of the Hicksite 
faith. Isaac Randall married Gallana Chandler, a 
Methodist lady, and Isaac was thereupon expelled 
from the Quakers for marrying one not a member, of 
their sect, willfully and against the rules of their 
society. Gallana's grandfather was a millionaire and 
settled in Chester, Vt., and owned at an early day 
the township. He held many positions of public use- 
fulness, and kept a public house, or, more properly 

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speaking, a house for the public, in which his hos- 
pitalities were dispensed with an entirely gratuitous 
as well as a liberal hand. 

He married a sea captain's daughter, and tradition 
states that at the wedding he (the sea captain) 
measured out half a bushel of gold coin, uncounted, 
as a present to his wife. 

Our subject, with $3 in silver money in his pocket, 
and his clothing tied up in a cotton frock, on his 
back, started out on foot, the spring after his father's 
death, for West Poultney, Vt., to attend the academy 
there, where he could work by the hour at 12*^ cents 
to pay for books, tuition and board. At the end of 
the first quarter he found himself in debt for board 
$13%. He hired out to a tanner in the village for 
one month at $[3, to drive horse in grinding bark 
and hauling hides from lime vats, and scraping off 
the hair, etc. After graduating at the tannery at the 
end of the month he took possession of his $13 and 
paid his debts. Working on a farm for a short time, he 
attended the fall term of the Poultney School. He 
then taught school during the winter, attended the 
academy in spring and next fall, teaching again in 
the winter, and continued to teach, work on farm in 
summer, and attend school spring and fall. He 
taught 13 terms,, attending the academy alternately 
until fitted for college, and intending to take a full 
course ; but the state of his health deterred him from 
matriculating. At the latter part of his career as 
teacher, which commenced in his 17th year, he com- 
menced the study of the law. He read with the 
Hon. Sewell Fullam, State's Attorney at Ludlow, Vt., 
and finished his reading with the Hon. Solomon Foot, 
of Rutland, and was admitted to the Bar at Rutland, 
in 1847. 

In April of the year before, he married Miss Susan 
L. Earle, of Mount Holly, daughter of Lawson Earle, 
an extensive farmer and dairyman. Mr. Randall 
practiced his profession for three years at Barnard. 
Windsor Co., Vt. During that period he visited the 
West, and on the solicitation of the " Maine Law 
Alliance," lectured in Illinois for three months in ad- 
vocacy of the Maine law, — an episode in his life 
which no doubt he still calls to remembrance with 
great pleasure. 

Dec. 27, 1856, he landed in the embryo village of 
De Kalb, with his family, consisting of his wife and 
one daughter, Emma A., his only child. 

For more than a quarter of a century, Mr. Ran- 



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dall lias been jm the practice of the Law, doing bus- 
iness in all the State and Federal Courts, and making 
a success of his profession. He has the reputation 
of being a well-read lawyer, faithful to his clients, 
clinging to his client's interests with bull-dog ten- 
acity, thus attaining .1 success in his profession per- 
haps greater than most practitioners. Mr. Randall 
was Postmaster a1 Mount Holly, his native town, and 
held the same office at an early day at De Kalb ; 
but resigned his office on entering the State Legisla- 
ture in 1865-6, to which he was, against his own 
wishes, elected, and has held several municipal 
offices in this city, and was also a member of the 
School Board. He has always taken a lively interest 
in the cause of education, and no doubt still regrets 
that ill health prevented him from going through 
college. 

He was originally a Whig, an unterrified Vermont 
Wing, and left that State two years after "John 
Brown's soul " commenced " marching on." Since 
1855 he has been an enthusiastic Republican, and an 
earnest worker in his party, attending Judicial, Con- 

ional and State Conventions as a Delegate from 
his county, and at times doing manly and effective 
work on the stump. Also, he was an efficient worker 
in securing recruits for the war, making war speeches, 
but poor health prevented him from taking the held. 
He is still a zealous advocate of temperance, in be- 
half of which cause he has pleaded in a half dozen 

i besides Illinois, including New Hampshire, 
YYimont, Massachusetts, New York and Michigan. 
Mr. Randall has also lectured on various other sub- 
jects, such as the enfranchisement of women, pre- 
Adamite man, etc. Being well posted in the Scrip- 
turcs, he has given an able lecture on "What is Re- 
ligion?" and is familiar with the various questions 
and themes agitating the public mind. He is. a fas- 
cinating talker, a keen logician and a splendid de- 
bater. 

His first wife died in 1861, and in 1868 he married 
Mrs. Mardula D. (Bent) Boynton. They have no 
children. Mr. Randall has a compact build, is five 
feet two inches tall, and weighs 185 pounds. His 
are blue, but his disposition is not! He is 
rather jovial, laughs easily and heartily, and is a 
good factor of a social circle. He was educated a 
Methodist and is a member of the Methodist Epis 
copal Church. 

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•■-■.• 

ohn P. Van Voorhis, physician an sur- 
geon, resident at Fielding, was born Oct. 
16, 1833, in Ulster Co., N. Y. Daniel Van 
Voorhis, his father, was a native of Ulster 
County and married Cornelia Nagle. Both 
parents were of Dutch descent. After their 
marriage they remained in Ulster Co., N. Y., until 
the subject of this sketch was about a year old, 
when they moved to Booneville, Oneida Co., N. Y., 
where the father died, Aug. 8, 1842, aged 43 years. 
The mother died there, Aug. 31, 1884, being 86 
years of age. 

The subject of this sketch is the sixth in order of 
birth of a family of nine children. He was eight 
years old when his father died. He remained a pupil 
of the district school until he was 15 years of age, 
when he entered Whitestown Seminary, which school 
he attended for the next five years, teaching win- 
ters to pay his way. At this time he commenced 
reading medicine with Dr. Gardner, of Whitesboro, 
and graduated three years later in the Eclectic Medi- 
cal Institute, May 17, 1856, at Cincinnati, Ohio. 

Soon after obtaining his credentials he took the 
practice of Dr. Thomas at Harrison, Ohio, while that 
doctor took a vacation, coming thence in the spring 
of 1857 to Rockford, 111., where he remained only a 
few months. In the fall of 1 857 he located in the Penn- 
sylvania Settlement in the township of Monroe, in 
Ogle County, where he prosecuted the labors of his 
chosen profession until 1877, when he moved to 
Fielding, DeKalb Co., 111. 

At the time of his settlement in Ogle County he 
was considerably in debt for his last year's schooling, 
but when he left there he paid off his indebtedness 
and was the owner of 320 acres of land in that 
county and of 800 acres in Wright and Delaware 
Counties in Iowa. He became a stock-holder in the 
Sycamore National Bank at its organization in 1876, 
and is now a Director of the Bank, having had a 
considerable experience in money-lending, on his 
own account, for the last 20 years. Since his re- 
moval to Fielding he has added 150 acres to his pos- 
sessions in Illinois, and has purchased 320 acres in 
the southern part of Dakota. He is also the owner 
of a fine and valuable location at Fielding. 



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The Doctor's skill as a medical practitioner has 
met with constant and ready recognition, and he con- 
trols a large practice. He is a temperance advocate 
of an inflexible type. While politically a Republican, 
he is always ready to support prohibition principles. 

He married Miss J. Ann Miller, Oct. 3, i860. Her 
father, John Miller, was born at Canajoharie, N. Y. 
Her mother, Mary Grill, was born at Starks, N. Y. 
Both parents were of German descent. After their 
marriage they moved to Steuben, Oneida Go., 
N. Y., where Mrs. Van Voorhis was born, Dec. 31, 
1833. When she was 12 years of age, she came 
West with her parents, who settled in Ogle Go., 111. 
Five children have been born of her marriage to the 
Doctor, as follows: Miss Viola V., their eldest, is a 
music teacher and has an enviable reputation in her 
profession. Miss Carrie C., their second daughter ) 
is a successful school-teacher; J. Frank, their oldest 
son, is a graduate of the business college at Dixon, 
111.; D. De Witt, their second son, is an active, ener- 
getic lad of 14 summers, full of business and energy ; 
Miltie M., their youngest, is a bright, active little girl 
nine years of age ; is very fond of her books and a 
great reader. 

Thus we see the Doctor has a good home, a pleas- 
ant family, a competence of this world's goods, and 
something to help his children, of whom he is very 
fond. 

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>artin Pabst, formerly of Sycamore, was 
born in Unterlauderbach, Bavaria, in 
1 October, 1824. He attended school until 
he was 14 years of age, as required by the 
",? laws of his native country, after which he was 
engaged in farming. He came to the United 
States in r 848 and located at first in Chicago, where he 
learned the cooper's trade. He removed from there 
to Elgin and was there married to Margaretta Wetzel. 
He remained in Elgin working at his trade until 1854, 
when he went to Dundee, and there opened a 
cooper's shop. He soon after bought a hotel and 
continued to operate in both capacities until 1863, in 
which year he transferred his residence to Chicago. 
His wife died July 30, 1864. He was again married 
Dec. 25, 1864, to Mary Bar, a native of Baden, Ger- 
many. 

Mr. Pabst continued to operate as cooper until his 





removal to Sycamore in 1866. He bought a frame 
house, and its location on the corner of State and 
Maple streets, and opened a boarding-house and 
restaurant and continued the management of these 
branches of business until he built the Pabst House in 
1873. He died Jan. 13, 1875, at Sycamore. In 1883 
his wife sold his hotel property and bought a site for 
a dwelling where she erected a line residence. Mr. 
Pabst was one of the solid men of Sycamore and has 
done a prosperous business throughout his life of ac- 
tivity. 

By his first marriage he had two children — Frank 
and Anna. The present Mrs. Pabst is a lady of in- 
telligence and ability. 



eorge I. Talbot. County Superintendent of 
Schools, residing at De Kalb, was born in 
Wyoming Co., N. Y., April 19, 1854. He 
*<jf* is a son of Alfred and Celia {nee Hunt) Tal- 
bot, the former a native of England and the 
latter of New York. His parents moved to 
Barry Co., Mich., when the subject of this notice was 
but four years of age, where they remained two 
years and then came to this State, locating in Leland, 
La Salle County. 

Mr. Talbot received his early education in the 
graded schools at Leland, and previous to his 18th 
year taught a term of winter school in Northville, La 
Salle County. After teaching several terms he con- 
cluded to prepare himself more thoroughly for pro- 
fessional work; and, possessing a strong desire for a 
higher education, he matriculated at the State Nor- 
mal University at Normal, 111., and followed the cur- 
riculum of that institution two years. 

After leaving the latter place, Mr. Talbot sojourned 
for one summer in Kentucky, when he returned to 
this State and engaged in teaching. In the fall of 
1877 he returned to the State Normal University and 
completed the entire curriculum of that institution, 
including three terms, teaching in the preparatory 
department, graduating in the spring of 1878. 

After graduating he taught one year in Victor 
Township, and was then invited to take charge of 
the graded schools of Shabbona, which invitation he 
accepted. In 1SS1 he was appointed, and in 1882 
elected, County Superintendent of Schools, which 
position he now holds. When he first accepted the 



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appointment of County Superintendent, the time al- 
lotted to that officer in which to perform his duties 
was so short (65 days in each year) and the salary 
so small, he was compelled to teach also. But the 
increasing duties of the office obliged him to resign 
his position as teacher at the close of the year 1882. 
At tHi-. time the Board of Supervisors increased the 
number of days allowed for official duties. Since 
that time he has devoted his entire time to the inter- 
ests of the schools of this county. 

Previous to Mr. Talbot's appointment, for several 
years, the district schools had been entirely without 
supervision, without any definite plan of work and 
with but few trained teachers. Under his judicious 
management, a course of study and system of exam- 
ination for district schools has been prepared and 
introduced; a series of institutes and teachers' meet- 
ings held; the grade of scholarship of the teachers 
raised at least 40 per cent. A lively interest is 
awakened and I)e Kalb County is rapidly taking a 
a prominent place among the counties of the State 
in educational matters. At the institute held in 
1884, the teachers of this county testified their ap- 
preciation of the ability of Mr. Talbot as a school 
manager, as well as of his genial and gentlemanly 
social qualities, by presenting him a fine gold watch. 

Mr. Talbot was united in marriage to Miss Lucy 
E. Maxwell, Oct. 4, 1879. She was born in John- 
sonburg, N. J., June 16, 1856. They are the parents 
of two children, namely: Ray Maxwell, born Dec. 
4, 1880, and Edna J., born Dec. 4, 1882. 



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illiam H. Wise, deceased, a former resi- 
dent of section 9, Sycamore Township, 
was born in Minden, West Prussia, Feb. 2, 
S27. He obtained a good education in his 
lative country, and in 1847 sailed for the 
United States. When he landed at Boston, he 
was the possessor of five dollars in cash. His first 
employment was with a hotel-keeper, where he was 
engaged until winter, when he attended school. In 
the ensuing spring he went to Wisconsin. He 
engaged in farming, and saved his earnings to pay 
his educational expenses at a seminary. He became 
competent to teach, and passed four years in that 
vocation. He went next to Massachusetts, where 



he passed four years, after which he resumed the 
labors of his former vocation in Wisconsin, coming 
subsequently to Illinois, where he was similarly em- 
ployed until 1859. In that year he made an over- 
land journey to California, walking most of the way, 
and spending four months on the journey. He 
bought 300 acres of land in Yuba County, four miles 
from Marysville. He sold his California property in 
1863 and came to Sycamore, where he arrived in 
1 >e< ember. 

He was married March 12, 1 865 , to Caroline M. 
Calkins, daughter of Asa M. Calkins, one of the 
early settlers of Sycamore. After their marriage, Mr. 
and Mrs. Wise settled on a farm on section 9 of 
Sycamore Township, where his death occurred Jan. 
15, 1884. The farm contains 467 acres, all under 
improvement, well stocked and having commodious 
buildings. Two sons survive the father — William C, 
a student at Evanston, and Charles H. 

Mr. Wise was a Republican in political sentiment, 
and was a member of the Methodist Episcopal 
Church, to which Mrs. Wise also belongs. 

ames A. McDole, foreman in the shops of 
the Superior Barbed-Wire Works, located 
at De Kalb, is a native of New York 
State. He was born in Deering, Chemung 
County, that State, Oct. 18, 1848, and is a 
son of John and Catherine (Swasey) McDole. 
When five years of age his parents moved to this 
State and located in Kane County. They resided in 
the latter county for about three years, and then 
moved to this county, settling in Pierce Township. 
Remaining in that township two or three years, they 
then removed to Afton Township, where- his father 
purchased a farm and devoted his time and energies 
to its improvement and cultivation. 

Mr. McDole remained on his father's farm, in 
Afton Township, assisting in its cultivation and at- 
tending the common schools, until he attained his 
majority. In 1872 he started on life's journey single- 
handed and alone. For two years he cultivated a 
farm which he rented, and then purchased one of 
his own, which he conducted until 1875. During 
that year he sold his farm and moved to the village 
of De Kalb, and for a year worked in a grocery and 




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restaurant. He then engaged in the wire works and 
followed that vocation for three years, after which he 
returned to Afton Township and resumed farming. 
He continued in the latter vocation until 1882, when 
he again returned to De Kalb, and on the 5th of 
April of that year accepted the position as foreman 
in the shops of the Superior Barbed-Wire-Fence Fac- 
tory, and has continuously filled the position until 
the present time. 

Mr. Mc Dole was married Dec. 20, 1882, to Miss 
Amanda, daughter of Henry and Mary (Brown) 
Wilkinson. She was born in Mayfield Township. 

* -«^ * 




ouis Connart, one of the substantial busi- 
ness men ' of Sycamore, was born Aug. 4, 
1833, in the city of Krotochin, in the prov- 
ince of Posen, in Prussian Poland. He is the 
son of Simon and Bertha Warschauer. His father 
was a merchant in the city where the son was 
born. The latter went to England, where, on ac- 
count of the orthographical difficulty with the family 
name, and the fact that its proper pronunciation was 
almost impossible to untrained tongues, induced 
him to change his name to its present form. 

Mr. Connart passed the period required by the 
laws of his native land in attendance at school and 
in compliance with the law that the children should 
go to school until 13 years of age ; but he was taken 
from school for the purpose of learning a trade at the 
age of 12 years and was apprenticed to a tailor. 
At the end of the prescribed three years he had ac- 
quired a thorough knowledge of the business, and on 
the expiration of his indentures he set out for Ham- 
burg on foot with ten cents cash capital to begin the 
world with. He spent six months in Hamburg, and 
went thence to England, where he worked at his 
trade in London two years. In the year 1850 he 
returned to his home, where he passed a brief period 
among his friends, after which he sailed for America. 
After a voyage of six weeks he landed at the port of 
New York. He went thence to Boston, where lie 
operated as a tailor a few months and proceeded to 
Eastport, Maine. He was there one year, working 
at his trade and as a salesman in a clothing house. 
He went next to Calais and became the manager of 
a clothing establishment, officiating in that capacity 



two years, when his employer failed, without having 
paid his salary for the time he had operated in his 
interests. Attorneys advised him to take no legal 
measures to secure the amount due him, but he 
watched his opportunity, and on one occasion, when 
he found his employer making a temporary stay in 
New Brunswick, he procured his pay by forcing 
him to a settlement. Mr. Connart went next to 
Dover, N. H., and after a short time proceeded to 
Farmington, where, with an associate, he opened a 
tailor shop. This venture proved a failure and 
closed at the end of a year, Mr. Connart finding 
himself the possessor of $20, with which he set out 
for the West. After a brief stay in Chicago, he came 
to Sycamore, the owner of $5 in money. He arrived 
here in 1858. He obtained a situation in the store 
of Isaac Marks, at a salary of $30 a month, with 
which he paid his own expenses and contributed to 
the support of his father in his native land. His in- 
dustry and frugality wrought substantial results, and 
in 186 1 he found himself the possessor of $600, and 
friends (Mr. J. S. Waterman and E. Hunt) in cir- 
cumstances to afford him assistance in obtaining from 
the latter the necessary guaranty for $5,000 worth 
of goods in New York, and entered upon the prose- 
cution of a prosperous business. He carries on a 
gentlemen's furnishing store, dealing in all the arti- 
cles common to such establishments. A custom de- 
partment is attached to the establishment. 

Mr. Connart was married in 1865, to Miss Herbert, 
a native of the same city in Prussia, of which he is 
himself a native. They have four children— Bertha, 
Benjamin, Isaac and Dora. The family residence 
on State Street was purchased in 1876. 



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R. Thompson, one of the oldest and most 
prominent and worthy pioneers of De Kalb 
'W&f? County, and residing at De Kalb, as a vener- 
'IwSi able patriarch, surrounded by a large circle 
of relatives and friends, is a native of Ohio. 
His parents, Samuel and Hannah (Roberts) 
Thompson, were natives of the State of New York. 
His grandfather Thompson, a native of Connecticut, 
was one of the early settlers of the Holland Pur- 
chase, in Western New York. He and three sons, 
as also Samuel Thompson's father-in-law, served in 



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the War of [812, between the United States and 
('■rc.u Britain, and were stationed at Buffalo, N. Y., 

tat the time thai 1 iiy was captured and burned. Mr. 
Samuel Thompson, being well acquainted with the 
topography of the country in the vicinity of Buffalo, 
was selected to act as guide to a portion of the re- 
treating army. 

After the restoration of peace, the latter settled in 
Ashtabula Co., Ohio, where he was a pioneer, and 
made three farms in the primitive wilderness, in the 
town of Geneva. In the meantime, as foreman, he 
superintended the construction of tin: Government 
works at the wharves at the mouth of Ashtabula 
Creek; but while thus engaged he contracted a pul- 
monary disease, which became the occasion of his 
moving Westward. Accordingly, on the 15th day of 
April, 1835, he started West, with two yoke of oxen 
ami two wagons, loaded with household goods, and 
accompanied by his family, consisting of his wife, 
eight children and a son-in-law. At that early day, 
when the roads were poor and the bridges few and 
far between, they had a tedious journey. They were 
live and a half days crossing the Maumee swamp 
alone — a distance of 31 miles. They arrived at 
Joliet on the 2 2d of May, stopping first at the Black- 
burn Tavern. Mr. T. bought city property, and, 
with his family, remained a resident there until No- 
vember, 1836. Then pushing on still further into the 
frontier, he first located, before the land was sur- 
veyed, in that part of Kane County which is now in- 
cluded in De Kalb County. He purchased a claim 
on what was afterward surveyed as section 1 of 
De Kalb Township, on which was only a log house. 
Here he commenced the protracted task of making a 
comfortable home ; but, his health already impaired, 
he continued gradually to fail until Aug. 2, 1840, 
when death put an end to his sufferings. He had to 
cease from manual labor entirely in the fall of 1838. 
Three years afterward his widow married Valentine 
Randall and moved to Kane County. She finally 
died in Hampshire 'Township, that county, in July, 
1861. 

The grandfather of the subject of this sketch, a 
native of Connecticut, was a pioneer of Western New 
York, and afterward a resident of Ashtabula Co., 
Ohio. In 1836 he visited his son in Illinois, making 
the journey from Ohio and return with a team. His 

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death occurred in Pennsylvania, in 1X37, at 77 years 
ot age. 

Mr. Thompson, whose name heads this biography, 
was born in the town of Geneva, Ashtabula Co., Ohio, 
Aug. 23, 1818, came to Illinois with his parents and 
made his home with them until the death of his 
father. He continued to occupy and improve the 
claim, which he entered after it came into market. 
He equipped the place with a good collection of farm 
buildings, residing there until 1872, when he sold it 
and moved to De Kalb, purchasing the residence he 
now occupies. 

He was married Dec. 10, 1843, to Miss Eliza A. 
Parker, who was born in Castile, Genesee Co., N. Y. 
'They had eight children, namely: Alvira, now the 
wife of Daniel Klock; Elizabeth, 'now Mrs. Charles 
Foreman ; William W. ; George S., farmer and broom 
manufacturer in Ogle County; Ira Andrew, who is a 
resident of 'Texas; James S., a resident of De Kalb; 
Ida, who is the wife of Dr. C. D. Carter; and Emma, 
the youngest, who resides at home with her parents. 



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ev. L. A. R. Erhard, Priest in charge of 
the Catholic Church at Somonauk, was 
born in Joliet, Will Co., 111., April 16, 1856. ( 
Sept. 1, 1870, he entered the College and 
Seminary of Our Lady of Angels, an institution 
beautifully situated, two miles north of Sus- 
pension Bridge, on the New York bank of Niagara 
River. By a special act of the Legislature it enjoys 
all the privileges of a university. 

It was there that Mr. Erhard completed his classi- 
cal and theological studies, and June 7, 1879, was 
ordained priest for his native diocese of Chicago by 
Rt. Rev. S. V. Ryan, Bishop of Buffalo. At that 
time he was appointed by the deceased Bishop Mc- 
Mullen, then administrator of the diocese, to take 
charge of one of the most important curacies in the 
city. He remained there for five years, under the 
learned and zealous priest, Father P. Riordan, who, 
Sept. 16, 1S83, was consecrated coadjutor, now 
Archbishop of San Francisco. Under the adminis- 
tration of this learned and zealous ecclesiastic, was 
built St. James' Catholic Church, a structure erected 
at a cost of $[50,000. Its location is 2,924 Wabash 
Avenue. Whilst discharging his duties as a curate 



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in this church, Father Erhard made for himself 
numerous friends by his zeal, which he particularly 
evinced whilst in charge with Father Henneberry, 
his fellow-curate, over the Sunday-school department, 
which had an attendance of i,ooo children. It was 
from this Church, Father Erhard was first appointed 
to take charge of a parish by His Grace, Archbishop 
Feehan, of Chicago. He was appointed to succeed 
Father Huth, of Somonauk, May i, 1884. 

His parents are the oldest residents of Will County. 
They emigrated from Europe in 1833 and arrived 
that same year in Chicago; assisted in erecting its 
first Catholic church, old "St. Mary's;" were there 
united in the holy bonds of matrimony, and two years 
later settled in Joliet, enjoying at an advanced age 
the society of numerous friends. Mr. Erhard's 
father, George Erhard, Vfas born in the town of Mid- 
dlestreih, in the kingdom of Bavaria, and his mother, 
Louisa (Periolat) Erhard, is a native of Hochfelden, 
in the province of Alsace. 

Rev. L. A. R. Erhard, their son, though hardly a 
year in his new field, has added improvements to the 
amount of a thousand dollars to the parochial resi- 
dence. A new Catholic Church, at a cost of $3,000, 
will be dedicated during the autumn of 1885, in Bris- 
tol, a mission attached to Somonauk. The contract 
for building a Catholic church at the same cost will 
be let this spring in Piano, where a mission has re- 
cently been opened, and in Sandwich $600 has been 
paid in the purchase of a lot and in the laying of a 
foundation for a Catholic school. Four Sunday- 
schools have been organized, with an average attend- 
ance of 200 children. Father Erhard is doing a 
grand work for his people. 



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orenzo Dow Evans, resident on section 2, 
Sycamore Township, was born Feb. 9, 1834, 
T* in Asli County, N. C. He is the son of 
Benjamin and Frances (Perry) Evans, and was 
A an infant in his mother's arms when his par- 
ents set out to seek a home in the then far away 
West. They made the journey overland, but he has no 
remembrance of the slow, toilsome and tedious prog- 
ress they made toward the setting sun. When he 
was four years old — in 1838 — they located at Syca- 
more. He has, therefore, so to speak, " grown up " 




with the county, and witnessed its increasing pros- 
perity. As soon as he reached a suitable size he 
aided his father in his labors on the farm, and he re- 
ceived his education in the pioneer schools; to use 
his own language, he " graduated at the log school- 
house." 

He was married April 26, 1857, to Mary, daughter 
of Eli and Deborah (Rockwood) Jewell, who were 
among the earliest settlers in De Kalb County. After 
marriage he settled on section 2, Sycamore Township, 
which he still occupies. It had been entered by his 
father, and is now a valuable farm with a comple- 
ment of good buildings. 



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Sf8|s§L d ward F. White, deceased, was one of the 

'■ hl&lfa' earliest of the pioneer settlers of De Kalb 
^IS^ 1 * County, where he came in 1836. He was 
born Jan. 31, 1795, in Rensselaer Co., N. Y. 
and is the son of James and Mary White. His 
parents were both natives of New England, and 
when he was an infant they moved to Brandon, Yt., 
where he was reared to adult age on a farm. Dur- 
ing the War of 1812 he was a volunteer, and went to 
Plattsburg. After the battle he returned to Vermont. 
Two years later he went to the State of New York 
and located near Plattsburg. He was married Aug. 
25, 1822, to Mary, daughter of Seth and Sarah 
(Stone) White. He owned a farm in Chazy, 12 miles 
from Plattsburg, on which he resided until 1835. In 
that year he started for Illinois. He went with two 
span of horses and two wagons to Ogdensburg, and 
thence by boat on the St. Lawrence River and Lake 
Ontario to Lewiston, on the Niagara River. From 
there the teams were in requisition to Buffalo, where 
they re-embarked for Detroit. They drove thence to 
Chicago, which was then but a village, and went to 
Plainfield, where they remained until the spring of 
1836. 

In the previous winter, Mr. White prospected in 
De Kalb County, and bought a claim in what is now 
Sycamore Township, where he built a log house, of 
which the family took possession in May. When the 
survey was made and the land came into market, 
seven years later, he paid $228 for the claim, which 
he entered in the land office at Chicago. He made 
the usual improvements on the farm, which he occu- 



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pied until 1859. In that yeai lie removed to Syca- 
more, where lie died, Sept. 23, 1867. He was one of 
the organizers of the First Methodist society at Syca- 
more. 

\li^ White siill survives her husband. Five chil- 
dren are also living — Eveline, Phebe, Caroline. VI- 
mira and Mary. Oliver White, the only son, died 
« hen .)-• \ ears oi age. 




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ichael Walsh, formerly a resident on sec- 
tion 1 1, Pierce Township, was a pioneer of 
I )e Kalh County, He was born in 1706, 
\ in County Mayo, Ireland, and was bred to 
•v* the vocation of farming in his native land. His 
I wife, Ellen (Philbein) Walsh, was also born in 
' County Mayo, and to them were born four chil- 
dren, — John, Mark, Mary and Bridget. 

In 1848 the family set out from Liverpool for the 
United States in a sailing vessel, and were on the 
Atlantic < tcean live weeks. On arrival at the port of 
New York they started for Albany on the Hudson 
River, and proceeded thence by the Erie Canal to 
Buffalo. From that place they came to Chicago on 
U -\ a lake steamer. Their journey thence to St. Charles, 
Kane Co., Ill , was made with a team, where they 
arrived in June, 1848. In July following they came 
to De Kalb County, where the father entered a claim 
of land on section 11, of township 39, range 5, now 
the township of Pierce. The family lived for a time 
in .1 shanty made of boards, which was later replaced 
by a comfortable house. The first crops raised on 
the place were marketed at St. Charles, 17 miles dis- 
tant. Mr. Walsh improved his entire property, set- 
ting nut shade and fruit trees anil erecting good 
buildings. He lived to see his property well devel- 
oped, and died March 4, 1 87 1 . His wife died May 
18, 1884. Three of their children survive them. 

Mark Walsh was born May 10, 1837, in County 
Mayo, Ireland. He came when 11 years old with 
Ins parents to the United States, and grew to rnan- 
h I in the township of Pierce, assisting in the im- 
provement of the home farm and attending the 
pioneer schools. He was married Sept. 28, 1869, to 
Mary Scott. She was born in Illinois and was the 
daughter of Richard Scott. She died in 1876, leav- 




ing one child — -Richard. The second wife, to whom 
Mr. Walsh was married Jan. [, 1877, was named 
Margaret Bart ley. She died Oct. 15, 1880, leaving 
two children. — Ellen and John. Mr. Walsh con- 
tracted a third matrimonial alliance, Oct. 19, 1882, 
with Mar) Coffey, and they have one child, named 
Mark. Mrs. Walsh is the daughter of Jeremiah and 
Bridget Coffey, and was born in County Kerry, Ire- 
land. 

In 1S69 Mr. Walsh located on his homestead, 
comprising 240 acres of land located on sections 2 
and 1 1, all of which is at present under good improve- 
ments. In 1876 he rented his farm and removed to 
Sycamore, whence he went in 1880 to Maple Park 
and engaged in the lumber business, in which he is 
still interested. 



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mos Story, whose name is as much a part 

W of the local history of the county of De Kalb 

and the township of Sycamore as that of 






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any other individual within their borders, has 
been identified with the progress and develop- 
ment of both since 1837, six years before the 
land came into market, and some time before Syca- 
more assumed the dignity of its present name. He 
has been a resident on section 9 from the date of 
making his location. The claim contained a log 
shanty roofed with shakes, and constituted thg en- 
tire improvements. Mr. Storey moved the structure 
to a new location, bought a yoke of oxen and entered 
resolutely into the work of improvoment. He was 
then a single man, and boarded in the neighborhood 
while improving his property. 

He was born Dec. 8, 18 13, in the town of Stowe, 
Washington Co., Vt., and is the son of William and 
Rebecca (Hicks) Story. His parents were natives of 
Vermont, and his paternal grandfather was a soldier 
in the war of the Revolution. He died and was buried 
at St. Alban's, Vt. The father died in St. Lawrence 
Co., N. Y., whither he had removed many years be- 
fore. 

Mr. Story grew to manhood in his native town. In 
the fall of 1835, he went to Allegany Co., N. Y., with 
a team, and there spent the winter as a saw-mill as- 
sistant in the town of Cuba. In the spring of 1836 
he started for Pittsburg with a raft of lumber on the 



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Allegheny, and at the junction boarded a similar 
river cr.ift for Cincinnati, and proceeded to the junc- 
tion of the Ohio with the Great Father of Rivers. He 
went up the Mississippi to the mouth of the Illinois, 
and went on the latter river to Ottawa, La Salle 
County, on board a steamer, whence he went to Plain- 
field, Will County. He there engaged as a farm 
laborer with James Matthews. In the spring of 1837' 
in company with another man, he went to Iowa to 
seek a place for a home, but was not pleased with 
the outlook and came to De Kalb County as stated. 

He was married Jan. 28, i860, to Mrs. Abbie 
(Cronk) Hunt, and they have had five children — 
Jane, Alma, Amos, Arthur and Lottie. Mrs. Story 
was born Aug. 14, 183S, in Chenango, Broome Co., 
N. Y. She was married May 13, 1857, at St. Charles, 
Kane Co., 111., to Augustus Hunt, who died Nov. 23, 
1858, leaving one child — Kendall A. 

After their marriage Mr. and Mrs. Story began to 
keep house in their pioneer log cabin, where they 
lived until 186^, when the fine brick residence they 
now occupy was erected. Mr. Story has built a good 
class of farm structures, and has a valuable place 
with good stock. He is engaged in other avenues of 
business besides farming, and has been prominent in 
official life. In 1872 he met with an accident from 
which'he has since been a constant sufferer. 



^F^l* D. London, farmer on the northeast quar- 
: ! LtoJp: ter of sec. 16, Cortland Township, was born 
%Wr in Clearfield Co., Pa., Aug. 10, 1842. His 
o[(j father, Richard London, was born in Luzerne 
Co., Pa., Jan. 20, 1818, was reared in his native 
State, followed farming, and after coming to De 
Kalb County, dealt considerably in stock, and died 
Feb. 2, 1880. The mother of the subject of this 
sketch, Sarah A., nee Estes, was born Jan. 15, 181 8, 
in Luzerne Co., Pa., and is now living in Sycamore. 
When he was 1 3 years of age, the subject of this 
sketch came with his parents to this county, in 1855, 
first settling in Mayfield Township. Two years af- 
terward they sold out and purchased a farm in Syca- 
more Township, where they lived about ten years; 
then they located upon the farm now occupied by 
Mr. L. D. London. Five or six years afterward his 
father moved back to Sycamore. He has since lived 
on this place, except a year and a half in Iowa. 



Mr. London was married Sept. 8, 1867, to Miss 
Mary M. Schoonover, who was born April 6, 1842, 
in Bradford Co., Pa. Her father, James Schoonover, 
was born Nov. 23, 1808, was a farmer, moved to this 
county in 1S55, settling in De Kalb Township for 17 
years, then moved to Boone Co., Iowa, and finally 
died in Dallas County, that State, Feb. 16, 1880. 
Her mother, Palmila E., nee Lattimore, is living in 
Ogden, Boone Co., Iowa, with her daughter, Mrs. 
Sarah Smith. 

Mr. and Mrs. L. have two children, viz. : Emma 
J., born June 23, 1870, and Nettie A., Sept. 26, 
1872. 

Mr. London is a Democrat in his political princi- 
ples, and both himself and wife are members of the 
Free-Will Baptist Church. 



^<0OO«s 




eorge E. Hobbs, retired farmer, living at 
Hinckley, was born May 12, 1823, in 
Delaware Co., N. Y. His father, Samuel 
Hobbs, was born in New York State and mar- 
ried Catherine Williams, a native of England. 
His parents settled after marriage in Delaware 
Co., N. Y., where his father died Sept. 4, (829. His 
mother died in January, 1830, in Oneida Co., N. Y. 
Mr. Hobbs is the second of five children born to his 
parents. Joseph W., Olive E., Jonas and Catherine 
are the names of, his brothers and sisters. 

He received a common-school education, and 
afterwards attended the academy at Delhi in his 
native county, where he resided until 1865, with the 
exception of three years which he spent in California, 
and along the Pacific Coast, spending some time in 
each of those small republics from New Granada or 
Colombia (as it is now called) up to California, 
and also spending some months in Mexico. In 
In February of that year he came to De Kalb County 
and bought 320 acres of land in Squaw Grove Town- 
ship, located on section 8. On this he pursued his 
agricultural interests, and was resident there until his 
removal to Hinckley in the spring of 1883, and has 
not since participated in active business life. He is 
and has been prominent and active in the Dem- 
ocratic element of De Kalb County, and is one of the 
leaders in the local organization. He is also promi- 
nent in the Masonic and Odd Fellows fraternities, 
and has held the highest offices in both. 



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lie u-.i^ united in marriage I tat. 9, [848, in Delhi, 
Delaware Co., N. Y., to Jannett P. Aitken. She 
was born May 3, 1828, in the citj of New Voik, and 
was the daughter of David and Agnes (Gordon) 
Aitken. By Iter mother she was distantly connei ted 
with General Gordon, rei ently (1885) killed at Khar- 
toum, Afi i< 1. David A., Mary A., Ilatlie A. and 
Nellie M. are ihe names of the children of Mr. and 
Mi>. hfobbs. Mary A.died when nine years and six 
months old. Hattie A, married William T. Blagg 
and resides at Sandwich. Nettie M. is the wife of 
George Mewhirter, of Bristol Station, Kendall Co., 
III. The mother died at Hinckley, April 16, 1883. 

For nearly 20 years Mr. Hobbs was extensively en- 
gaged in agricultural pursuits in this county, becom- 
ing one of the leading and most prominent farmers in 
the county. He is a gentleman highly esteemed by 
the many who know him and has a most excellent 
reputation throughout the county. As a man, there- 
fore, worthy of the place, we insert his portrait in this 
volume. 



i^aniel Waite, farmer, resident on section 34, 
i|> Sycamore Township, was born Oct. 2, 
3lf^t v ' '798, in Braintree, Orange Co., Vt., and 
jy«t is the son of Daniel and Sally (Kidder) 
7^ Waite. His parents were both natives of Mas- 
sachusetts, and accompanied their parents to 
Orange Co., Vt., when extremely young. The fam- 
ilies of both became prominent in social and public 
l:fe, and were remarkable, even in that land of steady 
habits, for correct, well ordered lives. 

The history of Braintree, Vt., in the Gazetteer of 
Miss Abbie Eiemenway, says that Daniel Waitecame 
to Braintree in 17S8 or '9. " Uncle Daniel," as he 
was familiarly railed, was thorough and successful, 
and wholly devoted to his calling. In this particu- 
lar he demonstrated the fact that intelligent farming 
pays. He early imbibed the principle that no far- 
mer can afford to raise corn, oats or hay to sell. He 
should sell horses, not oats ; sheep and cattle, not 
corn. In common with other pioneers, he endured 
man\ hardships. Once he was obliged to bring his 
seed wheat from Middlebury on horseback, with only 
marked tree's to guide him ai ross the mountains. 
Ml the Waites were strictly temperate, not one of 




them having ever been known to be intemperate or 
to use tobacco in any form. The death of the father 
of Daniel Waite occurred Sept. 6, 1862. Mrs. 
Waite, the mother, died Oct. 4, 1S49. 

\li Waite grew to man's estate on the farm in 
Braintree, and was educated in the common schools. 
He was married Jan. 1, 1827, to Mary, daughter of 
Elias and Mary (Willmarlh) Cobb. He settled on 
one of his father's farms, where he continued to 
reside until 1839, the year in which he moved to 
Darien, Genesee Co., N. Y., where he became the 
possessor of an improved farm. He decided to lo- 
1 ate in the West on account of his growing sons, 
and accordingly, in 185.), he sold his farm and came 
to De Kalb County, where he bought an improved 
farm on section 34, on which he pursued his agricul- 
tural projects until 1869. His wife died on the 3d 
of February of that year, and soon afterward he sold 
the place and has since resided with his sons, who 
are farmers on the same section (34). 

To him and his wife nine children were born, as 
follows: Daniel P., Tyler K., Orlando, Edwin and 
Ellen (twins), John E., Charles, Jasper H. and Mary 
E. Daniel P. Waite was born Feb. 22, 1828, in 
Braintree, Vt. He was, for nearly a quarter of a 
century, secretary of the Minnesota Copper Mining 
Company, and in March, 187 1, he settled in Spring- 
field, Mo., and engaged in mercantile business. He 
died there Nov. 3, 1871. Tyler K. Waite was born 
July 1, 1829, and was engaged as a teacher after the 
removal of his parents to Western New York. He 
came to Sycamore in 1854 and started the pioneer 
cheese factory in De Kalb County, and continued its 
manager and proprietor until his death, March 13, 
187 1. Charles and Jasper Waite entered the mili- 
tary service of the United States, and both distin- 
guished themselves and honored the stainless name 
they represented, as well as the generation and com- 
munity to which they belong. 

The former enlisted as a private in Co. C, 27th 
Michigan Regiment Vol. Inf. Soon after the organ- 
ization of his company he was promoted to the rank 
of Second Lieutenant, and he passed the several 
grades of promotion for meritorious conduct, leaving 
the army at the close of the war with the rank of 
Brigadier General, by brevet, He is living at Lena, 
Stephenson Co., 111., and is engaged in the banking 
business. He was wounded in the battle of the 






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Wilderness. Jasper enlisted in 1863, in Co. C, 17th 
111. Cav. He went to the front as Lieutenant of his 
command, and was promoted to a Captaincy. He 
served until the close of the war, and during the 
closing months was a member of the staff of Gen. 
Curtis. Orlando, Edwin and John are farmers on 
section 34. 'The former has traveled extensively on 
his native continent, has been to California twice, 
and on the second occasion extended his trip to 
British Columbia, where he passed three years. 
Edwin Waite is an enterprising and prominent citi- 
zen of his township, and has devoted much time and 
attention to the interests of the general public. He 
is a voracious reader, and has a well stored and dis- 
ciplined mind. He was formerly engaged in the 
sale of McCormick's farm machinery. The broth- 
ers Waite have a valuable and well improved farm, 
with good buildings and orchard. The sisters Waite 
reside with their brothers. 




ackson Hiland, farmer, section 25, De 
Kalb Township, was born in Licking Co., 
^F^ Ohio, in September, 1S32, and is a son of 
Joseph and Hannah (McKillup) Hiland. 
His father was a native of Pennsylvania and 
settled in Ohio a few years after his marriage, 
where he resided until about 1846. During that 
year he started with five horses and two wagons for 
an overland trip to Illinois, accompanied by his 
family. He arrived in De Kalb Township and pur- 
chased a farm from the widow of one Jacob Cox, lo- 
cated on sections 13 and 14. There was a double 
log house and a stable covered with straw on the 
place, but he soon erected a comfortable frame house 
and fenced the land. He then sold the farm and 
moved to De Kalb, where he died. There were 
eight children in his family, seven of whom grew up 
and six of whom are yet living. 

Jackson Hiland, the subject of this notice, soon 
after coming to this county, engaged with Dr. Ruby 
in the sale of drugs, groceries and dry goods. The 
relation existed for five years, when Mr. Hiland, in 
company with J. W. Stone, opened a jewelry, drug 
and grocery store and continued to operate it 
jointly until 186 1. During the latter year he en- 
listed in the 42d Regt., Douglas Brigade, and served 
nine months, in the late Civil War. 




On receiving his discharge, Mr. Hiland returned 
to De Kalb and worked at the jewelry trade 
until 1S67. He then purchased an improved farm 
on section 25, De Kalb Township. He has since 
erected thereon a good frame barn and otherwise 
improved the place. 

Mr. Hiland was married June 8, 1857, to Juliet, 
daughter of David and Juliet (Smith) Price, and a 
native of Otsego Co., N. Y. They have one child, 
Carrie, wife of Luzerne Hopkins, a farmer of De 
Kalb Township. 



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illiam J. Bates, dealer in agricultural ma- 
chinery at Cortland, was born Oct. 15, 
1830, in Chenango Co., N. Y. He came 



844 to De Kalb County with his parents 
and located in what is now Cortland Town- 
ship. In 1848 the family went to what is now 
Pierce Township and settled on the northeast corner 
of section 5, where the senior Bates bought 40 acres 
of land. His mother, Cynthia Bates, died there. 
His father, J. J. Bates, continued to reside on the 
farm some years and was occupied in its improve- 
ment. Later on he took up his residence with his 
son William in Cortland, where he passed his last 
days. 

Soon after coming to De Kalb County, Mr. Bates 
bought his time of his father, paying him $50 there- 
for, and in the winter of 1850-1 he taught the first 
school in the township of Pierce. He chopped the 
wood and furnished the stove in which it was burned. 
He was to receive $15 per month for his services as 
pedagogue and waited two years for his pay. He 
continued to operate as a teacher 24 years, pursuing 
that vocation winters and farming summers. He 
taught 20 terms in District No. 3, Pierce Township. 

Mr. Bates was married March 28, 1851, to Sarah, 
daughter of Daniel and Polly Hunt. She was born 
in Chenango Co., N. Y., and came to Illinois with 
her parents in 1S44. Mr. Bates bought a farm on 
section 5, Pierce Township, where he built a house, 
after a primitive fashion, — driving posts in the ground 
and boarding outside, while the inside was plastered. 
He is the owner of 160 acres of fenced and well im- 
proved land. In 1856 he began the sale of farm 
machinery, and in i860 he established his present 

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business at the village of Cortland, where he has 
built a commodious warehouse tor the storage of ag- 
ricultural implements. Mr. Hates was the fust Clerk 
of Pierce Township, and officiated six years success- 
ively as Assessor in Cortland. To him and his wife 
si\ 1 hildren have been horn, only one of whom, Wal- 
ter H., survives. Three children died in infancy. 
Charles A. died when 13 ye. us ol age, and Sarah J. 
when she was three years old. 



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Sylvester Pasley, deceased, formerly a far- 
mer nil sections 13 and 14, De Kalb 
\^t, Township, was born in July, 1842. in the 

'\\^ township in which he lived until his death. His 
father, James Pasley, one of the pioneers of this 
county, was born in Kentucky, April 11, 1807. 
When seven years of age, his parents moved to Hamil- 
ton Co., Ohio, where he lived and grew to manhood. 
He married Sarah Carney, a native of that State, 
born Jan. 30, 1808, and about 1834 they moved to 
Indiana and located on the Wabash River, near the 
mouth of the Shawnee. He was a carpenter by 
trade, and was engaged in making flat-boats in the 
latter State until the spring of [836. At that time- 
he, with liis family, Started on an overland trip to 
Illinois and arrived in that part of Kane County 
now known as De Kalb. He immediately entered a 
claim on sections 13 and 14 of what is now De Kalb 
Township, this county. He at once set about to 
build him a log house, split shakes to cover the roof, 
and in lieu of nails used heavy poles to keep the 
roof in place, and for a floor used puncheons split 
from basswood logs.. Having faith in the future de- 
velopment of the country, and desiring to establish a 
home for his family, he entered vigorously upon the 
laborious task of improving his land, and continued 
to reside thereon and labor until his death in 1851. 
Ten years later, in 1861, his wife joined him in the 
unknown world. They were the parents of six chil- 
dren. Henry died in Indiana, and William Hamil- 
ton died in this county; May married Arthur Pasley 
and died in De Kalb Township William and Ben- 
jamin are the only survivors, and the latter is a res- 
dent of Story Co., Iowa. 

Sylvester I'asley was brought up on the home- 
stead and assisted his father in its development. 



He was a recipient of the advantages afforded by 

the common schools and remained on the home- 
stead until he attained his majority. When the late 
Civil War broke out, Mr. I'asley was among the 
many who responded to the call for troops and en- 
listed December, 1861, in Co. G, 58th 111. Vol. Inf. 
He veteranized in 1863 and continued in the service 
until April, 1866. Among the more important bat- 
tles in which he participated, were Ft. Donelson, 
Shiloh, Nashville, Fort Blakely, and Spanish Fort, 
besides numerous minor battles and skirmishes. He 
was wounded at the battle of Shiloh and thereby 
incapacited from service for about four months, ex- 
cepting which time he was continuously in active 
service. He was mustered out with the regiment in 
1866, and was the o'dy one of 17 from this county 
in his compan) who had not previously received his 
discharge. 

In the spring of 1867 Mr. Pasley went to Colo- 
rado, where he engaged in teaming between Denver 
and the mines. After three years' sojourn in that 
State he returned to this county, remained a year 
and then went back to Colorado. He remained at 
the latter place six years, variously engaged, and 
then returned and settled on the old homestead On 
which he resided until his death, which occurred 
March 30, 1885. 

Mr. Pasley was married Feb. 11, 1878,10 Miss 
Sarah Kessler, a daughter of Michael and Mary A. 
Kessler, pioneer settlers of Pierce Township, in 
which township she was born. They have four chil- 
dren. — Ida M.. Henry C. and Alonzo A. The old- 
est child, Eliza D., died when one year and one 
month old. 



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3KX3£osea W. Willard, contractor and builder at 
'J- S\. .inline, was born July 17, 1826, in 
■ '• i- " k Windsor Co., Vt. His father, Oliver Will- 
ih ard, was born Aug. 5, 1789, at Windsor, Vt., 
f and died Jan. 2, 1854. His mother, Lucy 
(Weeden) Willard, was bom Oct. 24, 1796, at 
Hartland, Vt., and died Dec. 9, 1849. Thej re- 
moved from the Green Mountain State to Sycamore, 
111., in 1846. Five of their 11 children are living. 
Mr. Willard is the eldest who survives, and is the 
fifth in the order of birth. Charles is a mason in 



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Boone Co., Iowa. Marcia is the wife of Spafford 
Smith, a retired farmer of Sycamore. Helen married 
Robert Rowe, a merchant in Story Co., Iowa. Cur- 
tis is a mason and pursues his trade in Boone Co., 
Iowa. 

Mr. Willard was reared to the age of 16 on a farm 
In the fall of 1843, an elder brother, Oliver, now de- 
ceased, came to Sycamore and engaged in the busi- 
ness of a mason. Hosea accompanied him and 
obtained employment as a carpenter. After working 
at his trade for a time he began to operate as con- 
tractor, which method of business he has since pur- 
sued. He has erected a number of fine residences 
and prominent buildings in Sycamore. 

He was married in Derby, Orleans Co, Vt., to 
Martha A. W., daughter of Thomas and Susan 
Weeden and a native of Hartland, Windsor Co., Vt. 
They have two children : Clarence H., now follow- 
ii.g the business of photography, was born Feb. 19, 
1856; and Oliver T., born July i, 1868, is a tele- 
graph operator. 




fWMl dwin L. Mosher, retired farmer, De Kalb, 

'■§jfp wa> born in 



born in Providence, Saratoga Co., 
N. Y., Jan 2, 1834, and was 12 years of 
age when his parents, Levi and Caroline L. 
(Smith) Mosher, natives of the same county, 
removed to the town of Yates in Orleans 
County, same State, where he was reared to man- 
hood on the farm and at the district school. 

In 1854 he was married to Miss Mercy A. Water- 
bury, who was born in the town of Yates above 
mentioned. They then resided in the town of 
Ridgeway, same county, for a period of three years, 
and then, in 1857, removed to Clinton, this county; 
but within two years returned to New York State and 
worked his father-in-law's farm in Ridgeway for three 
years. Coming again to this county, Mr. Mosher 
bought a quarter of section 16, De Kalb Township, 
of his brother, Charles D., who now resides in Chi- 
cago. He managed that farm until 1882, when he 
left his son in charge of it and moved to the city of 
De Kalb, occupying his present residence on Fourth 
Street. 

Mr. and Mrs. Mosher have had four children, 
namely : George W. ; Charles W. is married and 

■> g@^ - ^^ — cj < ; [in 





settled on a farm in Carroll Co., Iowa; Grant E., 
now living on the home farm ; and Frank, now a 
clerk in De Kalb. George W., the first child, was 
born Sept. 14, 1858, and died Dec. 9, 1877. 



orter Swift Coolidge. farmer, resident on 
sections 9,5 and 4, Cortland Township, was 

•\ '*'•£ born Sept. 28, 1829, in the town of Frank- 

^5 fort, Herkimer Co., N. Y., and is the son of 
Warren and Rachel (Swift) Coolidge. Both 
his parents were natives of Massachusetts, and 
when a young man his father went to the State of 
New York, to seek a home. After a stay of a year at 
Frankfort Hill, he returned and was married. At the 
date of his settlement in Herkimer County, there was 
but one log house on the present site of Utica. He 
bought a tract of land, which was all covered with 
timber. He was in a position to secure the choice of 
land in the Mohawk Valley, but he had been cau- 
tioned against it as a fever-and-ague district, and 
made his selection on the hills instead. He went on 
foot from Albany, and on arrival at the place where 
he had determined to locate, with the necessary and 
trusty ax, he took up his lodgings in a hollow log. In 
this he slept, and a few mornings after taking pos- 
session he found a bear in the other end of the log! 
He made a clearing, built a house and started vari- 
ous plans in the way of pushing his work for estab- 
lishing a home. To this place he brought his wife. 
The first stove he owned he bought with 40 cords of 
split body maple wood and drew it four miles. 

Twelve children were born to Warren and Rachel 
Coolidge, all of whom attained maturity, Porter being 
the youngest. The mother died in 1837, and the 
father in 1842. 

After the demise of the latter, Porter tixik charge 
of the farm and conducted its affairs, in company 
with his three sisters. He obtained a good common- 
school education, and afterwards attended Sauquoite 
Academy three years. On leaving school he set out 
for Illinois, and in the winter of 1850-r taught school 
at Naperville. In the spring following he went to 
California, making the route there via Nicaragua. 
He spent six months there on the Middle Fork of 
the American River, after which he proceeded to the 
Santa Clara Valley, near San Jose Mission, where he 
spent 18 months as a farmer. He then returned to 



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DE KALB COUNTY. 



[llinois, coming thither by Panama and New York to 
De Kiln County, (n company with Stephen A. 
Bemis, he leased the stock farm of John R. Hamlins, 
which contained 1,000 acres. He went lo Ohio and 
Kentucky, and purchased horses, and they interested 
themselves in breeding horses, mules and cattle, 
having about 100 head of each. They continued 
their joint operations five years, after which Mr. 
Coolidge sold his interest to Mr. Bemis and Nathan 
Lattin. and the stock was tak ■ th ■ plains to 

California. 

Mr. Coolidge was married July 26, 185S, to Mar/3 
M. Mi Lagan. In the fall of that year he bought his 
farm, which was one of the first settled in that part 
of De Kalb County, having been improved by Phineas 
foslyn (see sketch). It had a small frame house 
and a small barn. The house in which he now re- 
sides was built in 1875. In 1S74 he purchased the 
Churchill farm, which contained 212 acres, located 
on sections 4 and 5. He now owns nearly 400 acres, 
all of which is under improvement. On the comple- 
tion of the Central Pacific Railroad, he returned to 
California, of whose climate lie had always held a 
favorable opinion, and had cherished a plan to es- 
tablish his home there. But the soil had deteriorated 
in sui h an extent that the yield of grain was less than 
one-half of that at the date of his earlier visit, and 
he did not continue there. In 1881 he made a third 
trip to California, going there by the Southern Pacific 
Railroad, and making a tour of the State from 
north to scuth. He still had the purpose of estab- 
lishing a home in a milder climate, but was again 
disappointed in the Golden State and returned to 
Illinois, nut deeming it wise to risk the certainties of 
a farm in the Prairie State for the uncertainties of 
the lands of California. 

Mr. and Mrs. Coolidge have six children — Carrie 
E., Porter B., Irving A., Ida L., Gertie M. and Abbie 
Blanche. 

homas A. Luney, cashier of the De Kalb 
National Bank, was bom in the city of 
Rockford, Winnebago Co., 111., July 2, 
1853, and when a year old his parents, Ed- 
mund and Catherine (Hogan) Luney, moved 
with their family to De Kalb, where he grew to 
\ears of maturity and received a thorough education 



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at the distric t school. When 16 years of age he en- 
i' red 1 he bank of R. Hopkins & Co., as clerk, and 
since that time he has been closely identified with 
that bank, till its dissolution in 1874, and with its 
successors through all the changes of proprietorship, 
policy and name. Before it was made a National 
bank it was conducted as a private institution for 
several years. At the time it was organized as a 
National bank, Mr. Luney was appointed to his pres- 
ent position as cashier. Mr. Luney is an independ- 
ent Democrat in politics, and has held the office of 
Township Treasurer since 1877. 

Mr. Luney was married in 1878, to Miss Anna A. 
Solon, who was born in De Kalb County, and from 
infancy to the time of her marriage lived in Malta. 
She is the daughter of Timothy and Mary Solon. 
Mr and Mrs. L. have two children, — Ella Agnes 
and Francis Solon. 



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ylvanus Holcomb, of Sycamore, was born 
March 23, 1803, at Sangerfield, Oneida Co , 
N. Y. He is the son of Orator and Hannah 

iVj (Perry) Holcomb. His father was born in Mas- 
sachusetts and went in early manhood to the 
State of New York, where he met and married 
his wife, who was a native of Connecticut, and had 
moved from that State to New York with her parents. 
They lived in Sangerfield until 1805, when they 
moved to Ontario Co., N. Y., and after a residence of 
four years they removed to that part of the Hol- 
land Purchase included in Genesee County, where he 
bought land and improved a large farm. 

When Mr. Holcomb was r7 years of age his par- 
ents went to the township of Darien. He was mar- 
ried there Oct. 4, 1826, to Julia B. Joslyn. He 
bought a farm in the same township, which he re- 
tained in his possession until 1839, when he started 
for a home in the West. He drove with his own 
team to Buffalo, where he embarked for Toledo. He 
drove thence to De Kalb Co., III., and bought a 
claim on section 34, in what is now the township of 
Sycamore. The tract consisted of unbroken prairie, 
and Mr. Holcomb built a log house, 18x24 feet in 
dimensions. There was but one house in sight, and 
the neighbors were the deer and wolves, which then 
were in abundance. One night the fire went out, 



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and as they were without matches, Mr. Holcomb was 
obliged to go more than a mile to obtain fire. In the 
. ,: in which he made his location, he broke 10 
acres and tried to raise a crop on it in 1840, but it 
was almost a failure. He rented land the same year 
on which he raised a crop of oats. Soon after- 
ward he began to raise wheat, which he marketed at 
Chicago, then and for some years subsequently the 
nearest available point. He improved 175 aires of 
land, and built two dwellings besides other farm 
buildings. He sold his farm in 1863 and moved to 
Sycamore. 

His first wife died Dec. 20, 1864, leaving seven 
children. He married Betsey C. Adams, Jan. 1, 
1866, who died Dec. 27, 1882. 



frjjNjLoses W. Jordan, farmer, resident on sec- 
■'. - dJ '& £/ tion 16, Cortland Township, was born 
JV^ Dec. 5, 1 8 19, in the town of Moriah, Es- 
f*\ sex Co., N. Y. He was the fifth child of 
'." Rufus and Rebecca (Bacon) Jordan. His 
father was born Sept. 21, 1783, in the town of 
South Brimfield, Mass. His mother was born Marcli 
22, 1788. The parents of his mother, Thaddeus and 
Polly (Daly) Bacon, were natives of the State of New 
York. John Jordan, father of Rufus Jordan and 
grandfather of Moses, was born Dec. 19, 1752, in 
Massachusetts, and was born of English ancestry. 
He settled in Moriah in the early part of the 18th 
century, where he was engaged in farming. He, in 
connection with his son Rufus, bought timber land, 
from which he cleared two good farms. He was 
prominent in town and county affairs, acting some 
years as Justice of the Peace. His records as a 
Magistrate (dating back to 1809) are now in the 
possession of Mr. Jordan of this sketch. He died 
March 19, 1813, and the demise of his wife occurred 
Oct. 30, 1810. His son Rufus was married Feb. 4, 
1808, and settled on a farm adjoining his father. In 
1830 he removed to Gainesville, Genesee Co., N. Y., 
which is now included in Wyoming County, buying a 
farm where he spent many years, afterwards retiring 
from active life and buying a residence near his 
daughter. He died Nov. 1, 1862, and his wife died 
in Cortland, April 29, 1865. Four of their children 
are still living: Hiram is a farmer at Gainesville but 




*» 



much of his time has been spent in teaching; Lucina 
is the wife of F. H. Jennison, of Gainesville; Moses 
\V. and Lydia, wife of C. F. Ely, live in Cortland. 

Mr. Jordan of this sketch was reared on the farm 
and educated in the public schools. He continued 
to live with his parents until 1843, when he went to 
Warsaw, the county seat of Wyoming County, and 
operated there as a carpenter and joiner and also as 
a farmer, having bought a small farm. He lived in 
Warsaw until 1852, in which year he settled on his 
farm in Cortland Township. In the spring of 1853 
he bought land on sections 9 and 16, containing 69 
acres, of which 15 acres were broken prairie, with a 
small log house and an orchard of limited extent The 
place is now in advanced cultivation, with valuable 
buildings, fruit, shade and ornamental trees. While 
a resident at Warsaw he studied medicine with C. A. 
Dake, M. D., after which he operated to some extent 
as a practitioner while yet in his native State, and 
also has been similarly occupied since coming West. 

In December, 1839, he joined the Methodist Epis- 
copal Church at Gainesville, and immediately de- 
voted himself to the study of the Bible with a view of 
preparing for the ministry. While living in the State 
of New York he was an active member of the Church, 
a Class-leader and Steward. In 1869 he was or- 
dained at Freeport as a local preacher. He has 
always been warmly interested in educational affairs 
and an earnest and decided anti-slavery, anti-tobacco 
and anti-liquor advocate. 

He was united in marriage Feb. 27, 1843, to Miss 
Betsey Perkins. She was born in Hampton, Wash- 
ington Co., N. Y., Aug. 5, 1817, and is the daughter 
of Sylvester and Ruth (Hooker) Perkins The family 
consisted of three sons and six daughters, she being 
the youngest daughter. Mr. Perkins was born in 
Connecticut, and his wife in Poultney, Rutland Co., 
Vt. Only one child was born to Moses and Betsey 
Jordan, Edward Franklin, whose birth occurred Sept. 
21, 1847, in Warsaw, Wyoming Co., N. Y., and he 
married Lucy J. Gale. She was born May 2, 1875, 
in Pierce, De Kalb Co., 111., and is the mother of two 
children, — Ethel and Carmi. E. F. Jordan is the 
manager of his father's farm. He is apt with the use 
of tools, and his readiness in mechanical arts is of 
special value in his business as a farmer and to his 
neighbors. 

Mrs. Jordan is a lineal descendant of Rev. Thomas 



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Hooker, who came from England with his Church 
and settled al Hartford, Conn., in i6oo, ami her father 
lot al preacher in the Methodist Church. David 
Star Jordan, son of Hiram Jordan, is a graduate from 
Cornell University at Ithaca, N. Y., the author of 
several modern, standard text-books on natural 
science, and is at present residing at Bloomington, 
Ind., where he is President of the State University. 



»,on. A. W. Lloyd, of Sycamore, was born 
Dec. 14, 1800, in the town of Blandford, 
Hampden Co., Mass. His father, James 
Lloyd, was horn in Massachusetts, of Scotch 
parentage, and married Sally White, of English 
descent, and belonging to the posterity of Pere- 
grine White, the first white child born in Massachu- 
setts. 

Mr. Lloyd was educated in the public schools of 
lis native county, and was taught the details of 
farming on his father's estate. In 1825 he married 
Parthenia, daughter of Roger and Maty (Webster) 
Haskell, both of Massachusetts. She was borr. in 
Peru, Berkshire County. Her father was of French 
descent, and was a patriot of the Revolution. After 
marriage, Mr. Lloyd and his wife occupied the home- 
stead until 1854, when they sold their interest and 
1 .one to De Kail) County, where they bought a tract 
of unimproved land in South Grove Township. Dur- 
ing the first year he broke 100 acres on his own land, 
and built a house; this he did in addition to man- 
aging the affairs of a farm he rented. In 1S55 the 
family took possession of the place. Mr. Lloyd im- 
proved and operated nearly the entire acreage of the 
farm — 240 acres — erected a large frame house and 
barn, a granary and other farm buildings, and con- 
verted the place into one of the best and most val- 
uable farms in De Kalb County. In 1872 he placed 
his son in charge of the estate and removed to Syca- 
more, where he bought a residence. In April, 1884, 
he removed to another location on the same street. 
Mr. Lloyd became a distinguished citizen of Berk- 
shire County, and held important township offices. 
He also represented his district two terms in the 
State Legislature. He also became prominent in 
military affairs. He was commissioned Ensign 
of the State militia Feb. 10, 1823, and assigned to 

%&*& :s ^^- — @7^n n 





the Fourth Regiment of Infantry in the First Brigade 
and Fourth Division. He afterwards received the 
following commissions : Jan. 7, 1828, Captain of the 
same company; Major of the "Fourth" March 13, 
1829; Lieut.-Colonel, June 9, 1830; and Colonel, 
Feb. 21, 1831. 

His wife died July 2, 1867, and left seven chil- 
dren: Paulina resides with her father at Sycamore; 
William -is a Congregational clergyman at Ravens- 
wood. Ml ; Mary is the wife of A. J. Vanderen, who 
is engaged in mining at Boulder, Col. ; Sergius is the 
manager of the homestead in South Grove Town- 
ship; Louis is in business in Chicago; Alice married 
William M. Rule and lives at Boulder, Col.; and 
Eli W. is a farmer in Malta Township. 



Lawrence Curts, Principal of the De Kalb 

. Si hools, was born in Benton Township, 

Crawford Co., Ohio, Oct. 14, 1852, and is a 




[ son of John and Elmira (Leist) Curts, natives 
of Ohio. His father is a Methodist Episco- 
pal preacher, though formerly connected with 
the United Brethren Church. 

The parents of Mr. Curts moved from Crawford 
County when he was an infant, and settled in Henry 
County. They lived there it years and removed to 
Linn Co., Iowa. Remaining there five years, they 
removed to Sterling, this State, then to Manteno, then 
to Mendota. Between the ages of 13 and 18, three 
years of his life were spent working at the shoe- 
maker's trade, and one year on a farm. 

In 1870, his father purchased a farm in Dickinson 
Co., Kan., and moved his family upon it. He was 
absent from the farm a greater portion of the time, at- 
tending to his professional duties, and the manage- 
ment of the place and necessary work required to 
successfully cultivate it in a great degree devolved 
on the son. He nevertheless was ambitious to ac- 
quire an education, and managed to alternate his 
labors on the farm with attendance at the common 
schools and study at home. His energy soon ad- 
vanced him sufficiently to teach. He taught his 
first term of school near Abilene, Dickinson County, 
and then returned to Henry Co., Ohio, and taught in 
the first school-house in which he had received in- 
struction. His object in teaching at this time was to 



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procure means in which more thoroughly to prepare 
himself for the calling of teacher, and he was suc- 
cessful. He taught two winter terms at the place 
last mentioned, and during the remainder of the time 
attended the Rock River Seminary at Mt. Morris, 111. 
In 1876 he returned to Kansas and engaged in teach- 
ing at Ellis, in Ellis County, that State. He taught 
there two years, and from his savings was enabled to 
matriculate at Cornell College, Iowa. He completed 
the curriculum of that institution and graduated in 
I une, 1881. He then came to De Kail) and ac- 
cepted the position which he at present occupies. He 
is one of those who believe "a person never gets 
too old to learn," and devotes considerable time to 
study. That his efforts at De Kalb have proven a 
success, the present flourishing condition of the 
schools will testify; and that they are appreciated by 
the citizens, is demonstrated by the length of time 
he has served and the terms of praise connected with 
his name when he is spoken of as an educator and 
gentleman. 

Mr. Curts was married in June, 1 88 1 , to Miss 
Clara Holroyd. She was born in Wyanet, Bureau 
Co., 111., and is a daughter of Mark and Cordelia 
Holroyd. Two children have been born to Mr. and 
Mrs. Curts: Boyd G., Oct. 2, 1882, and Paul H., 
July 3, 1884. 



was three years in McDonough County, managing a 
saloon at Colchester two years of that time; then he 
continued the same line of business in Chicago until 
1863, when he came to the village of De Kalb. For 
the first year here he kept a saloon; the succeeding 
three years he conducted a meat market; selling out 
the latter, he built a brewery at Dixon ; but during 
the following winter he again crossed the ocean and 
for a couple of months visited friends in his native 
land. Returning in the spring, he sold his interest 
in the brewery, came again to De Kalb and re-pur- 
chased the meat market, which he operated for some 
years. In 1878 he established his present business 
as above stated. 

He was married March 3, 1851, to Miss Augusta 
T rower, who died May 4, 1855. Mr. Dee was again 
married Feb. 25, 1865, to Miss L. S. Bennett, and by 
the present marriage there are two sons, — Richard 
D. and William H. 



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ichard Dee, manufacturer of bottled soda- 
water and ginger ale, bottled beer, ale and 
ilfcr , porter, and dealer in ice in any quantities, 
' <W ;lt '^ e Kalb, was born in Lincolnshire, Eng- 
land, Oct. 3r, 1829, was brought up to agri- 
cultural pursuits, and in 1851 left his native 
land and came to America, locating first in Racine, 
Wis., where his employment for a few months was in 
a pork packing establishment. He next engaged at 
chopping wood at three shillings per cord, walking 
twice a day the four miles which lay between his 
boarding place and the woods! This was not the 
kind of life he had dreamed of enjoying in America, 
and he felt like returning to his native land ; and he 
probably would have done so had he sufficient means 
in his possession. 

In the spring of 1852 he came to Illinois and en- 
gaged in coal-mining in La Salle, 111., six years ; then I 1848 he was elected Sheriff and removed to Syca- 



0\jf' arshall Stark, deceased, a pioneer of De 
Kalb County, first came to Illinois in 
1834, and spent the summer of that year. 
) \\\ [_j e returned to his native State to engage 
in teaching during the winter, and in 1834 lo- 
cated a claim of land near Rockford, Winne- 
bago County, but made no permanent settlement 
there. He came soon after to De Kalb County and 
located a claim on sections 20 and 21 in what is now 
Sycamore Township. He built a log house near the 
timber and began to make improvements, and as 
soon as the land came into market took the neces- 
sary steps to secure the claim. 

In 1841 he returned to Pennsylvania and was 
married Oct. 5, of the same year, to Loaisa S. Tyler, 
daughter of Royal and Mary Tyler. She was born 
Dec. r6, rS20, in Dimock, Susquehanna Co., Pa. 
Her parents were born in Connecticut and settled 
in Pennsylvania in the fall of the year in which the 
daughter w.islnm. Two weeks after their marriage 
Mr. and Mrs. Stark started for their new home in the 
West, and drove through with a pair of horses. They 
occupied the log house three years, when they re- 
moved to a frame house that had been built on sec- 
tion 2r. Mr. Stark has been School Director. In 






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more. He served in that office three years, and 
during the time he built a hotel it Sycamore. He con- 
ducted it asa house of public entertainment six years, 
after which he returned to the farm. During the 
period of his business career he became extensively 
interested in the lumber business in Michigan and 
spent two winters there. He also owned and man- 
aged a lumber yard in the city of Sycamore. His 
connection with official matters in the township be- 
gan at an early date, and he fulfilled the obligations 
of many offices of tru->t. His homestead farm included 
Soo acres of land, all of which was improved, and he 
owned 360 acres of land in the township of Kings- 
ton, which was all under tillage. 

Mr. Stark was born Aug. 12, 1813, in Luzerne Co., 
Pa. His parents, Oliver and Betsey (Dixon) Stark, 
were both natives of that State, and gave their son a 
good education, which at as early a date as possible 
he utilized in teaching winters, spending the remain- 
der of the years in agricultural pursuits. He died 
Dec. 26, 1882, leaving 10 children,— Harmon M., 
Martha S., Mary E , Jefferson O., Henry J.. Theron 
M., Adah Louisa, Ella A., Emma J. and Hattie M. 

As a representative pioneer of De Kalb County, as 
well as of this section of Illinois, and a gentleman 
who was honored with public office and esteemed by 
his fellow-citizens and worthy to be classed with the 
representative men of the county, we place the 
portrait of Mr. Stark in this volume. 



<vK2££7tBi@' 



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eorge Spickerman, farmer, section 34, 
Malta Township, was born Oct. 14, [833 
in Columbia Co., N. Y., and is the son of 



Andrew A. Spickerman, a farmer and native 
of the State in which his son was born, and 
where he married Catherine E. Budd, a native 
of Dut< hessCo., X. V. The father i- of German ex- 
traction; the mother also, with a slight admixture of 
French. She former died in Columbia County, Ma rch 
16, 1883, and in June of the same year the mother 
died. Mr. Spickerman, Sr., was a man of influence 
and position, and possessed a fine estate. He was 
85 years of age when he dud, which was al-othe age 
of his wife. She was a devoted member of the 
Methodist Episcopal Church. 

Mr. Spickerman is one (jI 10 children born to his 



parents, seven of whom are living. He was educated 
in the public schools of Rensselaer Co., N. Y., ad- 
joining that of his nativity. He remained at home, 
assisting on his father's farm until 1859, the year of 
his removal to Illinois and of his locating in Malta 
Township, where he operated as a farmer on his own 
ti ' '.an!, making frequent visits to his native county. 

He was married there March 27, 1 880, to Annie 
M. Pulver. She was born March 6, 1842, in Ghent. 
Columbia Co., N. Y., and is the daughter of James 
and Sarah (Stupplebeem) Pulver, fanners, ami of 
German desient. Mrs. Spickerman is one of six 
children, and was hut nine years of age whetl her 
father died. Her mother died April 26, 1877. She 
has one child — Harry, born May 13, 1881. 

After their marriage Mr. and Mrs. S. took posses- 
sion of their home in Malta Township, where the 
former lias an undivided interest in his father's es- 
tate and also 160 acres of land in Iowa. He is a 
Republican, and has served a term as Tax Collector. 
Mrs. S. is a member of the Methodist Episcopal 
Church. 



\ "~cHE 



i l jBJflharles S. Hunt, retired farmer, De Kalb, 
',^-i was born in the town of Murray, Orleans 
Co., N. Y., Sept. 3, 181 1. His parents, Joseph 



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L. and Lydia (Davenport) Hunt, natives of 
Vermont, moved to Western New York in 
1S11, making the journey with a one-horse 
wagon, containing all their worldly possessions. They 
were early settlers in what is now the town of Murray. 
The senior Mr. Hunt soon made a contract with the 
Holland Company for a tract of timber land. Being 
too poor to pay cash, he followed the plan of purchas- 
ing, clearing and improving a few acres and selling 
what he had thus reduced from the wild forest, pro- 
ng to contract fol and clear a few more acres, 
and so on. Residing there until 1836,11c moved to 
Ashtabula Co., Ohio, and after a few years to Fulton 
Co, 111., and after several years more to Mason 
County, this State, where he spent the remainder of 
his days, passing from earthly scenes in 1851. 

In his family were 11 children, nine of whom grew 
up tn years of maturity, namely, Charles S., Betsy I'., 
Harvey, Hiram, Abel, Warren, Joseph L., Sarah, 
Curtis, Sophia and Louisa J. Abel died in Ohio, at 

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the age of 20 years, and Sophia died in Havana, 
Mason Co., III., in 1S84. 

The first above mentioned, the subject of this 
sketch, lived with his parents until 16 years of age, 
when he found employment in a hotel at Holly, Or- 
leans Co., N. Y., continuing there five years. In 
1836 his father proposed to him to go to Ashtabula, 
Co, Ohio, and select a tract of land, for which he 
(the father) was about to trade. Accordingly, in the 
month of February, in company with five others, he 
started on foot and walked all the way to his destina- 
tion, a distance of 200 miles. He soon selected a 
tract of land, in Rome Township, near the turnpike 
leading from Ashtabula to Warren, and fell to work 
clearing the same. In the meantime he had to do 
two days' work each week at Rogers' Hotel, to pay 
for his board there. The following May his father 
and family moved to the place, when they all com- 
menced work together. 

Here Charles S. lived with his parents until 1838, 
when he sold the 50 acres of land which his father 
had given him, and with the proceeds, $300, started 
out to seek a home farther West, accompanied by his 
wife and child, and his brother-in-law, wife and two 
children. Coming by way of Lake Erie to Detroit 
and thence by wagon to Fulton County, this State, 
they, in company with seven others, started a village 
which they named Bernadotte, building a hotel, dis- 
tillery, etc. : they also bought two farms. Mr. Hunt 
soon sold his interest in the village and purchased 
80 acres of farming land in the vicinity; but this he 
sold in 1847 and he moved to a point on the Illinois 
River in the same county, and conducted a "tavern" 
a year in a rented building. In the spring of 1849 
he moved to Havana, Mason County, purchasing a 
farm on the banks of the Illinois River; but he leased 
the land and kept a hotel in the village, in a building 
he rented for the purpose. In 1854 he sold the farm 
and moved to this county, and, in company with 
Israel Nichols, engaged in the business of buying 
and shipping grain. In 1S57 he bought a farm on 
section 19 of De Kalb Township, where he resided 
from i860 to 1882, when he bought his present resi- 
dence in De Kalb, which he has since occupied. 

Mr. Hunt was married May 4, 1837, to May A. 
Wbodard, who was born Feb. 5, 1815. They had 
eight children, namely^ Horace I)., Mortimer A., 
Amanda M., Harriet A., Charles M., William Arthur, 



Darwin J. and Carrie Edna. Mortimer A. and Har- 
riet A. died in infancy, and Arthur died in Colorado, 
at the age of 66. Mr. Hunt's second wife was Mary 
Cooper, a native of Summit Co., Ohio, whom he mar- 
ried July 10, 1865. 



I'f^ii fT'i'thur Mozley Stark, of Sycamore, was born 
'~'&M-W J an ' 3 1 ' ' 849, in the city of London, Eng- 

^gf*"® land, and is the son of John M. and Harriet 
Jane (Guy) Stark. He attended school until 
he was 15 years of age, when he became a 
clerk in the store of his father, who was a sta- 
tioner, continuing in the situation two years, when 
he accepted a position as assistant in the publishing 
house of Simpkin, Marshall & Co., in London, where 
he remained until he was 21 years of age. 

In 1870 he came to the United States and fixed 
his first residence at Beloit, Wis., whence he came 
four months later to Sycamore and became book- 
keeper in the employment of the Marsh Harvester 
Company. Subsequently he was made secretary 
and treasurer in the same business, and is still offi- 
ciating in that capacity. 

He was married May 20, 1873, to Ellen, daughter 
of Fleming and Louisa (Stone) Holcomb, of Syca- 
more. Mr. and Mrs. Stark have two children, — Guy 
and Emily. 



#^H 



J&f|t eorge W. Savory, farmer, resident at Cort- 
EJy|| land, was born Aug. 20, i8r8, at Orford, 
K Grafton Co., N. H., and is the son of John 
and Abiah Savory. His father was born in 
Plymouth, Mass., and descended from Eng- 
lish ancestors. His mother was born in Ver- 
mont. The senior Savory served an apprenticeship 
with a shoemaker when a youth, with whom he re- 
moved to New Hampshire, and he became a soldier 
of the War of 18 1 2. He died at Orford in 1820, and 
his wife died there in 1827. Mr. Savory was taken 
in charge by the authorities, who bound him to a 
farmer named Willard Jaquith, who lived in Orford 
and with whom lie resided until 15 years of age, when 
he became the charge of a man named Webster Hall, 
who was his guardian three years. At iS years of age 



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lie bought his time (or $100. He remained in Orford 
variously employed until 1844, when he came to 
Perr) Co., Ill After spending a few months there 
he went to Chicago. He obtained employment at 
the lime kilns in the vicinity of that < itv, where he 
remained until the spring of 1847, when he enlisted 
in the Third United States Infantry and went to 
Mexico. He was a participant in the battle at 
Contreras and at Churubusco, where he was wounded 
Aug. 20, 1847, by a gunshot in the right thigh. (He- 
has a bamboo cane, which was cut on the battle- field 
of the last named engagement.) After the capture 
of the city of Mexico he was conveyed to the hospital 
there, and was honorably discharged Jan. 13, 1848. 
He returned to Chicago, where he remained until 
1857, variously employed. In that year he came to 
Cortland, where, in company with James Burbank, 
he bought the Cortland Hotel property. He sold his 
interest in tha' about two years later to his partner, 
and in i860 bought two lots at the east end of the 
village and built a house. He has since purchased 
additional land, and has now a valuable farm. He 
was engaged for a time in market gardening, but for 
the past few years he has been interested in the dairy 
business. 

In 1856 Mr. Savory was married to Joan C, daugh- 
ter of Joseph and Catherine (Kelly) Wood. They 
have four children, — George W., May, Virginia and 
Lulu. 



JOOO^ 




ewis M. McEwen, one of the self-made men 
of the county, residing at De Kalb, was born 
in Crawford, Orange Co., N. V., Sept. 2S, 
yjy 1827. He is a son of Henry and Ann Eliza 
(Terwilliger) McEwen, natives of " York State " 
and of Scotch and Holland descent respect- 
ively. At the age of 13 years, Mr. McEwen became 
an orphan by the death of his father, and continued 
to reside with his mother until he was iS years old 
At this age in his life's history, he set forth to fight 
the battles of his future unaided except by his own 
indomitable determination to succeed. He made 
his way to New York city, and succeeded in obtain- 
ing employment in a morocco manufactory. He 
^y continued in that vocation, laboriously endeavoring 
to learn the trade, and succeeded. 

No sooner had the tidings reached the citv of New 



York of the discover) of gold in California, than Mr. 
McEwen determined to cast his fortunes with thou- 
sands of others and visit the " Land of Gold." He 
accordingly, in 1849, started for that distant region, 
lb sailed Jan. 30,011 board the good ship "Orpheus," 
which took him round Cape Horn, and in July fol- 
lowing, o\er five months after starting, landed him 
in the country for which he set out. While there he 
engaged in mining, and was thus occupied for about 
three years, until the spring of 1852. He then 
started on his return to New York, and went by way 
of the Isthmus, arriving at the metropolis in May of 
that year. 

Afte.' returning to Ne.v York city, Mr. McEwen 
spent several weeks visiting friends, and then came 
to this State and located in what is now Milan Town- 
ship, this county. He entered 320 acres of land, 
the first land that was entered in the township. On 
this land he erected a small frame house, or as it 
might more properly be called, "shan'y," in which 
he kept "bach" and energetically entered on the 
laborious though pleasant task of improving the land. 
The same year he replaced his " shanty " with a good 
and comfortable frame house, bringing his lumber 
from Aurora, 30 miles distant. 

Mr. McEwen was married Oct. 4, 1857, to Miss 
Elizabeth Ward. She was born in Highgate, Fiank- 
lin Co., Vt., Oct. 25, 1833, and is the mother of six 
children by Mr. M., namely: Frances, Flora, Annie, 
Willard, Earnest and Harry. 

After marriage, he continued to reside on his farm, 
and, having great faith in the future development of 
the country and the consequent enhanced price of 
the land, he added 80 acres to his 320 and is at 
present the owner of 400 acres, accumulated through 
his own endeavors. In 1869 Mr. McEwen rented 
his farm and moved into the village of He Kalb. In 
187 1 he, in company with George Terwilliger, en- 
gaged in the coal and lumber business, and has been 
continuously occupied in that line ever since. 

Mr. McEwen is a true representative of that class 
of successful individuals who wasted no time in boj - 
hood's days and improved each shining moment of 
manhood's years. His early education was limited, 
and he accumulated only such as the labors on the 

farm would permit him to receive from the public 
schools. As he grew in years, he improved each 
leisure mo.nent in reading and study, and the ac- 
cumulated knowledge he possesses to-day, both prac- 



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tit al and professional, — for he is a practical as well 
as professional man,— is due to his uncontrollable 
determination to succeed. He was the first Super- 
visor of Milan Township, and was its Supervisor dur- 
ing his entire residence in the township except one 
year. He has also acted as Supervisor of De Kalb 
Township several yjais. In 1870 Mr. McEwen was 
elected to represent his district in the State Legisla- 
ture. Politically he is a Republican. For several 
years he was a member of the Board of Trustees of 
De Kalb and at present writing is City Attorney. 

l^dwin P. Rose, conductor on the Cortland 
Branch of the Chicago & Northwestern 
Railroad, resident at Sycamore, was born 
1 1, 1827, in the town of Evans, Erie Co, 
N. Y. He is the son of Chauncey and Salina 
(Porter) Rose. When he was 16 years old his 
parents emigrated with their family to Illinois, 
whither they made their journey with a team and 
also transported their household effects. After his 
father's death he assumed the control of the farm af- 
fairs, where they settled for a time. He then went to 
Sycamore and was there variously occupied until he 
obtained his situation as conductor. 

Mr. Rose was married in 1S63, to Sarah J., daugh- 
ter of David and Louisa Russell, and they have eight 
children, — Chauncey D., Lamont F., Efifie A , Elmer 
E. and Elzie E. (twins), Edwin S., Fred A. and 
Frank C. 




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i^sffei anford A. Tyler, Superintendent of the Ell- 
"Sdk C wood Wire Works, was born in Newark, 
: Tioga Co., N. Y., Jan. n, 1836. His par- 



ity ents were Anthony and Harriet B. (Packer) 
Tyler, both natives of the State of New York. 
He was reared on a farm in his native town, 
making his home with his parents there until lie was 
1 8 j cars of age. 

He came to Illinois and first stopped at Belvidere, 
where he attended school one year. In 1854 he 
came to this county and bought land in Afton Town- 
ship, where he was engaged in agricultural pursuits 
for six years. March 20, 1864 he started on a jour- 
ney across the plains, and arrived at Virginia City, 



Montana, June 11 following, where he followed gold- 
mining for about half a year. Returning to this 
county, he engaged in mercantile trade, in company 
with R. H. Roberts, and this relation continues to the 
present. They also buy live stock, which they ship 
to Chicago. In addition to the above business, Mr. 
Tyler, since 1883, has been also Superintendent in 
the Ellwood Wire Works. In all the public enter- 
prises of De Kalb, Mr. Tyler has been an efficient 
agent, having held the offices of 'Town Clerk and 
Alderman, and is a member of the Board of Educa- 
tion. He is a member of De Kalb Chapter of A. F. 
& A. M. 

He was married in November, 1861, to Sarah 
Louisa Taylor, a native of Paris, Ky., and they have 
three children, — Clara Louisa, Squire Allen and 
Harriet Daisy. 



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lmoii F. Parke, farmer, sections 7, 8 and 9, 
Sycamore 'Township, was born Jan. 25, 
1838, in Evans, Erie Co., N. Y. He is the 
son of Lannon Z. and Martha W. (Fenton) 
Parke, and grew to manhood on his father's 
farm, receiving his e Lucation in the public 
schools at Pontiacin his native county. In 1856 he 
accompanied his parents to De Kalb County, where 
they settled in the township having the same name. 
He had learned the trade of brick, stone and plaster 
mason, and after his arrival in De Kalb County pur- 
sued th ,t vocation until he entered the army of the 
Union. He enlisted Sept. 2, 1862, in Co. K, 105th 
Regiment, 111. Vol. Inf., which was for a time at- 
tached to the 1 1 th Army Corps, and later to the 20th, 
being assigned to the First Brigade and Third 
Division. Mr. Parke was a participant in the battles 
at Resaca, Dallas, Kenesaw Mountain, Marietta. At- 
lanta and Peach-Tree Creek, and in many others of 
less importance. At Atlanta lie procured a furlough 
to return home to see his father, who was danger- 
ously ill, and was absent seven days. On his attempt- 
ing to return he was cut off from his regiment and 
stopped at Chattanooga, where he was placed in 
charge of a company of recruits, with whom he re- 
turned to Nashville, and was there on garrison duty 
at the time of the battle. He went thence with the 
army to Decatur, Ala., where he was taken sick and 




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w.is sent to the hospital at Chattanooga. As s< 5 

he recovered he wa-s appointed on the military com- 
mission at Chattanooga. In April following he was 
sent to join his command at Raleigh, N. C, and pro- 
id thence for the Grand Review at Washin 
D. C. He was mustered out of the United States 
service with his regiment, June 7, [865, at ( 'li' 
We enlisted as a private, but on the organization of 
his company was made Second Lieutenant. Three 
months later he was promoted First Lieutenant, and 
in 1863 was made the Captain of Co. K. 

Returning to I)-' Kail), he resumed work at his 
trade. The same fall he bought a farm in Afton 
Township, where he combined work at his trade with 
the labors of his farm. In 1X70 he abandoned 
the vocation of mason, and has since given his atten- 
tion wholly to farming. In 1S73 he settled on the 
farm on which he now resides, being sections 7, 8 
and 9. The place was originally settled by Edward 
White, was well improved and supplied with good 
frame biddings. In 18S4 he erected a large brick 
house, one of the best in De Rail.) County. The 
farm contains 230 acres. Mr. Parke is largel) in- 
terested in raising stock and horses, and is giving 
particular attention to raising Norman horses. 

He was married Sept. 1, 1870,10 Ruth, daughter 
of Ephraim and Caroline Hall, and they have had 
six children — Nelson, Henry H., Mary E., Mila, 
Ruth and Eleanor G. 




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: l#j~enjamin Evans, a pioneer of De Kalb 

■ fcJUfl;- County, was born Feb. 21, [8n, in Ash 
; . yt ^ Co., N. C, and was there reared on a 
co f'i rm - He. was married April 21, 1833, to 
Frances Perry, a'so a native of Ash Co., N. 
C, where she was born Oct. 31, 1814. In 
the year following they left their native State and 
journeyed West with a span of horses and a wagon 
with their household effects, and cooked and camped 
on the route. They reached La Salle County after 
long and weary travel, and Mr. Evans made a 
claim where the city of Piano is now situated. He 
built a log house, which had a roof of "shakes " and a 
floor made of puncheons. He sold out in 1838 and 
came to De Kalb County and bought a claim on sec- 



tion 1 |. Sy< amore Township. He retained his own- 
ership two years, and in 1.X40 sold and bought on 
on 3 of the same township. There he built a 
log house and entered into the work of making im- 
provements. He died on the place Feb. 5, 1854. 
( >f si\ children horn to himself and wife, four reached 
adult age. —Lorenzo Dow, Lucinda, Ira and Mary 
Belinda. The latter married Alfred King, and died 
< ►( t. 2, 1880. The mother resides with her son, Lo- 
renzo Dow Evans. 



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amore, was born 
lin Co., Vt. His 



;f«-^iffl(zel P. Stone, florist, at Syca 
vJHj Nov. 11. (815, in Franklin 

/ ^ father, lames Stone, at the outset of his 
Trek business life, was a tanner and currier, ami 
later was a farmer. He was a native of Hav- 
erhill, N. H., and in 1837 came to Allegan Co., 
Mich., where he died. The mother, Chastina Stone, 
was born in Haverhill, N. IL, and died in Paw l'aw, 
Mich. Four of their nine children are living: A. P. 
is the oldest; Irena is the widow of E. A. Kinney, of 
Frairie Ronde, Mich.; Clarinda is the wife of Norman 
Rice, of Paw Paw, Mich.; Emeline married Frank 
Taylor, of Medicine Lodge, Kan. 

Mr. Stone was reared to the callings of his father, 
in the tan-yard and on the farm. He came West, to 
Allegan, Mich., in the fall of 1835, and learned the 
trade of mason. He was married there July 16, 
1839, to Mary, daughter of David and Ruth Schurt- 
leff Her parents were among the early pioneer 
settlers of this portion of Illinois. Mrs. Stone was 
born on Stanstead Plains, Canada. Six children 
have been born of her marriage to Mr. Stone: Mary 
A., deceased, was the wife of C. H. Beach, of Sy< a- 
more ; Herbert F. is a manufacturer of agricultural 
implements, wind-mills, etc., at Appleton, Wis.; 
Edwin is deceased — he was a cheese manuf.u Hirer 
at New Lebanon, 111., for some years, and later was 
an insurance agent at that place; Nellie B. is the 
wife of Harry Ewing, photographer at Sycamore; 
(anies B. is a machinist at Batavia, III.; and Clarence 
is an assistant in the office of the Minnesota Lumber 
Company, at Sycamore. 

Mr. Stone went to Kenosha, Wis., where he followed 
his business as a mason and builder for a score of 
years, operating as a contractor and erecting a ntim- 



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her of fine and valuable buildings at that place. He 
went in i860 to Central City, Colorado, taking wilh 
him a quartz mill and entering a gold claim. He 
met with a reasonable degree of success, and after 
a stay there of two years he came to Geneva and 
pun hased 184 acres of land, took up his residence 
there, and engaged in its improvement until his re- 
moval to Sycamore in 1875. He first embarked in 
the purchase and shipment of farm produce, in 
which he was occupied two years. He then built a 
feed mill at New Lebanon in this county, which he 
continued to manage three years. In 1882 he estab- 
lished the business in which he has been since en- 
gaged. His grounds are 190 x 85 feet, and his green- 
house stocked with finely assorted varieties of plants. 
lie sends the cuttings to Chicago, and supplies the 
home demand for cut flowers and designs. Mr. 
Stone is a member of the Order of Odd Fellows. 
Mrs. Stone is a communicant in the Episcopal 
Church, of which her family are attendants. 



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l 'h' 'jffigj,' enry B Gurlcr, farmer anda resident ol De 
: \MJ\: Kill*. w 'is bom in Chesterfield, Cheshire 
\& * ^°- N. H, May 2r, 1S40, and was eight 
H years of age when his parents, Benjamin (see 
T sketch), and Harriet (Hopkins) Gurler, moved 
to Keene, N. H., where they resided until 1856 
when they came to De Kalb County, settling on sec- 
tion 32, De Kalb Township. 

On the latter place the subject of this sketch made 
his home with his parents until his enlistment, July, 
i86r, in the 42d III. Vol. Inf., Co. K, which was 
ordered first to Missouri, then to Kentucky and Miss 
issippi. He was honorably discharged in September, 
1862, but in May, 1864, he re-enlisted, in Co. K, 
1 32d Vol. Inf., and was placed on garrison duty in 
Kentucky, as Second Lieutenant. On the expiration 
of his term of service in October, 1864, he returned 
home and engaged in the grocery trade in De Kalb, 
which he continued until 1868. The next two years 
he took charge of his father's farm, and then pur- 
chased a farm on section 5 of Afton Township, 
whereon were a small house and barn. He has sim e 
added to the dimensions of his house, erected a good 
frame barn, corn-crib and other farm buildings, be- 
sides a creamery. At present, in company with his 




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brother, he has creameries at Malta, De Kalb and 
Hinckley. In March, 1882, he moved into the village 
of De Kalb, and since then has bought his residence 
on Fourth Street He still owns and manages the 
farm. 

Mr. Gurler was married March 27, i867,toSale- 
aia Rolph, a native of Oxfordshire, England, who 
emigrated to this country when ten years of age, and 
was reared in this county. Mr. and Mrs. G. are the 
parents of three children, — Stella F., Lulu May and 
Hazel. The youngest died March 24, 1885, aged 
two years and four months. 



fjfjpilliam J. McAlpine, member of the fiim 
k=k3L of Willard & McAlpine, contractors and 
f§tV£-j " builders at Sycamore, was born Aug. 15 
SoJ\ 1852, in Ashtabula, Ohio. His father, Dr. 
Lemuel McAlpine, was born in Connecticut, 
nd was a physician while in active lite. He 
is living in retirement at Aurora, III. The mother, 
Sarah (Price) McAlpine, was born in the State of 
New York, and is yet living. Ella, their youngest 
child, resides with them; Thomas, older son, is a 
farmer in Cortland Township. In 1853, Dr. McAl- 
pine transferred his family to Illinois and settled on 
a farm of 200 acres in the township of Cortland, in 
De Kalb County, which they occupied until their re- 
moval to Aurora, in 187 1. 

Mr. McAlpine is the second of three children born 
to his parents, and was reared on a farm in this State. 
When about 17 years of age he went to Aurora, III., 
and enttred upon an apprenticeship to acquire a 
knowledge of his trade, and served two years. He 
passed a period of three years in work at various 
places in New York and Michigan, and in the fall of 
1873 returned to Sycamore. After working a short 
time at his trade, he entered into a business relation 
with Jacob Deily as contractors and builders. Their 
joint transactions covered a period of three years, and 
was terminated ill 1877. In 1879 the present asso- 
ciation of Willard & McAlpine was formed, which 
has since been in operation. A number of the prom- 
inent edifices in De Kalb and adjoining counties 
were built by them. Their buildings at Sycamore 
comprise the Congregational church and a number of 
prominent residences. 



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Mr. M« Alpine was married Jan. 12, 1876, in Sy< a- 
inore, to Mattie Manning, daughter of John Manning, 
she was born Dec. 6, 1X57, in Piano, III. 



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, RT3l braham Ashelford, retired farmer md 
vjMUf stockman, resident at Sycamore, former!} 

j^fj^Sf 1 a resident on section 31, South Grove 

-?l)jtt Township, was born Feb. 24, 1832, in Somer- 

lif setshire, England. His parents were George 

and Sarah (Blackmer) Ashelford (see sketch (if 

^ George Ashelford). 

Mr. Ashelford came to America in 0< tober, 1 855, 
having passed his minority in his native country un- 
der the circumstances of the class to which he be- 
longed. After a brief stay in Ontario, he came to 
De Kalb County, arriving at the city hearing the 
same name on Christmas day of 1 S55. in March, 
^ 1856, lie returned to Canada, remaining, however, 
*\ but a short time and came back to Illinois, making 
1 a permanent location in South Grove Township. He 
■ was almost wholly without means, but obtained em- 
ployment on the farm of John Orfut and worked 
some time for him and his brother. With his first 
earnings he bought a yoke of oxen, and worked land 
on shares for a time, subsequently leasing a large 
farm for a period of live years. At the end of four 
years he had saved sufficient money to buy 160 acres 
of the farm which he had leased, and whereon he 
established his homestead. To this he has added 
by later purchases until he owns 680 acres of the 
best quality of land, under the bent type of improve- 
ments, the condition being manifest from the fact 
that the proprietor has laid 29 miles of tiling. The 
farm bindings are of a character in keeping with the 
value of the estate. Mr. Ashelford makes a specialty 
of raising Durham cattle and half-breed Norman 
horses. All the land he has improved was in its 
primeval condition when it came into his possession. 
Mr. Ashelford cast his first Presidential vote for 
Abraham Lincoln, and has since been an ardent ad- 
herent of the "grand old party." 

He was married in Pierce Township, Kane Co., 
Ill, Feb. 3, 1S63, to Ellen McMurchy. She was 
jrjv born July 6, 1854, in Ontario, Can., and was brought 
((*) in her childhood to Kane County by her parents. 
^ She died May 27, 1877, aged 43 years, and wis the 

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mother of five children: Sarah was born Dec. 7, 
186-; James, Jan 22, 1 S6- ; I.iz/.ie. Feb. 12, 1872, 
Robert, May 1, 1875. John died when two years 
old. Mr. Ashelford was again married Jan. 8, 1X78, 
in the township of Malta, lo Mrs. Mary J. Crandall. 
She was born Nov. 13, 1833, in Columbia Co., N. Y., 
and is the daughter of Delaware and Dolly (Head) 
Foster. Her parents were of French extraction and 
of New England ancestry and were born in the State 
of New York, where they lived all their lives. The 
father died about 1872, the mother in May, 1876. 
Both were aged 76 years. Mrs. Ashelford was first 
married in her native county in 1855, to Morgan I, 
Crandall, a native of Delaware Co., N. Y. In 1856 
she accompanied her husband to Malta To vnship 
and settled on a farm. Mr. Crandall S demisi 
curred Feb. 2, 1874, at the age of 44 years. Five 
children were born of this union. Ida is married 
and lives on her mother's estate in Malta. Hattie 
resides in Malta. Cary lives in Maylield Township. 
Charles is in the charge of his uncle in Malta Town- 
ship. Mary died at the age of 19 years, in Malta 
Township. 



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.; M'v t r. Basil Ruby, physician, residing at De 

■■'--■ -/-.., Kalb, was bom in Bedford Co., lYnn, 
. |£> Oct. 5, [81 1, and is a son of Arthur and 
*y." Sarah (Conaway) Ruby, the former a native 
f> of Maryland and the latter of Virginia. 

When about three years of age, the parents 
of Mr. Ruby moved to Perry Co., Ohio, where they 
resided two years, then removed to Muskingum 
County, same State; resided there six months, then 
in a i'd to Licking County, that State. In the latter 
county Dr. Ruby resided, working on his father's 
farm, attending the common schools and developing 
into manhood. 

In October, 1832, Dr. Ruby was united in main 1. 
to Miss Mar) Mackrel, a native of Pennsylvania. 
Thirteen months afterward she died, and he was 
again married in 1836, to Miss Isabell Hil.uul, a na- 
tive of Huntington ( \>., Pa. 

They settled in Lie king County, wdiere he followed 
ill. Notation of a fanner until 1849. During that 
year he started with a team of horses, overland, for 
this State, and 14 days later arrived iii De Kalb. 



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He purchased a lot in the village, erected a dwelling 
thereon, and then engaged in the mercantile busi- 
ness with John M. Goodell. which relation existed 
for six months, when the same was dissolved, and in 
the spring of 1850 Dr. Ruby engaged in business on 
his own account, continuing two years. At the expi- 
ration of the latter date. Dr. Ruby, in company with 
fackson Hiland, purchased the business of Mr. 
Goodell, and the firm name became Ruby& Hiland. 
They carried on the business, which consisted of two 
stores, and also engaged in the sale of drugs, groceries 
and dry goods, until 1855, when they closed. 

Dr. Ruby had been a medical student in Ohio, 
completed his study of medicine after coming to this 
county, and commenced his practice in 1855. After 
closing his business, in 1865, his son bought the 
building, moved it and converted it into a dwelling, 
in which they resided until 1883, when it was burned, 
and he built his present residence. 

Dr. Ruby is a member of the Advent Church, and 
Mrs. Ruby of the Methodist Episcopal Church. 
They are the parents of two children — Baxter W. 
and Mary D. 




fohn Buckardt, fanner, section 16, Victor 
Township, was born Aug. 22, 1825, in 
Pomerania, Prussia. His parents, Jacob 
and Caroline (Wokossen) Buckardt, were na- 
]C tives of Germany, and there spent their lives. 
The son remained an inmate of his father's 
house until he was 24 years of age. He attended 
school during the period prescribed by law, and on 
leaving school learned the trade of mason, the statute 
requiring that every boy be taught a trade. He 
>erved three years in its acquisition and pursued it 
as a business from 1844 to 1859. 

In the year last named he emigrated to America 
and located in Somonauk, De Kalb County, where 
he spent five years in working at his trade and other- 
wise. He then rented a farm in Victor for three 
years, and at the end of that time, in 1868, he be- 
came the owner, by purchase, of 160 acres of land 
on section 16. This he has since held and has added 
no acres to his original purchase. Mr. Buckardt is 
one of the leading farmers of Victor Township, and 
has been successful in his methods of operation. He 





is justly esteemed for his character of benevolence 
and energetic perseverance. 

His marriage to Caroline Gruel took place Now 2, 
1849, and they have had 12 children, six of whom 
are living, — John A., Herman A., August A., Ida J., 
Bertha M. and Henry V. John married Caroline 
Kelso, Aug. 1, 1 88 1 ; Herman was married Dec. 2, 
1883, to Caroline Kukuk. Bertha was married to 
John M. Kukuk, July 22, 1840. Ida J. was married 
Oct. 26, 1884, to Gus. Johnson. The two oldest 
sons are marketmen at Somonauk. Mrs. Buckardt. 
the mother, is a native of Germany. 



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F. Warren, jeweler at De Kalb, and 
and whose portrait appears on the oppo- 
site page, was born in Rushford, Allegany 
Co., N. Y., July 5, 1848, and is a son of 
Luke A. and Ursula (Foster) Warren. Hw 
parents were both natives of Ycrk State, his 
father of Delaware and his mother of Orleans County. 
In T864 they moved to Whiteside County, this State, 
where they resided two years, and then removed to 
Ogle County, where, in Monroe Township, his father 
purchased a farm. 

Mr. Warren remained on the farm about a year 
and then concluded to abandon that vocation. He 
accordingly left the place and went to Sycamore, 
where he engaged with J. E. Southworth, a jeweler, 
and with whom he remained until 187 1. He then 
engaged with Frank Smith, successor of Mr. South- 
worth, and worked for him two years. By this time 
he had thoroughly mastered the trade in all its var- 
ious branches, and established a business of his 
own. 

In 1875 Mr. Warren formed a partnership with 
Frank W. Lott, and they jointly conducted the busi- 
ness until 1877, when Mr. Warren sold his interest 
to his partner' and moved to De Kalb, and estab- 
lished his present business. By strict attention to 
business, and fair and honest representations, Mr. 
Warren has built up a good and constantly increas- 
ing trade. 

He was married to Mariam E., daughter of John 
and Mary (Johnson) Woodworth, July 5, 1870. They 
have two children, — J. Lott and John Lyle. 

Mr. Warren is a member of Sycamore Lodge, No. 










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\ l & \ \l 1 1,- has travi I'd extensively in 
this country, and in t88o. accompanied b) his wile, 
i his ..M hi niii- hi ■• York State." I n 1 81 

Knights Templars' on to 

terest in I 

thi rerriti n ies, as well .is in the " I .am I >.i 

,1 keeping il the principal events ..l 

the trip. He ha ' lol md residence al De Kill. 

and is succeeding well in hi; 









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: , Ct\ enry n He nion way, of Sycamore, was born 
"n the town of Williamsburg, Hampshire 
Co., Mass.. June 17. 1813. His grand- 
father, Mm!. ...I Hemenway, was a nativi 

1 He was a patriot of the 

ilution, and was in the a< tions al Saratoga 
and Schuylerville (now Herkimer), N \ , and in 
other important He was one of the fit 

al W illi mi -I iurg, whither he « en) on fool from 

Framingham carrying an ax, Hampshire County then 

in its primitive condition and covered with 

. timber. He improved a farm and resided 

there until Itis death about 1823. 

Mi. Hemenwaj 1- the son of Elijah and \.m) 

(Budlong) Hemenway He was married April 14, 

in Conway, Hampshire Co., Mass., to Eunice 

Guild. Sh in \,.v [2, 1814, m Brookfield, 

daughtei of Israel and Rachel (Kel- 

I Guild, both natives of the State ..1 Vermont. 

In Se 1836, the Hemenway s, father and on 

with their families, sei ."it for Illinois. Publiccon 

1 I were the exception rather than the 

rule, and the journey fn ichusetts to Albany, 

\ r V. was madi b) private conveyance, whence t he 
part) came to Buffalo by way of the Erie Canal, 
From there they traveled bj steamer to Ch 
whence they went 1>\ team to whal is now Du Page 
included in < '00k i !ounty for muni, ipal 
purposes. The land had not been surveyed, and the 
elder Hemenwa) made a claim in what is now Wayne 
iship; and when the land came into market 
he entered the claim. This was his home until his 
deatli in 1862. His wife died in i860. 

II. B. Hemenway bought a claim in Wayne Town- 
ship, on which there was a log house, of which the 
family took possession. In 1838 he cut a quantity 




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ol oak logs, drew them to the mill, and with the 
lumber built the first frame house in the township of 
Wayne It was finished with pine lumber, which 
drawn from Chicago In 1^1,5 he went to 
Chicago and there secured the title to his land. In 
D cember, 1862, he enlisted in < !o. C, 1 21 h 111. Cav. 
Ai Harper's Ferry-he was taken prisoner, being cap- 
1 ured in \ 1 ■_■ 1 a , 1 '...' II. h as held five da) 

Alien he came home, and in Sep- 
tember, 1862, was honorably discharged on account 
ol illm 

In 1870 he M>ld his farm in Wayne and removed 
.1111 situated two and a half miles east of the 
1 it) of Sy< ainore, in De Kalb County. He sold the 
pla< e five years latei and bought a residence in Syi a- 
Mr. and Mrs. Hemenway have eight children. 
Edward is a merchant at Bartlett Station, 111. ; A. 
Dwighl lives in Chicago; George W. resides at 
Greenwood, Kan., where he is a farmer; Ellen mar- 
ried Charles Stevenson, of Sycamore; Elma is the 
wife oi James Congleton, and lives in Wheaton, Du 
I County; Sarah E. married Walter Scott, a 

Lyman is a practicing ph\ sii ian 
al Pingree Grove; William is in the grocery business 
in ( Chicago. 

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acob Gletty. a pioneer farmer of Somonauk 
Township, resilient on section 5, is the son 
..1 George and Frederika Gletty, and was 
born Oct. 10, 1802, in Alsace, France. He 
was bred to the calling of his forefathers, that 
of agriculture, which he has pursued all his 
He 9 .1 to manhood in his native land, 

and was married there, June 22, 1836, to Belse\ 
Yant. She was born Aug. 20, 1816, in France, where 
six children were bom to her and her husband. 

In May, [844, the family bade a permanent fare- 
well to " hair France," and came to the New World, 
arriving in the township of Somonauk July 28 of the 
same year. Mr. Gletty bought 80 acres of land, 
where he at once settled and commenced the work of 
improving, subsequently adding to his acreage until 
he now has 132 acres. He is living in retirement, 
Lis sons, Lome and Henry, conducting the affairs of 
the farm. Hi> wife died Sept. 16, r88l. Six chil- 
dren were born to them after their removal to Ainer 




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ica) Charles is a farmer. Louisa is the wife oi 
Frank Goradot, ofSomonauk. Louie is next in order 
of birth. Jacob lost his life in the Civil War. Wil- 
liam is a farmer in De Kalb County. Henry is the 
seventh child. Danielis deceased. Josephine resides 
at home. Caroline is Mrs. Julius Schidecker. David 
is a farmer in Somonauk Township. Adeline is the 
wife of George Beck, of Sandwii h 



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fames W. Arkills, farmer and breeder of 
stock, resident on section 15, Victor Town- 
ship, was born Dec. 18, 1849, at Richmond, 
McHenry Co., 111. His parents, John and 
Y Maria (Eastwood) Arkills, were natives of the 
State of New York and settled in McHenry 
County in 1839. After a residence there of 33 years, 
they removed to the township of Victor, where they 
settled in 1873, locating on section 15. The father 
died there in 18S4. 

Mr. Arkills was educated in the common school, 
and has always lived with his parents. In 1884 he 
Succeeded to the ownership of his father's home- 
stead. He is a progressive farmer, and is breeding 
Hambletonian horses, also fine grades of Short-Horn 
Durham cattle. He is a Republican, and takes a 
zealous interest in all movements and measures that 
seem likely to benefit the general public. 

Mr. Arkills was married Feb. 21, 1872, to Mary 
Eastwood, and they have had one child, Ada M., 
who died when she was 15 months old. 



\1 J. Woodworth, resident at Sycamore, is 

1 the agent for the estate of Mrs. James S. 
rami ° J 

Ist/ p Waterman. He was born Dec. 10, 1850, 

in Brov/nhelm, Lorain Co., Ohio. His father 
and mother, John and Mary (Johnson) Wood- 
worth, were natives of Chenango Co., N. Y., 






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and located soon after their marriage in Sandusky. 
In 1853 they came to Illinois, and the senior Wood- 
worth bought a farm in Cortland Township, De Kalb 
County. The land was in its original condition. At 
the date of its owner's death, which occurred Aug. 
27, 1858, it was all improved. 

Mr. Woodworth went to live when he was nine 





yeai ; ol ige with Milo Wells, of Sycamore, and work- 
ed on a farm except in the w 

attended district school. In the summer of 1870, 
when 19 years old. lie suddenly formed a resolution, 
while engaged in farm labor, that he would not b 
agriculturist through life, and he then and there laid 
down the implement lie was Using and went to - 
more, where he formed a partnership with F. B. Col- 
ton in the sale of musical instruments. In the spring 
of 1872 he went to Madison, Wis., and there pursued 
a course of study preparatory to a busim 
attending the Northwestern Commeri ial ' ollege In 
the spring of 1873 he went to Quincy, 111., and 
tered upon the duties of a teacher of plain and orna- 
mental penmanship, ' k-keeping and business cor- 
respondent in the "('.em <ity Business College." 1 1 
resigned the position July 15, [876, ei upon the 
responsibilities of Prirw ipal of the " Theoretical 
iness and Penmanship Departments of Jacksonville 
Business College, "at Jacksonville, 111., which he held 
until July 25, 1883. At that date he resign' 
assume the position he now occupies. 

He was united in marriage, June 6, 1876,111 Nellie 
L, daughter of Dr. Charles W. and Lucia C. Bab- 
cock. They have live children, — James A., Jessie 
M., Arthur C, Charles J. and Edward G. Mrs. 
Woodworth is the niei e ol Mrs, James S. Watem 

arising De Forest, retired fanner, residing 
in De Kalb village, was born in Southville 
Herkimer Co., N. Y. Ma) 10, 1832. His 
parents, John and Elizabeth (Pooler) De For- 
est, were also natives of the Empire State. He- 
remained with them until 12 years of age, and 
until 17 years old he worked out during the summer 
seasons, attending school during the winters ; tli 
forward he devoted his whole time to manual labor. 
Feb. 5, 1852, he married Lurena L. Kingsbury, 
who was born in the town of Turin, L N. Y„ 

the daughter of Flavel C. and Tryphena (Holmes) 
Kingsbury, both the latter bring nati\ inect- 

icut, and settling in the State of New Vork after mar- 
riage. At the time of his marriage, Mi I >e Forest 
located in German Flats, N. Y., where he rem 
saw-mill for one year, and then a farm until the 
spring of 1856, when he moved to Rome, N. Y. In 




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the spring of 1857 he came to this county, locating 
near Cortland, where lie followed farming a year, and 
the next spring he purchased 80 acres of land on sec- 
tion 24, Afton Township, where there were only a 
small frame house and a small stable. Six years 
afterward he sold that place and bought 160 acres, 
on the same section, where there were a small frame 
house and a straw stable. This place he still owns, 
having improved it in every way, erecting a good 
frame house, a frame barn, corn-crib, etc., and plant- 
ing shade and ornamental trees. Having bought 
other land adjoining, he now has a toial of 310 acres 
all improved and fenced. In April, 1884, he leased 
his farm and moved to De Kalb city, where he now 
lives, on Third Street, North, in a residence he had 
previously purchased. 

Mr. and Mrs. De Forest have had seven children, 
namely : Mary Ella, wife of Ellis Ingham and living 
in Afton Township; Albert Eugene ; Lizzie A., wife 
of J. Charles Smith, and also living in Afton Town- 
ship; Smith; Inverna l>., who died at the age of nine 
years and four months; Sarah Phenie, wife of Ernest 
Chambers, and resides in Afton Township; Carrie 
Melvina, the wife of Grant E. Mosher, and resides in 
Afton Township ; and Lettie E. 





\ eter H. Lawyer, retired farmer, resident at 
Sycamore, was born Jan. 12, 1824, in the 
town of Wright, Schoharie Co., N. Y. His 
Xp parents, David S. and Maria (Snyder) Lawyer, 
\ were natives of the State of New York. His 
grandparents on both sides were Germans, and were 
among the early settlers of Schoharie County. David 
L. Lawyer removed with his family to De Kalb 
County in 1853 and settled in the township of Cort- 
land, on section 8, where he died April 2, 1879. His 
first wife died about 1840, and he was married a 
second time, to Maria Settle, and she resides on the 
homestead. 

The son was reared on the homestead farm, and 
was educated in the public schools. He was mar- 
ried Dec. 23, 1853, to Eva Schoolcraft, a native of 
Schohaire County. After his marriage, Mr. Lawyer 
lived on the farm where he was born and brought up 
until 1857, when he came to De Kalb County and 
l>ought an improved farm in Cortland Township, 




loc ated on section 17. The farm had a small house 
on it, which Mr. Lawyer rebuilt, and he also added 
Other farm buildings. In 1875 he rented the place 
and moved to Sycamore where he already owned a 
residence. Mr. and Mrs. L. have one son, Jay, who 
is traveling for his health in California. Mrs, Law- 
yer was born May 5, 1827, and is the daughter of 
Adam and Catharine Schoolcraft. They were natives 
of York State, where the mother died, when the 
daughter was eight years old : and the father came 
to Illinois when she was 18 years old and died in 
Belvidere, Boone < !o., 111., in 1 86 1 . 



: 







I^enry A. Severy, farmer and stock-breeder, 
resident in Somonauk Township, is the 
owner of 200 acres of land on sections 16 
and 2r. He was born Oct. 7, 1851,111 Lawrence, 
Mas-.. Dexter Severy. his father, is a native of 
Maine, and is engaged in raising stock, associ- 
ated with his two sons, Henry and Charles A. Their 
father resides in I, eland, La Salle Co., 111., and the 
second son is prosecuting his branch of the business 
in Victor Township, De Kalb County. Their aggre- 
gated herds include more than 200 head of fine 
blooded stock, of which 125 head are thoroughbreds. 
Mr. Severy's individual herd includes usually about 
25 COWS. He has several registered animals, among 
them Princess Anna, No. 685, Julia A., No. 798, 
Princess of Brabant the Fourth, No. 1,027, al, d Hilke. 
No. 3,460. The head of the herds of Messrs. Sever) 
is Lawrence Marion, No. 2,050, from Lawrence. 
Mass., and he is a lineal descendant from the Lord 
Clifton and Aaggie famil) . (On the farm of C. A. 
Severy are kept Lord Clifton, Sir Newton of Aaggie, 
No. 1,858, and several others registered and num- 
bered.) Thirty-five tine thoroughbred animals were 
added to the herds during 1884. The Messrs. 
Severy are practically pioneers in raising fine stock 
west of Ohio, having been in the business 12 years. 
They are members of the Holstein Breeders' Asso- 
ciation, have bought a n umber of thoroughbreds from 
the East, and have imported stock. They rank 
among the most reliable dealers in the West and 
have issued a catalogue annually for 1 1 years. C. A. 
Severy raises trotting horses from the well-known 
stock Basha and Hambletonian. Mr. Severy of this ' 



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sketcli is President of the Mutual Fire Insurance 
Company. 

He was married March 23, 1875, to Julia A., 
daughter of Hon. Hiram and Amanda Loucks, of 
Sandwich. (See sketch of H. Loucks.) She was 
horn Dec. 5, 185 1, in Oneida Co., N. Y. Mr. and 
Mrs. Severy have one son — Frank D., born April 13, 
1878. 

The family of Mr. Severy came to De Kalb Count) 
in 1854. The elder Severy was born March 4, t8zo, 
and his wife in November, 1821. They have but 
two children, and the family circle intact. Mr. 
Severy took possession ol his present farm April 1, 
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eorge W. Weeden, deceased, a former res- 
ident of Sycamore, was born Dec. 23, 1807, 

lli^r K m Hartland, Windsor Co., Vt., and was 
^!JK?i the son of Samuel and Mrs. M. Weeden. He 

t learned the trade of a brick and stone mason, 

\ at which he worked in his native State until 
1843. In that year he came to Illinois to find a 
broader field for a life of activity than that afforded in 
the narrow valleys of the Green Mountain State. He 
crossed the Green Mountains and reach Whitehall, 
at the foot of Lake Champlain, went to Albany by 
the Champlain Canal, thence by the Erie Canal to 
Buffalo, whence he came to Chicago by the lake 
route. At that city he hired a "' prairie schooner " 
to bring him to De Kalb County. The land was in 
market that year and he entered a claim of 80 acres 
on section 31, Sycamore Township, and bought 130 
acres adjoining. He built a log house, in which his 
household found shelter seven years; after this 
period they occupied a brick house which Mr. 
Weeden built on his farm The place was sold in 
1855 and a removal to Sycamore effected, where Mr. 
Weeden bought town property and worked at his 
trade. 

His marriage to Sarah Pearsons occurred Jan. 29, 
1834. She was born Jan. 7, 181 2, in Reading, Wind- 
sor Co., Vt., and is the daughter of William and 
Azubah (Brockway) Pearsons. Her parents were 
both born in Vermont. Two of the six children of 
Mr. and Mrs. Weeden are living, — Alvin G. and Al- 
bina S. The latter married S. C. Hale and is now 




living near Laddonia, Audrain Co., Mo. Mr. Weeden 
died Aug. 16, 1870. 

Alvin G. Weeden was born Nov. 16, 1834, and 
was but nine years of age when his parents removed 
from Hartland, Vt., his birthplace, to De Kali) 
County. He assisted his father in improving his 
farm and acquired a thorough knowledge of the vo- 
cation of a stone and brick mason. He has been for 
a number of years engaged in the business of a con- 
tractor. He was married Aug. 10, 1857, to Louisa, 
daughter of Enos and Celina (Reed) Whit move. 
They have two children, — Lillie M. and Leon F. 



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i euben Nichols, a pioneer of De Kalb 

> County, of 1837, was born May 23, 1770, 

in Dutchess Co., N. Y. His parents were 

1\§\ of Connecticut origin, and soon after their 

marriage located in the State of New York. 

His father bargained for a farm a few miles 
from Poughkeepsie, and took possession. He had 
saved sufficient money to pay for the place, but the 
marauding English soldiery in the Revolutionary 
War invaded the house and carried off the money. 
He managed by hard labor and economy to secure 
his title, and died on his farm Nov. 22, 1802, aged 
74 years and 11 months. His wife died May 21, 
1820, at the age of 88 years and 11 months. 

Reuben Nichols grew to mature life in Dutchess 
County, and learned the trade of harness, and boot 
and shoe maker. He was married to Mercy Caverlv, 
a native of Ulster Co., N. Y. After marriage they 
located for a short time near Newburg, where Mr. 
Nichols worked at his trade and managed a tannery 
several years, after which he went to Ontario, Can- 
ada. The location caused him to fall into ill health, 
and he returned to Ulster Co., N. Y. After a short 
stay there he went to Sullivan County, in the same 
State, and bought a farm, which he cultivated until 
1837. In 1835 a son — John Nichols — came to De 
Kalb County and settled on a claim on section 13, 
of township 4r, range 4 east, now Mayfield Town- 
ship. 

The senior Nichols sold his farm in 1837, with the 
intention of establishing a home in De Kalb County, 
and he started in company with his wife, four chil- 
dren and two sons-in-law They made the journey 

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overland, driving through, and were on the road si\ 
weeks, rhey firsl stopped in Mayfield rownship, at 
the home of their son. Mr. Nichols bought the 
claim, and when the Government survej was made 
J and the land i>ut upon the market, he went to Chi- 
and secured the claim. He raised his firs) 
crop of grain in 1838. lie died May 5, 1844, and 
his wife survived him several years, dying Sept. 6, 
1851. Their children were named Benjamin, Esther, 
Amy, Peter, Ephraim, Abigail, Phebe, John, Ira, 
\ s .111.1 l ,atin. 

Latin Nichols, a resident of Sycamore, was born 
Dec. 4, 1X20, in the township o( Xeversink, in Sulli- 
van Co., V V., and was 17 years of age "hen he 
came with his parents to De Kalb County, and he 
lived at home until the death of his father. After 
spending a feu seasons .1- a farm laborer, he bought 
80 acres of land on section 10, Mayfield Township. 
He built a small frame house on the place, and 
broke and plowed a part of the land the same year 
he became its owner. 

He was married July 3, 1S47, to Armena, 
daughter of Abner and Mary (Kendall) Jackman, 
who were pioneers of the township of Sycamore. 
Mr. and Mrs. Nichols settled on the farm he had 
red for his residence, and which they occupied 
until 1SS2, when it was sold, and tin- family removed 
to Sycamore. Three children were born of their 
union : Mary E. married William B. Dunmore, and 
resides at Sycamore. Martha I,, was born Oct. 30, 
1855, and died Jan. 4, iS6r; Clara E. married 
William Ault and lives in Mayfield Township. 



pjLIp- oseph Cox, tanner, section 25, Victor 
J. Township, was born April 22, 1840, in 
Lincolnshire, England. His parents, Joseph 
and Jane (Wilson) Cox, were also born in Eng- 
land and emigrated thence in 1863 to the 
United States. They first found a home in 
the State of New York, where they maintained a resi- 
dence three years. In 1S66 the) came to Illinois, 
where the father died in 1872. The mother is still 
living. 

Mr. Cox left his native land for America three 

years before his father and mother came hither. On 

landing at the Port of New York he came at once to 

_ Victor Township. He was 20 yeai <>i age when he- 



left home, ami hid received a limited education. 
Mter coming to Victor Township he became a fane 
laborer and continued in that capacity three years. 
He subsequently managed a farm on share--, in whi< h 
he was occupied three years. He then bought the 

he now owns, then consisting of So 
lie has also added thereto So acr< more. Mr. < !ox 
is a Republican, and has held several offices in the 
township in which he is a citizen. He has reaped 
the reward of faithfulness and merit in all his busi- 
ness relations. 

II. was married Jan. 1, 1S67, to Alice Arnold, a 
native of England. Four children were added to 
their household, — Jonathan, Alice, Betsey and Cyn- 
thia. 



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■/.enry M. Thorp, farmer, section 17, Somo- 
nauk Township, was born Sept. 25, 1836, in 
.. u-i*' Otsego Co., N. Y., and is the son of Leon- 
ard and Eliza (Miller) Thorp. His father was 
j born April 4, 1802; his mother, Nov. 20, 1805, 
I and were both natives of the State of New York. 
They had ten children, seven of whom are still liv- 
ing. The family came to Illinois at a period when 
Chicago was in its infancy, there being but 1 1 b 
in the now monster metropolis when they pissed 
through it on their way to " Big Wood,," near Aurora. 
The senior Thorp kept what was then known as a 
house at Bristol for a period of two years, after- 
wards removing to Piano, Kendall County, where 
the parents are now living, probably the oldest 
COuple of the pioneer settlers now living there. 

Mr. Thorp was married in January, [856, at 
Piano, to Belinda Loomis. Mrs. Thorp was born 
May 22, 1839, in Lewis Co. N. Y., and is the daugh- 
ter of Emery and Nancy (Lane) Loomis. Of their 
marriage three children have been born: Emery 
(Jan. 30, 1859) is a farmer in Lee Co., 111.; Leonard, 
bom Feb, 3, 1861, 1 in the family homestead; 

and Lyman was born Oct. 7, 1867. 

Mr. Thorp cam< to Somonauk Township in the 
spring ol 1860 He rented the farm of which he is 
now the proprietor", then comprising 320 acres, and 
continued its management 13 years, when he pur- 
chased the property. He has made additional pur- 



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chases, and the farm now includes 453 acres. He is 
the owner of 163 acres in Lee Co., 111., and 43^ 
acres in Iowa. In connection with his agricultural 
operations, Mr. Thorp lias been hugely interested in 
the business of threshing and corn-shelling. In the 
course of his transactions in these avenues he has 
worn out 12 threshing-machines and several shelters. 
Muring one season he shelled 80,000 bushels of 
corn, and lias averaged a dail) amount of 2,460 
bushels. He keeps from 20 to 35 head of horses 
and mules. He is the owner of a Clydesdale and 
Norman registered Stallion and an English draft 
horse, and is interested in breeding line animals for 
market. 



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ustave Walter, manufacturer of carriages, 
road cans, cutters, sleighs, etc., at Sand- 
wich, is the sun of Christian and Sarah 

Walter, and was born Oct. 3, 1849, in Alsace, 
France. He began his apprenticeship to learn 

1 his trade when 14 years of age and served 
three years. In 1868 he came to America and lo- 
cated at Ottawa, 111. After working there one year, 
he came to Chicago, where he remained two years. 
He prO( eeded thence to Peoria, 111., whence he went 
nearly a year later to Woodstock. At that place he 
opened his business, which he prosecuted two years, 
going next to Serena. Two years later he made an- 
other transfer, to Piano, where he continued one year. 
In 1876 he located his business at Sandwich, buying 
his present location. He has three buildings — one 
(X feet, built of brick, constituting a general 
blacksmithing department; another is 24x48 feet, 
and is used as a repository; a third, 24x30, is the 
wood department. His business transactions amount 
annually to $25,000, and includes all varieties of 
popular vehicles. The usual working force includes 
about 10 men. Mr. Walter is a member of the Ma- 
sonic fraternity, Blue Lodge and Chapter of Sand- 
wich and Aurora Commandery. 

He was married at Woodstock, 111., July 20, 1872, 
to Sophia, daughter of Christian Retterer. She was 
born April 10, 1851, in Alsace, France. Charles A . 




born Feb. 26, 1876, Laura A., Aug. 1, 1877, and 
Mabel E., March 17, 1882, are the children of Mr, 
and Mrs. Walter. 



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^harles D. Jaekman. deceased, was born 

pft July 7, 1837, in Sycamore. His parents, 

|r/» ** Abner and Mary (Kendall) Jaekman, were 

K © among the pioneer settlers of De Kalb ( lount) . 

y^ and were born in the State of Vermont. 

Mr. Jaekman was born and bred on his 
father's farm, and attended the distric t school. He 
was married Nov. 10, 1857, to Funic e ll.dladay. She 
was born in the town of Horicon, Warren Co., N. Y., 
and is the daughter of Harvey and Betsey (Hollon) 
Halladay,' who were natives of Vermont, and were 
among the earliest of the permanent settlers of Syi a- 
more. Mr. and Mrs. Jaekman located on the Jackson 
farm, on section 5 in that township. The husband 
became a soldier in the Union army, and enlisted in 
August, 1862, in Co. C, 105th Regt 111. Vol. Inf. 
He participated in all the closing 1 ampaigns of the 
war in which the Army of the West was involved, 
marched with Sherman to the sea and through the 
Carolinas to Washington, where he was a part of the 
Grand Review. He was mustered out of service at 
Chic ago, and resumed farming on the homestead in 
Sycamore Township, where he died. Jan. 18, 1879, 
leaving four children ; Merton resides in McHenry 
Co., 111.; Adelbert, Abner and Mary live with their 
mother on the homestead, on section 5. 



ames B. Glidden, teacher and farmer, re- 

^ siding in De Kail), was born in Clarendon, 

Orleans Co., N. Y , May 10, 1819. His 




father, Jacob Glidden, was a native of the town 
'W of Unity, Sullivan Co., N. H., where the " Glid- 
den farm" has remained in possession of the 
family for more than 200 years. He settled in Or- 
leans Co., N. Y., soon after the War of 1N12, emi- 
grating from his native State in the winter, with two 
yoke of oxen and sleds. He was a very early settler 
in that portion of the Empire State, bought a tract of 



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timber land, cleared a farm and spent the remain 

der of his days there. His wife, nee Sarah Smith, 
was also a native of the town of Unity, Sullivan Co., 
Y II They had [3 children, of whom James B. was 
the youngest, except one brother. Both were born 
in t Means County. 

Mr. Glidden was brought up on the farm and at- 
tended the district school. In April, 1841, he mar- 
ried Miss Juliet Beard, a nativeof the town of Lyons, 
Vati ; Co., \ V. He bought a farm of 58 aires. 
which three years afterward he sold, and he rented 
a farm until 1852, when he purchased another in Van 
Buren Co., Mich. In the winter of 1852-3 he was 
emploj ed as foreman in the 1 onstru< turn of the Chi- 
Vlton & St Louis Railroad, and with that ex- 
1 eption, and teai hing s< hool during the winter 
seasons, he has always been engaged in agricultural 
pursuits. I le c ommenced teaching si hool at tin 
of 18, in the State of New York, and has taught for 
20 winters. In r86o he sold his farm in Michigan 
and came to De Kalb County, this State, buying a 
farm on section 10, in Afton Township. Here, at 
that time, there were but a few aires broken, and he 
proi eeded to place the farm in a fine and presentable 
condition, by fencing, breaking, setting out fine shade 
and ornamental trees, erecting buildings, etc ; but he 
sold it in 1878, in order to take charge of farms in 
the county belonging to his cousin, J. 1''. Glidden. 
He occupied his farm residence until 1 8S4, when he 
moved into the village of De Kalb. 

The four children of Mr. Glidden are Orson E., 
Vamuni A., fiances and Chase E. 



ohn Brechbiel, farmer, section 35, Victor 
Township, is a native of Germany, where 

he was born Oct. 28, 1848. His father, 
John Brechbiel, was also born there, and mar- 
ried Mary Hanse. The former removed with 
his family from the Old World to the New in 
1859, and landed in the city of New York, coming 
thence to Somonauk, DeKalb County, where the 
father bought 80 acres of land on section 35. After 
a residence thereon ol five years he died, in 1865. 
The family included two children, but Mr. Brech- 
biel, of this sketch, is the only one living, to whom 
the homestead was willed, and he has been since its 





manager and (he custodian of his mother. He has 

purchased 46 acres joining his homestead, 

besides two tin is ol }o ai res each, situated respei t- 
ively on sections 26 and 27. Mr. Brechbiel is a 
I ViniM rat in political faith. 

He was married March 9, 1869, to Mary A. Lutts- 
mann, and they have six children — Ann, Louise, 
Emma, George E., Mary M. and Ida. Mr. Brech- 
biel and his wife arc members of St. John's Lutheran 
' 'lunch, at Somonauk. 



oseph Allen, deceased, was a pioneer ol 
He Kalb County, and for some years a 
resident of Sycamore Township, where he 
located in 1S46. He was born Sept. 26, 1790, 
in Kingsbury, Washington Co., N. Y. In his 
early manhood he was a miller by vocati.ni. 
He was married Dec. 23, 1810, to Sally Allen, who 
was born Sept. 14, 1793, at Thurman, Washington 
Co., N. Y., and they had 14 children, 1 2 of whom 
grew to adult age, and seven are still living. Annie 
is the wife of C. B. Vaughn, of Montgomery, Kane- 
Co., 111.; Abisha is the widow of RIdad Calkins 
and lives near Aurora, 111 ; Charles lives in O'Brien 
Co., low. i ; William is a resident of Kane Co., 111. ; 
Joseph is a farmer of Decatur Co., Kan.: Angeline 
and Benjamin were born next in order; Henry is the 
youngest living, and resides in Gentry Co., Mo. 

At the time of their marriage they settled at Fort 
Ann. Mr. Allen was a " minute man " during the 
\V.ii of 1S12, and with his company made a forced 
march to Plattsburg, where they arrived just in time 
to witness the retreat of the British soldiers. Mr 
Allen pursued his trade at different parts of his 
native county until 1845, when impaired health 
furnished an imperative reason for a change of loca- 
tion, and he set out to seek a home in the West. He 
1 ame to Kane County, where his family joined him. 
and in the following year he came to De Kalb 
County and settled on land owned by his daughter 
in Sycamore Township. His death occurred there 
Nov. 27, 1853. Mrs. Allen died Aug. 28, 1873. 

Benjamin Allen was born April 20, 1829, and was 
16 years ol age when he came with his mother and 
the other children of his father's family to Kane 
County. He remained under the parental authority 



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il the years of his minority were passed, and 
afterward found employment in the vicinity. Ik- 
had bought 40 acres of land on section 25, Syca- 
more Township, and he devoted his earnings to pay- 
ing for his land, on which lie settled after marriage, 
and where he had built a house. He afterward pur- 
chased 20 acres adjoining and improved the entire 
property. He was its occupant until 1865, when he 
sold and bought a farm on section 1, Cortland Town- 
ship, which is in good agricultural condition. Mr. 
Allen is a Republican. While a resident of Syca- 
more he was a member of the School Board, and has 
also been Road Commissioner. 

His marriage to Abigail Lhommedieo took place 
Oct. 10, 1852. She was born at Smithville, Che- 
nango Co., N. Y. Mr. and Mrs. Allen have an 
adopted child — Benjamin Arthur 



• 




ienry Miller, a farmer of Victor Township, 
who is a landholder on section 32, was born 
April 30, 1837, in Germany. His parents, 
Christian and Louise (Gobel) Miller, were na- 
tives of Walden, Germany. His mother died 
there. Mr. Miller was thrown upon his own 
exertions for a livelihood when he was 12 years of 
age. He had received a common-school education, 
and after the age named he became a farm laborer, 
in which capacity he was employed until he was 22 
years of age. In 1845 he left his native soil to win 
for himself an opportunity that a republic offered for 
the better development of his manhood's ambitions; 
and, after landing at New York, he pressed on to 
Illinois, making his first stop at Aurora, where he 
found employment four years, going thence to Piano. 
He was married there Nov. 24, 1859, to Elizabeth 
Buckardt, who also is a native of Germany. Seven 
children have been bom of their union : William 
H , Henry W., Mary L., Fritz J., Christian J., Charles 
F. and George S. The oldest son and the only 
daughter are married. 

Mr. Miller made his first purchase of land in Vic- 
tor Township, in 1S59, when he bought 160 acres of 
land, on which he has made all the improvements. 
He has also bought 80 acres on section 28, and is 
engaged in general fanning. He and his wife belong 



to the Lutheran Church at Leland. Christian Mil- 
ler, the father, came to America in 1850. 



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indo M. Bryan, M. D., of Sycamore, is 

j. one of the pioneer physicians and surgeons 
of the portion of De Kalb County of which 
he has been for 40 years a citizen. He is a 
self-made man i.n the best sense of the term, 
possessing the qualities of industry and judg- 
ment requisite for the exertion of his natural traits 
of character, and the exercise of the discrimination 
and good sense which, under the privileges of the 
times, places a man securely on the plane for which 
he is fitted, both by nature and training. 

Dr. Bryan was born July 6, 1823,111 Fairfield, Her- 
kimer Co., N. Y., and is the son of Dr. M. L. and 
Phebe (Whiteside) Bryan. He inherited from his 
father his predilection for his profession, and obtained 
an elementary training from association and observa- 
tion that was especially valuable, although its impor- 
tance as a molding influence was neither recognized 
nor understood at the time. He received an excel- 
lent fundamental education at Fairfield Academy, 
an institution of acknowledged reputation, and at 17 
years of age he began the regular course of reading 
for his profession with Dr. G. Sweet, of Fairfield, one 
of the first preceptors of the place and period. He 
attended lectures at Geneva, N. Y.. and also at the 
University of New York City, where he was gradu- 
ated and received his degree in 1S44. He began his 
professional career with Dr. Sweet, at Fairfield, and 
had the benefit of the association and the office rela- 
tions of his preceptor until 1846, when he came to 
De Kalb County. He was only 23 years of age when 
he sought to test the promise of the West, and he 
brought to his work therein the fresh hopes of his 
young and ardent manhood. 

Sycamore was but the germ of a village when 
Dr. Bryan identified himself with its people and inter- 
ests, and he grew up and developed with it. He gave 
his undivided attention to his local medical duties 
until 1861, a period of 15 years, and won a substan- 
tial reputation. In the first year of the war he was 
appointed by Governor Yates to a position on the 
State Board of Medical Examiners to determine re- 



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ing the qualifications of army sui nd was 

Se< retary ol that body. While engaged in the 
discharge of the duties of the position he was sum- 
moned by Secretary Cameron to report .n Washington 
lor examination for the position of Brigade Sui 
Mr was found to be qualified, and was commissioned 
b\ President 1 incoln as Brigade Surgeon, with the 
rank of Majoi Pending the preliminaries, after pass- 
ing the ordeal of examination, he returned to Spring- 
field and served in his former position until he 
recen ommission and orders to report to Gen. 

Fremont in the State ol Missouri., under whom he 

lined until his commanding officer was super- 
seded by General Hunter. He was made a member 
of the staff of the latter, and was attached to the 
command through the actions at Island No. 10 and 
New Madrid. He was in charge of the general hos- 
pital of the Army of the Mississippi, at Farmington, 
near Corinth, whither he went with General Pope's 
command the day following the battle of Shiloh. He 
was already suffering the effects of over-exertion and 
a relaxing climate, and while at Corinth he made ap- 
plication to the Surgeon-C.eneral at Washington to 
be transferred to Mew Mexico for the benefit of his 
health. He soon received orders to report at 
Santa Fe to Surgeon Bailey of the Regular Army, and 
relieve him from duty as Medical Director and Pur- 

11 of the Department of New Mexico. He occu- 
t his position nearly three years, until mustered 
out of service. Dr. Bryan was in the service through- 
out the entir; Rebellion, and remained in New Mex- 
ico until the border disturbances were under control. 
He obtained his discharge in 1866, and was mustered 
out of the service of the United States at Santa Fe, 
N M , while he had the rank of Colonel, by brevet. 
During his connection with the army at that point 
lie made extensive tours through Mexico, New Mex- 
ico and Colorado, and secured great benefit to his 
health. He resumed his practice at Sycamore, and 
prosecuted his business vigorously until 1873, when 
failing health again compelled him to seek another 
■ limate, and he has since passed several winters in 
• lolorado. 

He was married July 23, 1849, to Jane Leslie 
Voorhees. She was born Sept. 10, 1824, in Lysander, 
Onondaga Co., N. Y., and is the daughter of James L. 
and Martha (Nbrthrup) Voorhees. Her parents were 
natives respectively of New York and Connecticut, 
following is the record of the children of Dr. and 




Mrs Bryan: Crania V., born June 9, 1850, became 
the wife of Edward Crist, of Sycamore, and (bed 
June 14, 1883; Florence was bom Sept. 24, 1851, 
and died Dec. 26, 1853; Martha, born Sept. 6, 1854, 
died April 23, 1861 ; Martin L., born July g, 1858, 
died June 26, 1879; James L., born May 25, 1862, 
died June 24, 1883; Jane Leslie, fourth child in or- 
der of birth, is the only survivor. She was born 
Feb. 24, 1857, and married Elthom Rogers, of Syca- 
more, May 6, 1880. 

The name and career of Dr. Bryan are inseparably 
connected with the history of Sycamore. In its early 
days he was a part of its pioneer households, his pro- 
fessional duties bringing him to an identity of inter- 
ests with the entire community. He exerted his skill 
in behalf of those who suffered from the illness inci- 
dent to a developing section, and in his professional 
capacity came to have a personal relation to the 
affairs of those with whom his lot was cast. With 
many he began his association at the opening of their 
lives, and went with them until they were gathered 
into final rest. His face was as familiar as those of the 
household to which they belonged, and was regard- 
ed as one of their greatest benefactors. The resident 
pioneer physician of a community is by far the most 
important personage in it, and his mission is one 
that bears with it its own weight of importance. 
While the personal records collated in this volume 
have each its own value to the work, that of Dr. 
Bryan is presented with a peculiar satisfaction, from 
the fact that while it reflects great credit on the an- 
nals of De Kalli County, its subject holds a relation 
to the people of Sycamore of paramount importance. 

A portrait of Dr. Bryan appears on a preceding 
page. 



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it n drew Graham, farmer, section 12, Victor 

If, Township, was bom Dec. 9. 1844, in 
"^ Franklin Co., Ohio. His parents, Robert 
and Sarah (Williamson) Graham, were natives 
of New York and removed thence to Illinois 
in 1850, when their son was six years old. As 
-aiiied in age he received a good education, 
and at the time he attained his legal freedom he be- 
gan farming on his own responsibility. He took a 
farm to work on shares, and made a success of the 
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venture, in which lie was occupied two years. Sub- 
sequently he devoted the avails of his labors to the 
payment of his expenses at Monmouth, where he 
was engaged in study three years and obtained a 
superior education. ■ He spent eight months in 
teaching, after which he took farms on shares and 
operated in that method five years. He then pur- 
chased 200 acres of land, where he has since been 
occupied in general farming. 

Mr. Graham is a Republican in political principles 
and takes the interest of a man of understanding 
who knows the responsibilities of citizenship. He 
has officiated in the local offices of his township. 

His marriage to Mary McEachron took place Dec. 
26, 1872, and they have four children, — Walter, 
Bertha J., Sarah W. and Thomas H. Mrs. Graham 
is a native of the Empire State. 

l^dmond B. Harned, farmer, section 17, 

|| Sycamore Township, was born July 13, 

|p^ 1829, in Smithtown, Suffolk Co., N. Y.,and 




jjfe. is the son of Hosea Harned. His great grand- 
father, Jacob Harned, was a native of Perth 
Amboy, N. J., and located on a tract of 1,100 
acres of land on Long Island, which came into his 
possession about the date of the war of the Revolu- 
tion. He belonged to the sect of Friends, or Quakers ; 
and, although the principles of the society would not 
permit him to go to war, he aided in the construction 
of barracks for the soldiery, as that variety of assis- 
tance fell under a possible higher law of rendering 
help to the needy. He died on Long Island, about 
1824. Hosea Harned, his son, was born Jan. 2, 

1798, in Smithtown, Suffolk Co., L. I., and was there 
brought up, under the care and instructions of his 
father, who gave him a through training in agricultural 
arts. He was married Sept. 27, 1818, to Rosetta 
Brown. She was born in Smithtown, Sept. 24, 

1799, and died Sept. 27, 1833, leaving four children, 
two of whom still survive, — Edmond B. and Amelia. 
Mr. Harned was married a second time Nov. 5, 1S33, 
to Mrs. Fanny (Hoag) Babcock, widow of the Rev. 
James Babcock, a Methodist clergyman. 

Mr. Harned went from Long Island to Ohio in 
1832, leaving his home by way of Sandy Hook, pro- 
ceeding up the Hudson River until he reached the 




Erie Canal, by which he went to Buffalo, and went 
from there by lake to Painesville, Lake Co., Ohio. 
He located in Leroy in that county, which was then 
included in the county of Geauga and lived on a 
farm there four or live years, which he sold. He 
then removed to another, which he bought, near 
Madison in Lake County. After a few years he- 
bought a third farm, near Monticello, in Geauga 
County, which he sold four years later and removed 
to Streetsboro, Portage County, where he bought a 
fourth farm. He decided on coming farther West, 
and in 1S51 disposed of his estate in Ohio and set 
out for De Kalb County, whither he came with two 
two-horse teams and wagons. During the first year 
after his arrival he rented a farm, meanwhile pros- 
pecting for a desirable location. In the spring of 
1852 he bought a farm on section 8, Sycamore 
Township, one of the earliest settled in the township 
or county, and which he purchased from the widow 
of one of the leading pioneers of Sycamore, Lysander 
Darling. The farm remained in his possession until 
1S65, when he again sold out and removed to the 
village of Cortland. After a residence there of four 
years, he went to Grundy Co., Iowa, to live with his 
daughter at Fayette, where he died May 6, 1877. Of 
his second marriage five children were born, four of 
whom are now living — Lyman, Mary (Mrs. Enoch 
Wheeler, of Fayette, Iowa), Angeline, widow of 
David Underwood, of Marshalltown, Iowa, and Wal- 
ter, resident at Steamboat Rock, Franklin Co., Iowa. 

The youngest son enlisted in 1864, in the 147th 
Reg., 111. Vol., and died while in the service at Dal- 
ton, Ga. The eldest daughter by the first marriage 
is the wife of Fitz Henry Talcott, and lives at Wal- 
dena, Fayette Co., Iowa. 

Edmond B. Harned accompanied his parents from 
Long Island to Ohio and thence to Illinois. He was 
in early manhood when they located in De Kalb 
County. In the fall of 1853 he went to his native 
State and passed a year there. He was married 
Oct. 21, 1855, at Sycamore, to Susan H., daughter 
of James M. and Prudence (Eaton) Sivwright. She- 
was born Jan. 6, 1833, in Nova Scotia. After his 
marriage, Mr. Harned rented the property known as 
the Tower farm, and a year later (in 1856) bought a 
farm on section 16, on which about four acres had 
been broken. He built a house and stable, broke and 
fenced the fand, and there conducted his agricultural 
projects until 1865, when he sold it and bought his 



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father's farm on section-, where he is still living. 
Mr. and Mrs. Harried have five children living. 
Rosetta married Charles C. Pond, Merton R. is a 
graduate from the Dental College at Philadelphia, 
and is engaged in the practice of his profession at 
Oregon, Ogle Co., 111. Armanella P., James \i. and 
Susan A. are the names of the youngest living 
children. Eugene, the eldest, was bom June 29, 
1856. He was completing a business education at 
the Gem City Business College, when he died, April 

19, 1876. 

4&f BJ|;lark L. Barber, one of the pioneers ol the 
^^3 count) and now a resident at De Kalb, 
was born in the town of Pike, then in AUe- 
ftot & ;m y> now m Wyoming, Co., N. Y., June 29, 
*T- 1812. His parents, Levi C. and Sally (Rood) 
liarlier, natives of Vermont, settled in the 
township in 1S1 1, as pioneers. He (the senior Bar- 
ber) bought land of the Holland Purchase Company 
four miles east of Pike Hollow, in the wilderness, 
having to follow a line indicated by marked trees in 
order to find his place. Here he immediately erected 
a log house (in which Clark I,, was born), cleared a 
farm and made considerable advancement toward the 
establishment of a comfortable home; but in Feb- 
ruary, 1835, he started with a pair of horses and a 
sleigh for the Prairie State. Arriving in this county, 
he took a claim on section 15 of what is now IK- Kalb 
Township. He was accompanied by his two eldest 
sons, Lyman and Harry, who also took claims and 
afterwards entered the land when the Government 
had surveyed it and placed it in market. This was 
their home until the death of the father, in 1859. 
He was a stirring man, full of energj and enterprise. 
He had been Sheriff of Allegany Co., N. V , for a 
number of years. Six of his children by his first wife 
— Lyman, Harry, Clark L., Amelia, Adelia and Poll) 
— grew up to years of maturity. The first two, who 
settled on land adjoining that of their father, are now- 
deceased. Amelia is the wife of Lumau Huntley, 
now of |Dixon, 111. Adelia is the wife of Franklin 
Burr and lives at Lincoln, Neb.: her second son, Car- 
los C, is a member of the Nebraska State Senate. 
The elder Barber's second wife was Mrs Hannah 
Brownell, and by this marriage there were three 



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children, two of whom arc now living, namely : Wan- 
ton B . now a resident of De Kaib Township; and 
Laura E., who married Clark Carter, of De Kalb. 

Mr ('Ink L. Barber, the subject of this sketch, 
grew 10 manhood in his native township, being 
brought up U< farming pursuits. In 1836, accom- 
panied by two sisters, he started to meet their father 
in Illinois. Leaving his sisters in Chicago, he started 
on foot for that part of Kane County now included 
in De Kalb County, where he found his father. He 
first made a ( laim on what is now called Geneva 
Lake; but he abandoned it and took one on sections 
15 anil 16, in ,l Orange Precinct," now in De Kalb 
Township. Here he built a log house, a chimney 
with stic ks and mud. miking the roof with " shakes " 
split from oak timber, and the floor of puncheons. 
From this rude beginning Mr. Barber improved the 
place to its present fine proportions, the farm con- 
taining several hundred acres. In 1SS3 he sold it, 
and he has since traveled extensively, visiting Kansas 
and Nebraska. In Chase County, in the latter State, 
he purchased a farm of 400 acres. The same year, 
1883, he also bought a large farm in Iroquois County, 
this State. 

Mr. Barber has filled offices of trust in the town and 
county; was Deputy Sheriff si\ years, under C. C. 
Landis, and Assessor of his township several years, 

He was in uric. 1 in M ty, r S 3 9 , to Mary M. Spring, 
a native of the town of Woodhull, Steuben Co., N. Y., 
and they have two children living, namely: Louisa, 
who is the wife of Jacob Crawford, and lives in De 
Kalb; and Harriet, who is the wife of Newcomb 
Crawford, and lives near Woodstock, McHenry 
County. 



eorge B. French, farmer, section 9, Somon- 

auk Township, was born in the house in 

which he now resides, Dec. 19, 1850. His 

father, William Freni h, was a carpenter and 

came to Illinois, driving a team from Chi 

cago to Somonauk Township, arriving June 2. 

He took up a claim of 160 acres of mixed 

praiiie and .timber land, and became a prominent 

and successful farmer. He was bom Dec. 30, 181 1. 

in Washington Co., V Y., and was married Oct. 29, 

1833, in his native county, to Isabella Beveridge (sec 

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sketch of J. H. Beveridge). She was bora in the 
same county, Nov. 17, 1815, and is still living. The 
father died July 19, 1880. Five of seven children 
born to them yet survive : Ellen A., wife of Chester 
Henry, of Somonauk Township ; Mary C, deceased ; 
Sarah A., wife of Martin McCleary, a farmer of 
Morris Co., Kan. ; John B., deceased ; George B. ; 
Andrew L., a farmer near Pawnee City, Neb. ; and 
leannette, wife of Thomas McElheny, a farmer in 
Nebraska. 

Mr. French has always resided on the farm where 
he was born 35 years ago, and he is a substantial 
and successful agriculturist. In connection with 
general farming he owns about a score of cows, of the 
Short-Horn Durham breed, for dairy purposes. 

His marriage to Clara M. Kirkpatrick occurred in 
Squaw Grove Township, Dec. 31, 1879, and they 
have two children : Mary E., born Oct. 2r, tSSo, 
and William I , born Nov. 6, 1882. Mrs. French 
was born May 4, 1853, and is the daughter of Isaac 
and Sarah Kirkpatrick, pioneer settlers of Squaw 
Grove Township. 



Christian Von Ohlen, farmer, section 29, 
S li*&8|jj Victor Township, was born April 27, 1830, 
><& °" in Braunschweig, Germany. He was 
fe educated according to the laws of his native 
? country, and was under the authority of his 
parents until he was of age, and he spent ten 
subsequent years in their support. Oct. 1, 185 1, he 
was conscripted and served in the Army of Germany 
until April, 1853, when, by request of the authorities, 
he was released from military obligations to maintain 
his parents and the other members of the family. 
He came to America in 1854, and landed Dec. 13, 
in the city of New York, whence he proceeded to 
Piano, 111., where he arrived Dec. 22, — nine days 
later. His first employment was in the capacity of 
assistant on the farm of Washington Walker, with 
whom he engaged to remain one year, at the aggre- 
gate wages of $150. In 1856 he was occupied in 
the same capacity on a 40-acre farm near Yorkville, 
Kendall Co., 111. The subsequent year he rented a 
farm containing 80 acres, which he conducted one 
year. In 1858 he came to the township of Victor. 
< >n the first day of April he took possession of 160 




acres of land he had purchased the previous autumn. 
He brought to the furtherance of his agricultural 
projects his old country thrift, industry and persistent 
energy, and has risen in accumulations and standing 
to a far better position than the classes in his own 
land who would deem it beneath their dignity to 
have offered him a civility on his native soil under 
the flag he was forced to defend for them. He is a 
Republican, and rejoices that he is also a citizen of 
a land that recognizes his claims as a man. In 1867 
he sold 80 acres of his first claim to his brother, and 
in 1873 he bought 80 acres on section 21, which is 
still in his possession. 

His wife, Louise Merkel before marriage, is a 
native of Germany, and of their six children five are 
still living,— Christian W., Anna, Ernst, France and 
Juliana. Mr. and Mrs. Van Ohlen are members of 
the Lutheran Church. 



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l^ilas O. Vaughan, City Clerk of De Kalb, 
^' was born in the town of Hanover, Grafton 
(JjfW Co., N. H., June 6, 1821. His father, 
Silas T., was a native of Royal ton, Vt, and 
his mother, nee Polly Ingals, of Hanover, N. H 
When the subject of this sketch was 13 years 
of age he began to learn the blacksmith's trade, and 
served an apprenticeship of seven years. He then 
moved to the State of New York, locating in the town 
of Attica in that part of Genesee County now included 
in Wyoming County, where he was employed as 
foreman in a shop until 1844, when he came to Illi- 
nois and located in Naperville. There, in company 
with others, he purchased the Naperville Plow Fac- 
tory, the largest factory of the kind in the State at 
that time, and was connected with the institution 14 
years. Then, in 1S58, he came to De Kalb and 
opened an establishment for the manufacture of plows 
and general blscksrrrithing, which he carried on for a 
number of years; and since he has been here he has 
held various local offices, — among them. Milage and 
City Clerk for 20 years. He has once been elected 
a member of the Board of Trustees, of which body 
he has also been once chosen President. For some 
years past he has also been engaged in the insurance 
business, and now represents i 2 solid and reliable 
companies. He is a member of De Kalb Lodge, No 



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1 1 1. A F. & A. M. ; he first joined the order in 1850, 
at Naperville. For seven years lie has been Master 
..1 the Lodge, and for 13 years High Priest of De 
Kalb Chapter. No. 52 ; in 1880 he was Grand High 
Priest of the Grand Chapter of Illinois. For iS 
years he has been a member of the Ancient Scotch 
Rite. 

Mr. Vaughan was married Sept. 11, 1850, to Caro- 
line Sabin, daughter of S. and Mary M. Sabin. She 
was born in Alexander, Genesee Co., N. Y. Mr. and 
Mrs. V. have three children, — Edmond K., Willie 
and Mary Marcy. 




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-[Lacob M. Hall, an early settler, has been a 

f resident of the township of Somonauk 

since 1838. He was bom Dec. 2, 1815, in 

Ontario Co., N. Y. His father, William C. 
]£ Hall, was born in Connecticut, Sept. 1, 1787. 

He married Dorcas Thurston, and afterwards 
settled in Bradford Co., Pa., where he died in 1852. 
The mother was born Feb. 16, 1794, and died May 
26, 1852, in the same place where the demise of her 
husband occurred. Five of their nine children are 
living. 

Mr. Hall came hither in the month of January, 
and located on 80 acres of land, which he entered 
and plowed when it came into market. The entire 
acreage is now platted, and a portion of it is known 
as Hall's Addition to Sandwich. The residence of 
Mr. Hall is established on four lots of his original 
purchase. In 1869 he bought 120 acres of land on 
section 36, Somonauk Township, whither he removed 
and resided seven years, converting it into a fine 
farm, which he still owns. In 1876 he removed to 
Sandwich for a permanent abode. 

He was married Nov. 7, 1842,10 Lurano, daughter 
of Major and Eunice Dennis, who were among the 
earliest settlers of De Kalb County. The marriage 
service was conducted in the log house which Mr. 
Hall built on taking possession of the farm, and 
which afterward became his legal property. Mrs. 
Hall was born June 29, 1815, in Dartmouth, R. I. 
Of her union with Mr. Hall five children have been 
born: Dorcas, widow of Charles W. Humislon, 
resides at Sandwich. She was born July 26, 1843. 
Alvira, born March 2, 1845, died Sept. 24, 1866. 



Sarah A. was born July 8, 1846. Myron C, a 
farmer in Somonauk Township, was born Sept. 2, 
1848. John W. II., born July 30, [851, rents his 
lather's farm in Somonauk Township. Mr. and Mrs. 
Hall are members of the Methodist Episcopal 
Church, and he is a Class-leader in the society at 
Sandwich. 

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ewis Dieterich, senior member of the firm 
of Dieterich & Ebinger, manufacturers of 
drain tile and brick on the Somonauk road, 

one mile west of Sandwich, is the son of George 
A and Margaret (Breidenstein) Dieterich, and was 

born Dec. 26, 1842, in Baden, Germany. His 
father was a brick-maker and died in Germany. The 
son was 12 years of age when he accompanied his 
mother and stepfather, George Ebinger, to America. 
They had seven children besides him, of whom six 
are now living. They came across the sea in 1854 
and settled at a place now called Streator, I. a Salle 
County. They went thence soon after to Ottawa, in 
the same county, where Mr. Ebinger had a brick- 
yard and where the younger members of the family 
were employed early in life, and also secured a com- 
prehensive knowledge of the business. Mr. Dieterich 
also learned the trade of shoemaker at Ottawa, and 
in the fall of 1857 came to Sandwich, where he was 
employed at his trade in the winter seasons, and 
passed the summers on the farm and in the brick- 
vard. About 1862 he was placed in charge of Em- 
mons & McCoy's brick-yard at Sandwich, anil offi- 
ciated in that position two years. In 1864 he bought 
the claim of Mr. McCoy, and the firm of Emmons & 
Dieterich operated about two years, when his brother 
George became a half owner. He carried on his 
business in this connection two years, when he pur- 
chased the entire property, and removed the machin- 
ery to its present location about 1870. He bought 
six acres where the kilns are now situated, and was 
engaged there in the manufacture of brick. He 
bought 124 acres adjoining, together with a nice resi- 
dence. In 18S2 he admitted his half-brother, Valen- 
tine Ebinger, as a partner, and they are now engaged 
in the prosecution of an extensive business, including 
also the manufacture of tile. They have three kilnsi 
and their respective buildings arc 36x96, 36x36 



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and 20 x 60 feet in dimensions. The first, a main 
building, is three stories high: the others arc two 
stories in height. The main structure is heated by 
steam, and they employ on an average about 20 men. 
Their works are ill operation all the year, and their 
products are utilized chiefly by home patrons. They 
do about $20,000 worth of business yearly, and their 
wares are always in demand, their surplus being 
shipped West. 

Mr. Dieterich was married in Sandwich, Jan. 1, 
1866, to Phebe Haibach, daughter of Adam and 
Anna L. Haibach. She was born Nov. 14, 1846, and 
came to the United States in extreme childhood, — 
when less than three years old. Their children were 
born as follows: Amelia, Nov. 4, 1866; Adeline K., 
Nov. 10, 1868; Ellen E., Feb. 27, 1871; Lewis 
Franklin, Dec. ro, 1872; Martin G., April 27, 1875 
(died Dec. 18, 1878); Herbert M., Feb. 9, 1877 (died 
Dec. 13, 187S); Milton G., Jan. 1, 1880; Alvah E., 
March 3, 1882; Roy O., Aug. 22, 1884. The deaths 
of the deceased children were but five days apart. 




F. Stout, a farmer of Victor Township, 

resident on section 15, was born Sept. 14, 
i''^* 1814, in New Jersey, and he is the son of 
jM\ John V. and Elizabeth (Field) Stout. After 
:/ ^' he was 18 years of age he learned the trade of 
a carpenter, previous to which he had passed 
his time in attending school and in farm labor. He 
operated as a carpenter one year, receiving a dollar a 
day for his services. He came to Illinois in 1836, 
locating in Fairview, Fulton County, where he found 
abundant employment and worked by the day or job 
at his trade at that place until 1852, when he < ame 
to De Kalb County and purchased 40 acres of land 
in Victor Township. He is now the owner of 200 
acres of land, having purchased 160 acres lying ad- 
joining the tract he first purchased. He has a fine 
and valuable farm, whose improvements are the re- 
sults of his own efforts, judgment and good taste. 
The place is supplied with fruit and ornamental 
trees, every one having been set by the hands of the 
proprietor himself. He is also the owner of valuable 
herds of stock of several varieties. 

Mr. Stout was married Oct. 16, 1844, to Ann M. 
Suydam, who was born in New Jersey, and is the 



daughter of S. B. and Johannah Suydam. Her par- 
ents removed from New Jersey to Ohio and came 
thence three years later to Illinois, settling in Victor 
Township. Her mother died July 7, 1882. Her 
father is 82 years of age. Mr. and Mrs. Stout have 
three children, — John, Cornelius and Mary E. The 
daughter is married and lives in Iowa. The sons are 
married also and reside in California. 



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iTSSi 1 ?-* C. French, farmer, resident on section 1 1, 
saffe Somonauk Township, was born March 27, 
1819, in Wallingford, Vt., and is the son 
of Isaac and Rebecca (Cummings) French. 
Both parents were natives of Cornish, N. H., 
and belonged to the agricultural class. Two 
of their four children are living: Betsey, the sister cf 
Mr. French, of this sketch, married James H. Mig- 
hell, a farmer of Hamilton Co., Iowa ; Abigail, de- 
ceased, was the wife of Silas Edson ; and Loomis is 
deceased. 

Mr. French is essentially a farmer by descent and 
inheritance, and has spent a large portion of his life 
in teaching. He obtained a practical education in 
Vermont, and there engaged in teaching winters. 
The aggregate number of times in which he operated 
in that capacity comprised 15 seasons in New Eng- 
land, and seven since his removal to Illinois. He 
was first married in Wallingford, to Mariette Thomp- 
son, by whom he had a son — Wallace — since de- 
ceased. The wife and mother died Sept. 12, 1859, 
in Wheatland, Will Co., 111. Mr. French was a sec- 
ond time married Dec. 12, 1866, to Mrs. Lucy A. 
Congdon. of Wallingford, Vt., where she was born 
Aug. 28, 1835. M rs - French is the daughter of Lev- 
erett and Abigail (Hart) Culver. The former was 
born in 1800, in Wallingford, and died there July 4, 
1866. The latter was also a native of Wallingford, 
and was born in 1807. She died Jan. 14, 1861. 
The record of their family is remarkable : they had 
14 children — seven sons and seven daughters — all 
of whom reached adult age and all are yet living s.n e 
one son, who died from the effects of a wound re- 
ceived at the siege of Petersburg during the Civil 
War. Luanda is the widow of Allen Edgerton, of p£ 
Wallingford, Vt. Abigail is the widow of A. K 
York and lives in the vicinity of Wallingford. Eli 



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phalel; Harry enlisted in a Vermont regiment of 
Sharp-shooters, and was killed June [8, 1X64. Lll( J 
Ann and Laura Ann, twins, were born next in order. 
The sistei of Mrs. French is the wife of Seneca Cul- 
ver, ol Sandwich. Melvina married James C. Patch, 
of East Wallingford. Daniel is a farmer in Walling- 
ford. Luke is a farmer in Fond du Lai- Co., Wis. 
Maiy i- the widow of Wallace Johnson and lives at 
Wallingford. Elmer is a farmer in Illinois. James 
1- 1 farmei ol La Salle Co., 111. Chauncey is a farmer 
in Somonauk Township. May is Mrs Cornelius 
Patch, of East Wallingford. The paternal grandpa- 
rents of Mrs. French were James and Hannah 
(Tucker) Culver; on the mother's side they were 
Amasa and Abigail (Finn) Hart. Mrs. French was 
a teacher in Wallingford a number of years, and 
hi one term of school in Fond du Lac Co., Wis. 
Mr. French has been a fanner of Illinois since 
1853. In that year he came to Kendall County and 
bought land in Big Rock Township, which he man- 
aged three years. He went theme to the township 
of Wheatland in Will County, and was a farmer there 
five years, removing thence to Clinton, De Kalb 
County, where he maintained his residence six years. 
He bought the farm where he now resides in 1868. 
The place includes 100 acres of land, and is all im- 
proved. Mr. French has been prominent in public. 
life, both in his native State and in Illinois. He was a 
member of the Legislature of Vermont in 185 1-2, be - 
si les holding a number of minor offices in that State, 
and while a resident of Clinton, officiated three years 
as Township Clerk, and has held other offices here. 



"■iy.enry Von Ohlen, farmer, section 29, Vic- 
- '/| ; tor Township, is the son of Christian Henry 
'■' , t ,' J and Johannah (Burneman) Von Ohlen. 

. , They were natives of Brunswick, Germany, and 
I on the 19th day of October, 1855, came to 
Sandwich, De Kalb Co.. 111. After a residence 
there of two years the family came to Victor Town- 
ship, where the father died April 15, 1S80, the 
mother's demise occurring Nov. 27, 1882. 

The son, who is the subject of this sketch, first 

me a land-holder in the township of which he is 

a citizen, in 1857, when he bought <So acres of land, 

on which he has since pursued his agricultural de- 




signs, and also on 160 acres on the same section, 
which he has since pun based. He is engaged in 
the various branches of husbandry common to prairie 
farms, and he owns a fine assortment of stock. Mr. 
Von Ohlen is a respe< ted 1 itizen of his township, and 
is a Republican in political principle. 

His marriage to Caroline Likert took place Oct. 9, 
1865. She is a native of Germany, and the house- 
hold now includes five children, — Alvena M., Clara, 
Henrj J., Emma L. and Alice. Mr. and Mrs. Von 
Ohlen belong to the Lutheran Church. 

— •fN^^i*<^# — j 

ohn Syme, manager of the R. Ell wood 
Manufacturing Company at Sycamore, was 

born Nov. 15, 1833,011 the Scottish coast 
at a point eight miles south of Edinboro, and 
is the son of James and Ann (Young) Syme. 
The father removed the family to Ballymena, 
in the North of Ireland, Mr. Syme being a lad at the 
time of the transfer. He secured a good education 
and became a book-keeper later, engaging in the 
manufacture of hats at Limerick, in which occupa- 
tion he was interested four years. 

He came to this country in 1S61, making his way 
through Canada to Chicago, where he entered the 
employment of Low Brothers, an extensive grain and 
produce firm, as traveling salesman, in whose inter- 
ests he operated about two years. In the fall of 
1863 he came to Sycamore, and established himself 
in the same business, buying and shipping grain, 
produce and live stock, in company with Roswell 
Wheeler. They also were the proprietors of a lum- 
beryard, in which they conducted a considerable re- 
tail business. In 1865 he built an elevator, which is 
now owned by the railroad company. In 1868 he 
became associated with his brother, David A. Syme, 
holding with him a joint ownership in a hardware 
store, in the sale of agricultural implements, and 
also in buying and shipping grain, etc. In 1876 the 
hardware department was sold, and the remaining 
branches of business divided, Mr. Syme continuing 
the sale of agricultural implements until 1880, when 
he sold out and became a stock-holder in the busi- 
ness in which he is now interested, and which had been 
re-organized. Mr. Syme was elected manager, and 
has since operated in that capacity. When the 



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works are running on full time, about 130 men are 
employed. The products are cultivators, hay-racks, 
harrows, sulkv-plows, etc. Mr. Syme is a member 
of the firm of II. T. Lawrence and Co., dealers in 
wagons, carriages and agricultural implements at 
Sycamore. He has been three times elected Alder- 
man and has served six years in that capacity. In 
[878 lie was elected Captain of Co. A, Third Regi- 
ment of Illinois National Guards, a position he held 
two years. He is prominent as a Republican, and has 
been Chairman of the County Committee during the 
past ten years. He belongs to the Sycamore Com- 
mandery, K. T., No. 15. 

Mr. Syme was married in September, 1876, to 
Carrie \V. Waterman. Their children were as fol- 
lows: John W., Aug. 16, 187S, and Kate Irene, Aug. 
22, 1882. Mrs. Syme is the daughter of the late 
John C. and Caroline (Hoyt) Waterman, and was 
born at Sycamore. 



sH!H$HSe«s 




^ikSMf nomas F. Latham, retired farmer, section 
26, Sotnonauk Township, was born Feb. 23, 
1812, in Groton Township, New London 
■)' Co., Conn. Joseph Latham, his father, was a 
farmer in early life, and in 1824 a dealer in fish 
|in the city of New York, becoming the husband 
of Mary Fish. 

In 1833 Mr. Latham engaged in mercantile trans- 
actions in New York, in which he was interested until 
1838, the year in which he removed to De Kalb 
County, accompanied by his wife and one child, now 
deceased, and his brothers Joseph and Hubbard. 
'The latter is a resident of Willamet, 111. The former 
is deceased. 

Mr. Latham settled on a claim of 300 acres, which 
included what land he now owns in the township 
of Somonauk. His brothers also secured claims. 
Joseph resided on his farm, situated north of that of 
his brother, until his death in March, 1883. 

In 1S49 Mr. Latham went with the tide to Cali- 
fornia, remaining in the gold mines five years. He 
returned to Illinois and resumed charge of his fami- 
ng interests, laboring in that capacity four years. In 
185S he again went to California and spent seven 
years, with unsatisfactory results. In iSSohewentto 
the mining district of Colorado and has passed five 




summers there prospecting for gold and silver. He 
owns three claims in Chaffee County, which are be- 
ing worked. The farm in Somonauk Township is 
conducted by his son, Thomas J. 

'The marriage of Mr. Latham to Jane Ayres took 
place March 27, 1837. Sin; was born Feb. 25, 1820, 
near Cleveland, Ohio, and is the daughter of Enos 
and Jane (Debow) Ayres. Seven children have been 
born to Mr. and Mrs. Latham: Julia II., deceased, 
Feb. 22, 1838; Thomas J., June 14, 1841; Mary, 
wife of G. S. Serine, of Iowa, April 23, 1843 I Aurelia 
April 7, 1847; Franklin, Nov. 25, 1856. 



. christian Miller, farmer, section \a, Victor 
5^-p Township, was born June 8, 1837, in 
kW Germany. He was an inmate of the parental 
jjjL household until lie was 15 years old, and 
' \ passed the next three years in farm labor. 
When he was 18 years old he set out for 
America, and on landing on the shores of the New 
World he made his way to Aurora, 111.; he worked 
there five years on a farm, when he bought 80 acres 
of land on section 34 of Victor Township and estab- 
lished li is homestead. He is prosperously engaged 
in agriculture, and is earning the right to his privileges 
of American citizenship. He is a Republican in 
political principles. 'The parents of Mr. Miller, 
Christian and Louise (Gobel) Miller, were natives of 
Germany. 

He was married March 5, 1866, to Christina Roth, 
a lady of German birth and parentage, who came 
from her native land in 1S65. Their five children 
are named Louise J., Frederick C , Henry F., John 
C. and Emma A. 



*i — 



^3 




i,harles H. Pratt, senior member of the 

HIEKSa^r mercantile firm of Pratt Brothers, at Sand- 

p V^ wich, was born Feb. 19, 1S46, in Deep 

WS River, Middlesex Co., Conn. His father, H. 

; J v H. Pratt, was born in ConnectU ut, and is now 

I living at Sandwich. Mary J. (Cornstock) Pratt, 

the mother, is deceased. 'They had seven children, of 

whom two (daughters) died in infancy. Five sons 

survive: Merritt C. is a hardware merchant at 



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744 



DE KALB COUNTY. 



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North Loup, Neb.; Wilbur A. and Ashley W. arc 

its it Wesl Paw Paw. 111. ; Burton E. is a 

member of the firm of Pratt Brothers. 

Mr. Pratt was reared on a farm to the age of 16 
years, when he bei ame clerk and book-keeper in a 
banking house at Sandwich. He remained in this 
position two years, after which he became a clerk in 
the dry-goods store of Harvey toombs, of Sandwich. 
Six months later his employer sold out his establish- 
ment to A. B. Crofoot, and he continued to officiate 
in the same capacity under the new order of things 
about two years, at which time he was admitted to a 
partnership. The firm of A. 15. Crofoot & Co. existed 
five years, when it was terminated by the junior part- 
ner selling his interest to Mr. Crofoot, and the former 
then embarked in the sale of hoots and shoes, in 
which he was interested about a year. At the end 
of that time the firm of Pratt, Goodman & Gurley 
was constituted, and their business relations were 
extended until they were engaged in the prosecution 
of a profitable trade in general merchandise. Later 
they opened a branch store at Walnut, Bureau Co., 
111. After three years Mr. Goodman withdrew and 
Pratt & Gurley maintained their business relations 
until April, 1882, when the firm became Pratt Broth- 
ers by the sale of one-half the interest to B. E. Pratt. 
(See sketi h.) 

Charles H. Pratt is a member of the fraternity of 
Odd Fellows, and also of the Masons, and belongs 
to the Blue Lodge, Chapter of R. A. M., and to 
Aurora Commandery. 

He was married Oct. 10, 1871, to Martha S., 
daughter of Frederick A. and Martha W. Slack. She 
was born Oct. 10, 1854, in Ottawa, III. Mr. and 
Mrs. Pratt have one daughter, Mabel J., born Oct. 
12, 1S79. Mr. and Mrs. Pratt are both members of 
the Congregational Church. 



If eorge Rompf is a farmer of Victor Town- 
ship, resident on section 35, and he was 
born March 20, 1813. His parents, Jacob 
and Margaret (Stahl) Rompf, was born in 
Germany, where he was reared at home to the 
age of 20 years. He was apprenticed to learn 
the boot and shoe trade, and was a craftsman about 
1 2 years in his native country. 

lie was married March 29, 1843, to Henrietta 




Thomas, pnxious to coming to America. He made 
his way hither in 1853, and proceeded immediately 
to Northville, La Salle Co., III. There he bought 10 
acres of land, and also worked at his trade. He sold 
his properly there three years later, and became a 
farmer of De Kalb County, buying 80 acres of land 
in Victor Township, on which he has since lived and 
condui ted his agricultural labors, with a suci ess that 
may be inferred from the fact that in [876 he bought 
160 acres of land on section 34, for which he paid 
$8,000. In political \iews and actions he is a 
Republican. He is a member of the Lutheran 
Church, to which also his wife belongs. 

Mr. and Mrs. Rompf have had sis children, four 
of whom are still living : Adolph \\\, Paulina, Ed- 
ward and Ferdinand. All are married. Adolph W. 
married Rebecca Price, March 18, 1S73, and they 
have four children : Eveline 15., Ada M., George R. 
and Frank A. Paulina is the wife of Frederick 
Schroder, to whom she was married in r.868. Their 
children are named Amanda C. and Ervin E. Ed- 
ward married Louisa Hein, Oct. 24, [879, and they 
have two children, George W. and l.illie M. Ferdi- 
nand was married to Mary J. Smith, Feb. 22, 1S82. 
They have one child, Conrad E. 



M. Arnold, liveryman, at Sandwich, was 
liorn May 10, 1843, within the (now) cor- 
poration of Sandwich. His father, Dr. 
Stephen Arnold, was born in Vermont and 
married Dorcas Loofborrow, of- Delaware Co., 
Ohio, where he engaged in the practice of his 
profession until 1S36, when he came to De Kalb 
County, and bought 320 acres of land. The northern 
part of the city of Sandwich is now located on the 
southern portion of the farm, which was divided 
among the children on the death of their father. Dr. 
Arnold died March 22, 1845, while on a professional 
trip to Big Rock, Kendall Co., III. The wife of Dr. 
Arnold died at Sandwich. Feb. 26, 1884. They had 
nine children, three of whom are living: Weslej W., 
Hester A., wife of Harrison Robb, of State Center, 
Iowa, and Mr. Arnold of this sketch. 

The latter remained on the place where he was born 
25 years, and in 1868 opened a livery stable at Sand- 
wich, which he conducted five years. In 1873 he 




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purchased 1 1 z acres lying a few miles west of Sand- 
wich, where he interested himself in progressive 
agriculture eight years and converted the place into 
a fine and valuable farm. He disposed of his 
property there in September, 1883, and March 19, 
1884, he bought the equipments and stand, where he 
has since conducted a popular and successful busi- 
ness. 

He was united in marriage Sept. 9, 1864, to Hat- 
tie^daughter of William and Eleanor Ryan. She 
was born July 11, 1842, in Little Rock Township, 
Kendall Co., 111. One child, John W., was born 
to Mr. and Mrs. Arnold, Feb. 12, 1867. 

Following is the record of the deceased brothers 
and sisters of Mr. Arnold: John L. Arnold, M. D., 
was a graduate at the Medical College at St. Charles, 
111. He went in 1849 to California and died at 
Marysville. Mary D. married George L. Ismon, of 
Sandwich, where she died, leaving a daughter — 
Louise, now the wife of Burr Kennedy, of Deering 
(Chicago). Elias C. was a farmer of Somonauk 
Township. Another child died in infancy. 







i ewis Von Ohlen was formerly 
yjf on section 31, Victor Township. 



a farmer 
He was 
born in Germany, where his parents 
Christian Henry and Johannah (Bruneman) 
Von Ohlen, were also born. They came to the 
New World in October, 1855, and on landing at 
New York proceeded to Illinois and located at Sand- 
wich. 

Mr. Von Ohlen lived there with his parents until 
he was 20 years of age, receiving a fair elementary 
education. He was occupied in various places for a 
short time, and in 1865 bought the farm where he 
lived until his death. He was a Republican and 
held several official positions in the township where 
he was a citizen, the last in which he officiated being 
that of Road Commissioner. He was a member of 
the Protestant Episcopal Church. 

Mrs. Alwine (Schulz) Von Ohlen was born in Ger- 
many and came to America with her parents, who 
are still living at Somonauk. She was married July 
22, 1845, to Lewis Von Ohlen, and they became the 
parents of five children — -Herman E., Emil A., 




Lewis J., Edward and Ida. Mrs. Von Ohlen resides 
on and manages the farm of 155 acre^ left to his 
family by her deceased husband. 



-°-<3- 



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rs. Elsie C. Van Olinda is a resident on 
section 15, Somonauk Township. She 
was born Jan. 3, 1823, in the township 
*\ of Washington, Morris Co., N. J. Her 
: 'l" parents, Jacob and Lenora (Welch) Frace, were 
natives of the place where they died, and in 
1854 she came to Kane Co., 111., to live with her 
brother, Jacob M. Frace. She was married there 
Nov. i-j, 1857, to John D. Van Olinda, and removed 
thence to the farm of her husband, where he has 
since resided, and which became his property in 1854. 
The place is finely located and valuable and includes 
120 acres. Mr. Van Olinda died Dec. 2, 1874, and 
was buried on his farm. He was born near Water- 
ford in Saratoga Co., N. Y., June 19, 1814. 

Three children were born of their marriage : 
Lenora died in infancy ; Elsie resides at home ; 
Laura is the wife of George Hanson, a farmer of 
Somonauk Township. 

Wesley W. Morse, the manager of the estate of 
Mrs. Van Olinda, was born Jan. 15, 1857, and was 
adopted by her in February, 1858. 



s£i£ 



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Burkhart, furniture dealer at Sandwich, 
was born Oct. 18, 1820, in Bavaria, Ger- 
'^ many, and is the son of Adam and Bar- 
bara (Schale) Burkhart. After attending school 
W through the period required by the laws of his 
y native country, he served four years as an ap- 
prentice at cabinet-making, after which lie worked as 
journeyman live years, traveling through the prin- 
cipal German cities. He was at one time a workman 
in the palace of the Emperor William at Berlin. 

Mr. Burkhart was married in Bavaria in 1847,10 
Catherine, daughter of Adam and Elizabeth Bradey, 
by whom he has had four children. After the event 
of his marriage he was in business for himself six 
months, and in 1S52 came to America. He worked 
at his trade in Utica, N. Y., three years, and in 1855 



( 






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— 2<M8llll^ 







746 



DE KALB COUNTY. 






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( .uiic to Sandwich. After working at his business .1 
yeai in the interest of an employer, he opened an 
establishment foi himself in the same line. In 1858 
liis works were destroyed by fire, the disaster causing 
a total loss, and leaving him with .1 debt of §700 on 
his hands, without insurance. His credit was good, 
and he again started his business, in which he lias 
met with Mil cess, and is now ;i^» iated with his son. 
In the fall of 1S74 he erected his business building, 
22 x 60 feet in dimensions, two stories in height above 
tlie basement, and built of brick. His stock is 
generally estimated at about $N,ooo. He is a mem- 
ber of the Order of Odd Fellows Lodge, No. 212, 
and the family belong to the Lutheran Church. 

Two of the children of Mr. and Mrs. Burkhart 
were horn in Germany. Phillipena (deceased) was 
married to Gustavus Short, a farmer in Nebraska. 
Jacob is in business with his father at Sandwich. 1 le 
was married May 2, 1872, to Augusta Turk, of Sand- 
wich, and they have three children — Jacob, Edward 
and William. Elizabeth married William Huerke, a 
harness-maker at Sandwich. Caroline is deceased 



avid G. Carson is a farmer of Victor Town- 
ship, residing on sections 4 and 9. David 
Carson, his father, was of Scotch descent, 
and married Jane Shannon, who was of Ger- 
man origin. The son was born in 1830, at Es- 
perance, Schoharie Co., N. Y., and at the age of 
eight years became a member of the family of Bar- 
tholomew Keene, in the village of F.sperance. With 
him he remained six years and attended school live 
years. He next went to live with Sander Deffen- 
dorf, where he was an assistant on the farm six 
months and went to school. Subsequently he worked 
three years on the farm of Thomas Curry. He 
passed alternate summers and winters in farm labor 
and in attendance at school until he was 21 years "I 
age, after which he spent two years working farms 
on shares. At the expiration of this time he came 
into possession of his father's farm by will, and he 
rented the place two years. After giving it his per- 
sonal attention one year, he sold the place and came 
to De Kalb Co., 111. He took possession of 80 acr< 
of land on section 4, and there still maintains his 
residem e 
The qualit) of his prosperit) is manifest from the 






fact that he is now the jxissessor of 500 acn 
finely improved fanning land. He is a Republ 
and has held various town offices. He has been 
Road Commissioner 15 years. He was once elected 
Justii e of the I 'i u , but declined to qualify. 

He was married Dec. 15, 1857, in Fulton Co., 
N. Y , to Mary, daughter of John Brewer, and they 
have had five children, four of whom are still living — 
John II., George I.., Kit ('. and George M 



ocecfl/®^" 



••i&SH&BtiH* 



l®ia. ; Senjamin Wilsey, jeweler at Sandwich, was 

LifiJ/- born Jan. 14, [83c, in the township of 
P?^ Hamilton, Madison Co., M. Y. His 

)® parents. Archibald M. and Phebe (Manches- 
ter) Wilsey, belonged to the farming class, 
and the former was born in the city of New 
York, Jan. 18, 1800. In 1844 they removed to 
Illinois, and the father died in Fox Township, Ken- 
dall County, Oct. 4 1S82. The mother was born in 
Rhode Island, and died in December, [845, in 
Newark, Kendall County. Five of their nine ( hil- 
dren are li\ing : James W. is a farmer near Aurora. 
III. ; Margaret married W. Hull, of Newark; Benja- 
min is the next in order of birth; Mary married 
Meiriu Wini hell, of Vallejo, Cal. The youngest 
living child is Andrew J. 

When he was 19 years of age Mr. Wilsey bade 
farewell to farm labor. During that winter he 
attended school, and in the spring of 1S51 went to 
Ottawa, 111., and entered upon the business of learn- 
ing his trade with J. H. Morrill. After an apprentii e- 
ship of four years, he engaged in business for him- 
self in Ottawa, but continued only a short time, 
going thence to Newark, where he remained until 
Dei ember, r862, the date of his coming to Sand- 
wich. He exhibits a fine stock of watches, clocks, 
jewelry, silver and plated ware, Johnston's Optical 
Company's goods, and all goods common to a lirst- 
class establishment, and suited to his patronage. He 
is also engaged in general repairing, and is doing a 
prosperous business. 

Mr. Wilsey was married Feb. 25, [858, in Fox 
Township, Kendall County, to Leonora, daughter of 
Lewis and Sabrina Robinson. She was born Dec. 15, 
1840, near Spencer, Tioga Co., N. Y., and died in 



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Sandwich, March 2, 1875. She was the mother of 
three children: Charles B., born Dec. 7, 185S, is 
tin- only one who survives. Leonora andGraeie, twins, 
were horn Feb. 23, 1875. The latter died March 
19, following her birth, and 17 days after the 
decease of her mother. Leonora died Sept. 10, 1875, 
a little less than six months old. Mr. Wilsey was 
again married Feb. 21, 1884, in Princeton, Bureau 
('•>., 111., to Anna L Stannard. She was born at 
Dover, 111., and is the daughter of Norman and 
Almanda Stannard. 



'tl?ffiMi dward Lewis, a resident of Sandwich, was 
.'K©F' '""" J 111 "-' '• 1815, in Wales, and is the 
JF** son of Lewis and Ann (Lumley) Lewis. 
' He was three years of age when his parents 
came to America and settled in Oneida Co., 
N. Y., where his father bought a farm in the 
township of Trenton. He was reared to the age of 
14 years on a farm and passed four years subse- 
quent to that in obtaining a knowledge of the tan- 
ner's business. In 1833, when he was 18 years of 
age, he went to Buffalo, N. Y., where he was con- 
nected with a construction corps in building the 
Buffalo & Black Rock Railroad, the first line of rail- 
road that was built running into that city. He was 
engaged a short time after the road was completed 
as a conductor, going next to Clarence, Erie Co., 
N. Y., where he passed a year and a half as a gen- 
eral laborer. His next transfer was to Little Rock, 
Kendall Co., 111. He there bought 40 acres of land 
and engaged in farming. To this he added by sub- 
sequent purchase until he owned upwards of 300 
acres, on which he resided until 1864, when he sold 
the place and removed to Sandwich. On the organ- 
ization of the Sandwich Manufacturing Company of 
that place, he invested his means in its relations, 
and was for years connected with the corporation. 
He acted as a night watchman nearly 13 years. 
Since September, 1880, he has not been actively en- 
gaged in any variety of business. 

Mr. Lewis was married at Little Rock, Dec. 28, 
1839, to Maria A. Hadden. She was born May 1, 
1810, in Westchester Co., N. Y. Four of their five 
children are living: Noel B. was born Oct. 18, 
1840; Mary E., born Sept. 20, 1842, is the wife of J. 



D. Kern, of Sandwich; Caroline was born Sept. ?, 
1045, and is the wife of Thomas E. Culver, of Sand- 
wich. James C, born Sept. 11, 1849, is an employee 
of the Sandwich Manufacturing Company; Edwin, 
born May 2, 1S52, died six days after birth. The 
wife and mother died at Sandwich, April 23, 1883. 
Mr. Lewis was a second time married Sept. 1 1, 1884, 
at Yorkville, Kendall Co., 111., to Mary E. Humis- 
ton. She was born Aug. 3, 1827, near Littlefield, 
Grayson Co., Ky., and is the daughter of Anthony 
and Susan (McClure) Litsey, who were married in 
Kentucky and came to Illinois in 1829, located in 
Tazewell County, and in 1S30 came to Kendall 
County. The mother died in Kentucky when the 
daughter was two years old. The father was mar- 
ried again, moved to Iowa, and died in 1859. Mrs. 
Lewis is a member of the Methodist Episcopal 
Church. 



1 ^fW§ \ illiam Fraser, farmer, section 14, Somo- 
;,ll!JiJlu nauk Township, was born April 29, 1816, 
jfeSfe-. in the township of Hebron, Washington 
•ASy Co., N. Y. Isaac Fraser, his father, was 
born in North Adams, Mass., and died in He- 
iron, aged 84 years. The mother, Mary (Mun- 
son) Fraser, was a native of Washington Co., and 
was about the same age as her husband at the time 
of her death. Seven of their ten children are living. 
David is a retired farmer of Salem, Washington Co. 
N. Y. Lyman is a retired farmer and resides at 
Sandwich. John is a retired merchant at He- 
bron. Lonson is an attorney at Salem, N. Y. 
Aurilla A. is the wife of Charles Wilson, a farmer of 
Salem, N. Y. Mary is the widow of Peter Larkin 
and resides at Salem. 

Mr. Fraser is the fourth of the surviving children 
of his parents. He was brought up on his father's 
farm, where he was instructed in agricultural pur- 
suits. In 1843 he came to Illinois and bought a 
farm of 80 acres near Piano, Kendall County. On 
this he resided until his removal to his present loca- 
tion, where in [854 he bought at fust 300 acres oi 
land. He is now the owner of 370 acres, situated on 
sections 13, 14 and 15, which is managed by his ^ n 
in-law, Pernett Potter. Mr. Fraser has been a num- 
ber of years in retirement from active life. 



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DE KALB COUNTY. 






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lie was married in Greenwich, Washington Co., 

N. Y., to Mary Faxon. Following is t lie record of 
their children: Caroline married John J. Arm- 
strong, .1 fanner of Somanauk Township. Ira M. is 
deceased. Horace W. is a farmer in Ford Co., 111. 
Charles 11 resides in Sandwich, and is a teacher by 
profession. Mar} married James Crinklaw. William 
is a farmer ol Somonauk Township. Martha mar- 
ried William Potter, a farmer in Missouri. Edith is 
the wife of Pernett Potter, and resides on the home- 
stead. Arthur is the youngest. Mrs. Fraser was 
born ( >ct. 3 1 . [819 






■:• 




uke A. Warren, resident at Sycamore, was 
burn in Andes, Delaware Co., N. Y., Dec. 

19, 1 S 1 9, son of Luke and Mary (Baird) 
Warren, natives of " York State." His father 
moved to Allegany County, that State, in 1832, 
and settled in Rockford Township. The land 
on which he settled was timber, and after building a 
log house he set about to clear and improve his land. 
In 1850 he dis[»sed of his land and moved to 
Michigan, where he died shortly after. 

Luke A., Jr., was reared on the farm in Allegany 
Co., N. Y., and alternated his labors thereon with at- 
tending the common schools. He was married in 
[841, t" Miss Ursula Foster, born in Clarendon. 
Orleans Co., N. Y. Scum alter marriage, they located 
on a farm of 20 acres near Rushford, Allegany Co., 
which he increased by subsequent pun liases. He 
resided mi that farm until 1869, when he sold it and 
came to this State and settled on a farm in White- 
side County. In r 866 he moved to Monroe Town- 
ship, Ogle County, where he purchased a farm on 
which he resided until [871. In April of that year 
he removed to this county and two months later 
(June) he purchased a farm on sections seven and 
eight, De Kalb Township. In 1882 he sold the farm 
and removed to Sycamore, where he has sin. e 
lived. In July, 1883, he purchased a farm located 
cm section 3, Cortland Township, which he still 
owns and rents. 

He has seven children, namely: William, in the 

rnment employ at Grand Forks, Dak.; Mary, 

wife of J. E. Southworth, resident of Santa Clara, Cal.; 

Sarah, wife of William Wilber, resident of Clinton, 

*3®ft- : *€^ — e^DH® 



Iowa; Aha, wife of William A. Campbell, resident of 
Mason, Ingham Co., Mic h ,; M. F., jeweler at De Kalb; 
John, resident of Galveston, Tex., and George <». 
jeweler at Sycamore. Mr. Warren's grandfather, 
Thomas Warren, was one of the very first settlers in \. 
Delaware Co., N. Y.; was a shoemaker by trade, a 
farmer by occupation, and died in Allegany Co., 
N. Y. 




£ { wH-ibharles E. Bradt, member of the firm of 
gftfi^l Bradt & Shipman, glove manufacturers at 
"pJ De Kalb, was born near Gloversville, Fulton 

fjw Co., N. Y., Jan. 27, 1852; and when he was 
aliout two years of age his parents, Andrew 
and Amy A. (Sweet) Bradt (see sketch), re- 
moved with their family to this county, where he grew 
up to manhood, working on the farm and attending 
the city schools. Since setting out in life for himself 
he has employed himself in the manufacture and sale 
of gloves, in which business he is doing well. The 
firm of Bradt & Shipman prosecute an extensive 
jobbing business, their goods being sold by traveling 
salesman in the Northwest. 

Andrew Bradt, farmer, De Kalb Township, was 
born in the town of Ephratah, Fulton Co., N. Y., 
May 15, 1824, and was the son of Anthony J. and 
Hannah (Peek) Bradt, both natives of the State of 
New York. He was reared on the farm and edu- 
cated at the district school. At the age of 17 years 
he commenced teaching, in his native township. 
This profession, alternating with farming during the 
summer seasons, he followed, with one or two excep- 
tions, in Fulton County, until 1856, when he came to 
Illinois. Here he pure based 140 acres of land on 
sec tions 23 and 24, De Kalb Township, and settled 
down to agricultural pursuits. During the winter 
seasons, however, he was engaged in selling gloves 
and mittens to dealers in the northern portion of this 
State, pun basing his stock from the manufactories at 
Gloversville and Johnstown, N. Y. In 1870, in com- 
pany with his son, he started the glove factory in De 
Kalb, which is now conducted by his son and Mr. 
Shipman. He now devotes his time exclusively to 
his farming interests. 

He was married Jan. 31, 1848, to Amy Ann Sweet, 
who was burn in Ephratah, Fulton Co., N. Y., [an 






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DE KALB COUNTY. 






20, 1828. They have had nine children, — Jennie S., 
deceased, Luella, Charles E., deceased, Ada F., 
Hiram A., Abraham L., Samuel E., deceased, and 
Laura Luella, deceased. 

Mr. Bradl is a Class-leader in the Methodist Epis- 
copal Church, of which denomination all the rest of 
the family are also members. 



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|^(§jj|lugustus C. Thompson, general fa 




rmer on 



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the grain was all cut with "< radles " and hauled to 
Chicago by teams, that being the nearest point of 
shipment and market. 

Mr. Thompson is a Republican and has held all 
the offices of the township. 



St section 1 1, South Grove Township, was born 
Feb. 2-, 1830, in Delaware Co, N. V. Mat- 
thew Thompson, his father, was a native of the 
Empire State, where he pursued farming until 
1S42, the year of his removal to De Kalb 
County, where he was one of the earliest of the pio- 
) neer settlers of South Grove Township, having been 
? preceded by only four other permanent residents. 
S He was bom in 1800 and died in 1868, on the home- 
stead. Rebecca O. (Schryver) Thompson, the mother, 
was bom in Dutchess Co., N. Y., Oct. 25, 1805, of 
German parentage, and resided in her native State 
' until her removal with her husband and children to 
'. De Kalb County. She is living, at 79 years of age, 
with her son, is still in possession of her mental and 
physical faculties to a surprising degree, being able 
to fulfill a considerable proportion of the duties of the 
household. 

Mr. Thompson was an inmate of his father's house 
until his marriage in February, 1852, in Ohio Grove, 
Kane Co., Ill , to Mary E. Hatch. *She was born in 
Delaware Co., Ohio, and came to Illinois when very 
young. Her father located in this State previous to 
1840. She died at her home, Dec. 6, 1880, and left 
two surviving of four children that had been born to 
her. Her death was the result of sciatic rheumatism, 
and her sufferings from that terrible disease were 
severe and were borne with patience and calmness. 
Mr. Thompson was about 22 years of age when he 
made his first purchase of land, which included 80 
acres on section 16. On this he lived and labored in 
its improvement some years, when he sold out and 
, bought 176 acres on section 11, of this township, and 
sy has since made it his home and expended his efforts 
and energies in its improvement, and has placed the 
entire acreage under cultivation. In the early days 




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illiam W. Brown, deceased, was a pioneer 

J]? of Sycamore Township in 183.x, and en- 

^J5-^ tered his claim of about 200 acres of land 

i> on section 140!" Congressional township 41, 

range 5. On this he settled and began the 
usual pioneer improvements. When the land 
in the State of Illinois was put into market he se- 
cured a large acreage in addition, a considerable pro- 
portion of which he bought for the benefit of his sons. 
The nearest markets were Chicago, Milwaukee and 
Sheboygan, and Mr. Brown drove an ox team with 
his wheat crop to the former place. One fall he 
sent a load of dressed beef to Sheboygan. He 
improved quite a considerable portion of his land. 
and was a resident upon his homestead until his 
death. 

He was born on the North or Hudson River in the 
State of New York in 1782, and grew to mature life 
on his father's homestead. He was in early manhood 
when his parents settled in the township of- Rock- 
land, in Sullivan County, where they were pioneers. 
He was there married to Sally Hall, the first white 
child born on Mutton Hill in Sullivan County. He 
became a land-holder there and cleared 104 acres of 
his farm.- He sold the place in 1S31 and removed 
to Cortland County, where he lived until 1835, in 
which year he bought a farm in La Grange, Lorain 
Co., Ohio. He sold it in 1838, and set out with his 
family and household goods in a wagon with an ox 
team as a means of locomotion. They were on the 
road four weeks, and during the trip passed but four 
nights under the shelter of a roof. The remainder 
of the time they camped. 

Mr. Brown died in 1S50. His wife survived him 
32 years, dying in 1882. Following is the record of 
their 11 children: Mary is deceased; Sally A. and 
Obadiah, the youngest son, live on the homestead: 
Lucinda is dead ; Isaac lives in O'Brien Co., Iowa ; 
John lives in Lac-qui-parle Co., Minn. ; Betsey 
J. and Mehitable are deceased ; Amy lives in Bour- 

SIID^AS— 



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DR KALB COUNTY. 






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bon Co., Kan.; Deborah resides in the township of 
Genoa; Bradlej is deceased. 

Obadiah Brown was born Nov. 27, 1834, in 
( lino, came to Illinois with Ins parents, and was in. li- 
ne. 1 in January, 1877,10 Lavina Harms, a native 
..1 Grahamville, N. V. He is a Republican in po- 
litii al faith. 




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: imon Snydam, farmer, secti 



Vi< lor 



Township, is a native horn citizen of Illi- 
nois, being born Aug. 8, 1839, in Fulton 
Co., 111. Simon B. and Johannah (Cortelyou) 
Suydam were natives of New Jersey (see 
sketch.) In 1838 they left their native State 
to make a permanent home in Illinois. 

Mr. Suydam was brought up under the care and 
authority 0!" his parents, acquiring a common-school 
ediu ation and laboring on the farm. After attaining 
* his majorit) he spent two months in farm labor and 
j resumed his former position on his father's farm, 
where lie remained until 1861. He had determined 
on renting a farm preparatory to entering upon ,\\\ 
independent career, but his plans were mixed with 
desires to take a share of the risks in the soldier's 
fate, and he enlisted the same fall in which he made 
lus arrangements for a farm, Sept. 18, [861, in theSth 
111. Cav., General Farnsworth. The organization re- 
mained but a short time in camp and departed for 
Washington, where it remained until the next April, 
when it was sent to Hull Run in skirmish service. 
Five days afterward it returned to Alexandria, and 
after a stay there of two weeks, went down the Poto- 
mac . The liist engagement in which it participated 
took place at Williamsburg, followed by the fight at 
Mei hanicsville under General McClellan. Mr. 
Suydam was in 22 battles and skirmishes, and after 
a 1 ontinued servi< e of three years was honorably dis- 
charged Sept. 28, 1864, at Chicago. 

In 18(15 nc purchased 80 acres of land on section 
27, in Victor Township, On which he operated suc- 
cessfully for 20 years. In 1885 he bought his pres- 
ent homestead. He is a business man of good ability, 
and is justly respected. He is a Republican in 
political affiliation. He has held the office of School 
Director r2 years, and been Collector four years. 

Nov. 7, 1866, he was married to Sarah O. Brown, 



£> 




and they have eight children — Charles H.. Ad II 
J., Johannah, Mary, Nellie G., Amy, Lorenzo G. and 

Sarah J. 




-_: I (• 3 ; nrton E. Pratt, merchant at Sandwich, 

• lJLJi',/ w'as born July 6, 1855, in Deep River. 
// '" Middlesex Co., Conn., and is the son of 



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Henry H. and Mary J. (Comstock) Pratt. On 
the removal of the family to De Kalb County 

from Connecticut, they located three miles 
northeast of Sandwich, where his lather bought a 
farm of 320 acres. They resided on it and improved 
it until it was converted into a tine and valuable 
farm, which was afterwards sold and the family re- 
moved to Sandwich, where the father is now living; 
the mother died in 1871. They had seven children, 
live of whom survive. Merritt C. is a hardware 
nun bant at North Loup, Neb.; Wilbur and Ashley 
W. are druggists at West Paw Paw, III.: the firm is 
known as Pratt Bros ; and Burton E. is the subject 
of this sketch. Mr. Pratt, Sr., was again married in 
Oswego, 111., to Sylvia C. Collins. 

The subject of this sketch was educated in Sand- 
wich, and when he was 17 years of age he entered 
the store of L. Kent, where he was engaged two 
years as a salesman. His next employment was ob- 
tained at l'au Paw, where he was a clerk in a store 
eight months. At the end of that time he came to 
Sandwich and engaged as a clerk with Pratt, Good- 
man & Gurley, with whom he operated several 
years. Mr. Goodman having withdrawn in [868, the 
firm continued as Pratt iX; Gurley until 1S82, when 
Mr. Gurtey withdrew from the linn. Mr. I'ratt, of 
this sketch, then purchased the interest of Mr. Gur- 
ley, since which date the firm style has been known 
as Pratt Brothers. Their business in Sandwich and 
vicinity is prosperous and popular, and their stock of 
general merchandise is valued at $20,000 on an aver- 
age. Mr. Pratt is a member of the fraternity of 
Masons. 

He was married June 22, 1882, to Anna J., daugh- 
ter of William and Anna Turkington, and she was 
bom in the city of New York, Nov. 22, 1862. Her 
father is an extensive manufacturer of millinery 
goods on Wabash Avenue, Chicago. Gertrude, only 



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child of Mr. and Mrs. Pratt, was born June 4, 1884. 
Himself and wife are members of the Congregational 
Church of Sandwich. 







I'VfSM' enry G Bell, farmer, section 9, Sycamore 

''iP'_|; Township, was born Sept. [3, [808, in 

•'JV^""'* Elizabethtown, St. Lawrence Co., N. Y., 

/K and is the son of Ralph R. and Desire (Rey- 

f nolds) Bell. His parents were both natives of 

Rutland, Rutland Co., Vt., his father being in 

the service of the United States in the second war 

with Great Britain, during which he operated as a 

pilot on the lakes. He was captured by the British 

and taken to Montreal, where he was held about six 

months a prisoner of war. On being exchanged he 

re-entered the service and continued in the army 

until the termination of the contest. 

In [816 they went to Michigan, and the son, who 
was then but eight years of age, was left with friends 
in Genesee Co., N. Y., where he was brought up on 
the farm. When he was 16 years of age he joined 
his parents in Michigan, and he remained at Red- 
ford, Wayne County, until 1837, when he set out 
westward to seek a location for a home. He started 
on horseback and proceeded to Michigan City, where 
he overtook his wife, who had started previously with 
her brother-in-law. His means of locomotion were 
there increased by the addition of a yoke of oxen, and 
they pushed on to Kane Co., 111., consuming about 
two weeks on the way. Mr. Bell bought a land 
claim for $170, near Chicken Grove, and built a log 
house with a puncheon floor. During the first year 
he broke 60 acres, and in December following he 
sold the claim and came to Chartres' Grove, De Kalb 
County, where he spent the winter. In the spring of 
1838 he bought a claim of land on Coon Creek, lo- 
cated on section 29, Hampshire Township, McHenry 
County. He built a log house, covered it with shakes 
and set about the work of improving the place, and 
as soon as the land came into market he received the 
claim. He then put the place in the hands of a 
renter and bought a claim on section 5, Sycamore 
Township,and engaged a man to break 20 acres. 
The claim was "jumped," but he su( 1 eeded in main- 
taining his rights. He built a log-house and dug a 



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well 32 feet deep, finding what was known as "float 
wood " on the bottom. The man who attempted to 
jump his claim started at early morning for Chicago, 
and on Mr. Bell's hearing of his intention and action 
late in the afternoon, he at once started for the land 
office, driving to Chicago in the night, where he suc- 
ceeded in entering his claim. Soon afterwards he 
sold his title and returned to Kane County, where 
he settled on the land he owned there. In 1874 he 
again rented the place and came to Sycamore, sec- 
tion 9, where he bought the farm on which he has 
since resided and prosecuted his agricultural plans. 
The farm in Kane County which he still owns com- 
prises 320 acres of land, chiefly improved, fenced 
and with good buildings. 

Mr. Bell was married March 16, 1837, to Charlotte 
DeWitt, and they had ten children, — Martinette, 
Helen, Prudence, George H., Charlotte, John, Annie 
D., Frank, Charles and Candace. Annie died when 
a year old. The mother was born Feb. 28, 18T5, at 
Niagara Falls (Canadian side), and died Nov. 2^ 
1879. Mr. Bell married Annie Kesler, a native of 
St. Lawrence Co., N. Y. 



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plinton E. Rosette, editor and one of the 
J€j3 publishers of the De Kalb Chronicle, was 
born Oct. 24, 1850, in Paw Paw Township, 
De Kalb Co., 111. He is the son of William 
E. and Elizabeth (Breese) Rosette, natives of 
New Jersey, the former being of French descent, his 
parents removing to this county but a short time be- 
fore his birth. They were among the early settlers 
of De Kalb County, locating in Paw Paw Township 
in 1 84 1. 

Clinton was born on a farm and received his edu- 
cation at the academy in East Paw Paw, at which 
institution he graduated, and in which he subse- 
quently was a member of the facult) for two years. 
With a view of becoming a physician, he studied 
medicine for five years as the opportunity was offered, 
but becoming dissatisfied with it he abandoned the 
study before receiving a degree. In the fall of 1875 
he moved to De Kalb and for one year and a few 
months was engaged as a teacher in the public 

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DE KALB COUNTY. 



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Is, Iii connection with his wife, he thru opened 
a private school, which they continued four years 
with good success, having [25 pupils enrolled at the 
time of its suspension, ["he chool was closed that 
he might give his undivided attention to the publica- 
tion of the De Kalb Chronicle, the publication of 
whii h was commenced in 1879 with Mr. Rosette as 
editor, which position he still oa upies. A history of 
the paper ma) be found elsewhere in this volume; 
suffice it to say, in this connection, that under his 
management it has been an unqualified success. On 
j the 25th day of December, 1874, Mr. Rosette was 
united in marriage with Alpha C. La Clair, daughter 
ol fohn and Ann La Clair, of Pav. Paw. Mr. Ros- 
ette is a member of the Independent Order of Odd 
Fellows, and politii all) is a Democrat, the principles 
of that party being instilled in him in his youth ; and 
he never has forsaken the way of his fathers. 



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'|GMl2Tlas D. Wesson, farmer, section 17, Victor 
Township, was born Aug. 22, 1839, in 
jj«Ww Chautauqua Co., N. Y. His parents, 
James W. and Sybil (Hatch) Wesson, were na- 
tives of Vermont. Until he was 21 years of age 
Mr. Wesson was at home with his parents and 
accompanied them to Illinois in 1844, when they lo- 
( ated on section 17, Victor Township. They re- 
mained there until their deaths. That of his father 
occurred Aug. 26, 1880; that of his mother, March 
26, 1884. 

Mr. Wesson enlisted Sept. 18, r86i, for three 
years in the 8th 111. Caw, and at the expiration of 
two years veteranized, receiving a discharge on con- 
dition of re-enlisting, which he did, and served three 
years and eleven months longer. He received a 
wound June 9, 1863. He participated in all the 
battles of the Army of the Potomac except that at 
Gettysburg. He obtained his release from military 
service Aug. 1, t866. In 1872 he went to Kansas, 
and there entered a claim of 160 acres of land on a 
soldier's warrant. He was a resident upon it eight 
years. In 1880 he returned to Illinois and effected a 
purchase of his father's farm by complying with the 
of the will. He is a Republican, and has 
been Supervisor two years. He was elected Justice 
of the Peace but refused to qualify. 



Mr. Wesson was married Oct. 15, 1866, to Mag- 
dalen Suydam. She is the daughter of S. B. and 
Johannah Suydam. (See sketch.) Ten children 
have been born to them, — Sybil J., Elvie M., Mason 
D., Alpha G., Minerva M., Sarah M., Jaques W., 
Harry W., Floyd F. and Elon W. 





f 



!imon B. Suydam, a farmer of Victor Town- 
ship, resident on section 22, was born Jan. 
4, 1803, in Somerset Co., N. J., and is a 
son of John and Ann (French) Suydam, who 
were natives of Holland. Mr. Suydam passed 
the years of his minority in attending school 
and in labor on his father's farm. When he was 22 
years of age he went to Millstone, N. J., and was 
there for a period of ten years engaged in farming. 
He went thence to Butler Co., Ohio, where he bought 
80 acres of land. Three years later he sold the 
place and located in Fairview, Fulton Co., 111., where 
he became by purchase the proprietor of 160 acres 
of land. He managed his agricultural affairs there 
13 years when he sold, preparatory to a removal to 
Victor Township He bought a farm of 160 acres 
at first and later purchased a similar amount. His 
home and field of operation has since been on the 
same place. At the date at which he became a 
resident in Victor Township, he drew his crops to 
Chicago and brought back with him lumber and pro- 
visions. 

He is a Democrat and has served several terms in 
official life in his township. He has been liberal in 
his support of local religious movements, and when 
the Methodist church was built he contributed an 
acre of ground for the site of the edifice. He has 
exerted a broad influence in the community to which 
he belongs, and in 1S77 was the chief instrument in 
the organization of a chartered fire-insurance associa- 
tion in the township of Victor, having a capital of 
$60,000. It has been in operation eight years, and 
its capital stock now nets $r4o,ooo. It has been 
called on to pay but $35 in losses by fire since its 
organization. 

Mr. Suydam was married Feb. 16, 1825, to Johan- 
nah Cortelyou. Six of ten children born to them are 
living: Anna M., Sarah, Matilda D., John H., Si- 



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DE KALB COUNTY. 



753 






mon, Jaques C. and Magdalen. Cornelius R. died 
in the military service of the United States Jan. 20, 
1862. John and Simon were also soldiers for the 
Union. The former was wounded in his ankle and 
has always been lame. Their beloved mother died 
July 7, 1881. 



j f: \J;. ( avid Alexander Syme, grain dealer at 
\ . jio'.Wi '' Sycamore, was born Sept. 15, 1841, in Bal- 
^ir^"^ lymena, Antrim Co., Ireland, and is the 
son of James and Ann Young Syme. His 
parents were natives of Perthshire, Scotland, be-- 
longing to families long established in that 
place. 

At 15 years of age Mr. Syme entered a wholesale 
mercantile house in the city of Belfast, where he re- 
mained till he was 20 years of age. He then joined 
some friends going to Australia and New Zealand, 
where he spent a few years engaged in mercanlile 
and other pursuits. On March 28, 1868, he arrived 
in Sycamore, and formed a partnership with his 
brother, as dealers in grain and seeds and agricultural 
machinery. In 1876 he dissolved this partnership, 
confining his attention to the grain business, which 
he extended to Kirkland and other towns in the 
vicinity. 

Mr. Syme was one of the incorporators of the Syca- 
more Preserve Works, of which he is the general 
manager and treasurer. 

February 3, 1873, he was married to Miss Marga- 
ret E. Morton at Sycamore. Mrs. Syme was born in 
Montreal, Canada. 



^SHJKK'Se 




ILhristian Hager, farmer, section 29, Vic- 
»§j|j|f tor Township, was born Feb. 26, 1839, in 
La Salle Co., 111. His parents, Oley and 
Martha (Anderson) Hager, were born in 
Germany and emigrated thence to America 
in 1830. Previous to his 19th year Mr. 
H. was subject to the authority of his parents, and 
was instructed by his father in the details of a farm- 
er's vocation, which he has pursued all his life. He 
was married Feb. 28, 1875, to the widow of Herman 
Suydam, and is her third husband. She was mar- 




ried Nov. 28, 1857, to Enoch Talbot. The latter 
enlisted Oct. 20, i86r, and was shot and instantly 
killed July 12, 1863, in a forced battle at Jackson, 
Miss. At the same time three brothers and two 
brothers-in-law were in the military service of the 
United States, but all returned in safely. Herman 
Suydam, the second husband of Mrs. Hager, was 
born in Fairview, this State, and settled in 1848 on 
se< tion 29, Victor Township, where he died, Man h 
7, 1S72. At the date of his making a permanent 
settlement he could ride miles without passing a 
house. The nearest place of supply for provisions 
and lumber was Aurora. Chicago was the nearest 
grain market. He was an enterprising citizen and 
public-spirited and interested in all projects for the 
general well-being. In political views he was a Re- 
publican and held various town offices. Both he and 
his wife were members of the Methodist Church. 
Their only child, Hattie M. Suydam, was born Nov. 
12, 1 87 1. At the date of his death Mr. Suydam 
owned 320 acres of land. 

Two children have been born to Mr. and Mr^. 
Hager — Bertie D. and Alice R. 



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(SS >J .; athsheba A. Hummel, residing on section 

Uf 1, Somonauk Township, accompanied her 

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5^ husband, Peter F. Hummel, to Illinois n 
1838, since which date she has been a resi- 
dent of De Kalb County. They located first 
at Freeland, where they kept a hotel some 
years. In 1849 Mr. Hummel went to California, 
and died in the year following on his way home. He 
was born in 1805, and his death occurred Oct. 20, 
1850. He was a carriage-maker by vocation, and 
after he came to De Kalb County he entered the 
claim of land on a portion of which his widow 
has since resided. The original tract included 640 
acres, all of which was sold excepting the 80 on 
which she has since resided and conducted her fann- 
ing interests. 

Mrs. Hummel was born in Woodstock, Windham 
Co., Conn., Aug. 23, iSii, and is the daughter of 
John and Elizabeth (Howard) Estabrooks. Her 
parents went when she was a little more than a 
month old to Orwell, Bradford Co., Pa. Her father 
had previously been a shoe dealer in Providence, R. 









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I. He lost his property during the second Col 

gle with Great Britain, lie beca.ne a farmer in 
Pennsylvania, where he continued to operate until 
j 835, when he removed with his famil) to Squaw 
Grove Township, where he purchased land. He 
was the so tmastei .1 Somonauk, and for a 

time was Justice of the Peace. He was one of the 
earliest pioneers of De Kalb County, and dii 
Squaw (lro\e in 1S50. Mrs. Hummel was married 
March 25, 1830,'in Orwell, Pa. Three of the chil- 
dren horn to them are living: John H. resides at 
Hyde Park, 111.; Miriam is the wife of James II. 
Harmon, a farmer on section 32, Somonauk Town. 
ship; Julius M. is a merchant at Sandwich, III. 



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alentine Ebinger, of the firm of Dieterich 

& Ebinger, manufacturers of drain-tile and 
brick, in Somonauk Township, one mile 
west of Sandwich, was born April 24, 1847, nl 
Baden, Germany. He is the sun of George and 
Margaret Ebinger, and is a half-brother of his 
partner, Lewis Dieterich. He came in 1856 with his 
parents to this country, and his father was engaged 
in brick-making in Ottawa, La Salle County, and af- 
terward at a place one a half miles north of Sand- 
wich. The son was employed a number of years in 
the yard. In 187 1 he assumed charge of the ship- 
ping department of the Sandwich Manufacturing 
Company, and was occupied in the duties of the 
position until August, 1882, when he resigned and 
formed his present business association. In that 
year they erected their buildings and entered upon 
the prosecution of their business, in which they have 
met with gratifying success. Their works demand a 
working force of 20 men all the year, and they man- 
facture tile from three to twelve inches in diameter. 
The brick which they supply to the trade is of a line 
quality, and their business transactions amount an- 
nually to about $20,000. The firm are the owners 
of the Sandwich Fair Grounds and buildings, and 
besides their own occupancy they have four families 
as tenants. 

Mr. Ebinger was married at Sandwich, April 8, 
1869, to Louisa, daughter of Gustave and Elizabeth 



Miller, a native of La Salle Co., 111. They have had 
si\ children: Lydia was born June n, 1870; Wal- 
ter, Dec. 21, 1872; B i| nub), June 19, 1874: Will- 
iam, Feb. is, 1X77 ; George, Feb. [4, 1S81 ; Ida, Aug- 
19, 1883. Mr. and Mrs. Ebinger are members of the 
Methodisl Church. 




Jton. Edward L. Mayo, deo ased, a former 
resident of Sycamore, was born April 7 , 
1807, in Moretown, Washington Co., Vt. 
1 1c was the son of Leonard and Thyr/.a (Marcey) 
Mayo. His father died when he was a child of 
six years, and he was placed in charge of a far- 
mer in Moretown Township named Ebenezer John- 
son, and he was brought up on the farm, attending 
common school in the intervals of labor. He was 
studious by nature, and while his hands performed 
the required duties, his mind was eager to explore 
the realms of knowledge, and even in youth he was 
accustomed to take his book to the field with him to 
study while he worked. He taught winters after he 
reai lied a suitable age and degree of acquisition, and 
devoted his earnings to fitting himself for college by 
attending an academy at Montpelier. 

He studied law with Hon. E. Prentice (afterward 
United States Senator) at Montpelier, and was there 
admitted to the Bar in 1835, and initiated his pro- 
fessional career at Morrisville, Vt. He came to De 
Kalb County in i84r, and opened his office at Syca- 
more. He entered at once upon a popular and suc- 
cessful practice. His genuine traits of character and 
method of conducting his business recommended him 
to the confidence and trust of the people of whom he- 
was one, and in 1849 he was elected County Judge. 
On the expiration of his first term he was re-elected, 
and served two terms successively. Subsequently he 
was again elected for another four years. In 1854 
he was the Democratic candidate for Congress, and 
if the question had rested solely on merit he would 
have been elected; but the district is one of the most 
strongly Republican in the State. He was at one 
time connected with the press of De Kalb County, 
and for some years edited the Sentinel, at Sycamore, 
Illinois. 

He was united in marriage, in November, 1837, to 






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Lettice A. Holden, who was born in Springfield, 
Windsor Co., Vt., and lived but fourteen months after 
her marriage. Judge Mayo was again married Sept. 
17, 1840, to Emily K. Holden, a cousin of his first 
wife, and they had ten children. Four are now 
living: Edward L., M. D., practicing his profession 
at De Kalb (see sketch) ; Lettice A., wife of Captain 
J. W. Burst, of Sycamore: Emily Matilda, and 
Kate A. 

Judge Mayo died Nov. 16, 1877, at De Kalb, 111., 
aged 70 years. 



S|| ^dward L. Mayo, practicing physician, res- 
^ifrk ident at De Kalb, was born in Sycamore, 
- -y' ' this county, June 16, 1843. He lived with 
JS. his parents and attended the public schools of 
Sycamore until 21 years of age. On attaining 
his majority he entered upon the study of med- 
icine, first under the instruction of Dr. Bryant, and 
later with Dr. Garvin. 

In 1864 he matriculated at Rush Medical College, 
Chicago, and followed the curriculum of that institu- 




tion for four years, when, in 1868, he graduated and 
received his diploma. He at once entered on the 
practice of his profession at Malta, this county, and 
continued in practice at that place for seven years, 
meeting with success. 

In 1875 Dr. Mayo changed his residence to De 
Kalb, where he has since followed the practice of his 
profession, and where he is meeting with success in 
the increase of his business and the treatment of his 
cases. 

Dr. Mayo was married to Miss Alice L. Ballon, 
Jan. r, 1872. She was born at Springville, N. Y., 
Oct. 18, 1853. She possessed in an eminent degree 
those qualities of mind and heart so requisite to make 
a woman what she was — a most kind and loving wife 
and mother, a true friend, having many friends and 
no enemies. They lived most happily until her 
death, Sept. 27, tSSo. Mr. and Mrs. Mayo were 
the parents of two children — Ross E. and Alice L. 
The former was born May 10, 1875, and the latter 
Sept. 6, 1880. 

Dr. Mayo was again married Dec. 10, 1884, to 
Miss Irene Robinson, who was born in Malta, 111., in 
1862. 




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fm INTRODUCTORY. 1 






;ME is ever moving on. A 
half century has passed 
away since the first settle- 
ment was effected by the 
white men in what is now 
the county of De Kalb — a 
period of time in which more 
important events have transpired 
than in any five hundred years of 
the world's history. In the record 
of events De Kalb County has per- 
formed no inconsiderable part, as 
the pages of this history will testify. 
Within that time a wilderness has 
been transformed into a cultivated 
region of thrift and prosperity by 
the untiring zeal and energy of an 
enterprising people. The trails of 
hunters and the wily red men have given place to rail- 
roads and thoroughfares for vehicles of every de- 
scription ; the cabins and garden patches of the pion- 
eers have been succeeded by comfortable houses and 
broad fields of waving grain, with school-houses, 
churches, mills, postoffices, manufactories, and every 
convenience that could be asked for by civilized man. 
The record of this marvelous change is history, 
and the most important that can be written. For 
one half century the people of De Kalb County have 
been making a history that for thrilling interest, grand 
practical results, and lessons that may be perused 
with profit by citizens of other regions, will compare 
favorably with the history of any county in the great 
Northwest. Take, for instance, the record of the 
county in the great war of the rebellion. Where were 




braver men than those forming the quota of De Kalb ? 
There were few only of the battle-fields of the South 
but what were moistened by the life-blood of her sons. 
In the matter of useful inventions, few counties can 
boast of labor- saving articles more universally adopted 
than those that came from the brains of the men of 
De Kalb. The names of Marsh, Glidden, Whitney, 
Ellwood, Adams and others will always be classed 
among the world's benefactors. 

The question is often asked why men leave the 
comforts and pleasures of civilized lands and strike 
out into a new and almost unknown country bearing 
the toils and privations which are unavoidable. Not 
more from choice than from necessity, did the old 
pioneers bid farewell to the play-grounds of their 
childhood and the graves of their fathers. One 
generation after another had worn themselves out in 
the service of avaricious landlords, or to eke out a 
miserable existence upon barren or worn out land 
which they called their own. From the first flashes 
of the morning light until the last glimmer of the 
setting sun, they had toiled unceasingly on from 
father to son, carrying home each day upon their 
aching shoulders the precious proceeds of their daily 
labor. Money, pride and power were handed down 
in the line of succession from the rich father to his 
son, while unceasing work, continuous poverty and 
everlasting obscurity were the heritage of the work- 
ing man and his children. For the sons and daugh- 
ters of the poor man to remain there was to follow 
and never to lead — to be poor forever. 

Without money, prestige or friends the old pioneer 
drifted along seeking the garden spot, the place where 
he might establish a home, where he might educate 



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his sons and daughters, giving them privileges never 
enjoyed by himself. The broad prairies and the 
beautiful groves of De Kalb County in that early da) 
were indeed inviting to those seeking a home in a 
more favored land, and here planted their stakes, 
many of whom the present generation have reason 
to rise up and call them blessed. To secure and 
adorn the homes desired by the pioneers, more than 
ordinary ambition was required, greater than ordinary 
endurance demanded. How well they have succeed- 
ed let the broad cultivated fields and fruit-bearing 
orchards, the flocks and the herds, the palatial resi- 
dences, the places of business, the spacious halls, the 
clattering car-wheels and ponderous engines all testify. 
There was a time when pioneers waded through 
deep snows, across bridgeless rivers and through 
bottomless sloughs, more than a score of miles to 
mill or market, and when more time was required to 
reach and return from market, than is now required 
to cross the continent or the Atlantic Ocean. These 
were the times when their palaces were constructed 
of logs and covered with " shakes " riven from the 
forest trees. These were the times when children 
were stowed away in the night in the low, dark attics, 
amongst the horns of the elk and the deer, and 
where through the chinks in the" shakes "they could 
count the twinkling stars. These were the times 
when chairs and bedsteads were hewn from the forest 
trees, and tables and bureaus constructed from the 
boxes in which goods were brought. These were the 
days when all were required to work six days in the 
week and all the hours in a day from sunrise to sun- 
set. Now all is changed. In viewing the blessings 
which now surround us, we should reverence those 
that made them possible, and ever fondly cherish in 
memory the sturdy old pioneer and his log cabin. 



Value of Local History. 

'HE great dread of man from remote ages 
has been to be forgotten. The means em- 
ployed to prevent this and to perpetuate 
his memory has been in proportion to the 
amount of intelligence he possessed. It has 
been conceded now by scientists that the prin- 
cipal object of the Egyptians in building their pyra- 
mids was to perpetuate the name and deeds of their 







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great leaders and rulers. The walls in the extensive 

apartments beneath those huge stone monuments are 
covered with paintings illustrating the deeds, both in 
peai 1 and war, of her illustrious princes, and in 
chronological order. These colors are as bright, 
apparently, as when they were first laid on, and the 
work shows great skill and artistic design. The ex- 
humations made by the archeologist of Egypt from 
buried Memphis indicate a desire of these people to 
perpetuate the memory of their achievements. The 
walls of the palaces found buried here are decorated 
with historical emblems representing the lives and 
deeds of these people. In Memphis they displayed 
a higher art. They carved out in marble elegant and 
life-like statues of their distinguished princes, accom- 
panied with hieroglyphic s, illustrating their deeds 
The erection of those great obelisks were for the 
same purpose. Coming down to a later period we 
find the Greeks and Romans erecting mausoleums 
and monuments, and carving out statues lo chronicle 
their great achievements, and carry them down the 
ages. It is evident that the mound-builders, in 
piling up their great mounds of earth, had but this 
idea, to leave something to show that they had lived. 
All these works, these representations, though many 
of them costly in the extreme, give but a faint idea 
of the lives and character of those whose memory 
they were intended to perpetuate, and scarcely noth- 
ing of the masses of the people that then lived. The 
great pyramids and some of the obelisks remain, ob- 
jects only for scientists or curiosity seekers; the 
mausoleums, monuments and statues are crumbling 
into dust. The monuments, statues and other relics 
are being gradually conveyed to the different muse- 
ums of the world, and soon there will nothing remain 
in these countries to illustrate the lives of the people 
who once dwelt in them. 

Generation after generation come and go like the 
leaves of autumn. Nations have been born, have 
had their rise and fall, and then passed away, leav- 
ing scarcely a riffle 011 the great ocean of time to 
show that they ever existed, sj imperfect and muta- (£\ 
ble has been their means to perpetuate their achieve- 
ments. It was left to modern ages to establish an in- 
telligent, undecaying, immutable method of per- 
petuating this history; immutable in that it is almost 
unlimited in extent, and perpetual in its action; and 
this is through the art of printing. Nations may be- 
come disintegrated and pass away, monuments and 






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statues may crumble into dust, but books will live. 
This art has been rapidly advancing from its fust in- 
ception until now it would seem that there were no 
longer any further ground for improvement. This is 
pre-eminently an age of printing, an age of books. 

To the present generation, however, are we in- 
debted for the introduction of the admirable system 
of local history and local biography. By this system 
every man, though he has not achieved what the 
world calls greatness, has the means to perpetuate 
his life, his history through the coming ages; so alike 
has every community. 

We come now to the work before us : To our 
patrons, we say, that the scythe of Time cuts down 
all; nothing of the physical man is left; the monu- 
ment which his children or friends may erect to his 
memory in the cemetery will crumble into dust and 
pass away; but his life, his achievements, the work 
he has accomplished, which otherwise would be for- 
gotten, is perpetuated by this book through coming 
ages. Shakspeare has said : 

Tin' evil men do lives after them; 
The good is oft interred with their bones. 

Our aim in this work has been only to preserve 
the good. We sought to gather from the best 
sources of information obtainable, the conditions and 
incidents of the early pioneer life, and to present 
that, together with the present development of the 
county. Many of the pioneers came into this beau- 
tiful country without a dollar in their pockets, but 
with the unflinching determination to carve out their 
fortunes and build up a community. With undaunted 
hearts, and a courage equal to that of the great he- 
roes of our history, they began life. 



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How Our Fathers Lived. 



IONEER life at the present time is not to 
be compared with that of fifty years ago. 
ftiljGT^ In this day the great railway corporations 
tl--"0 Dm 'd railroads into and through such country 
•jii^ as they may think in time will become profita- 
ble to the settlers and themselves, and the pio- 
neers enter palace cars and are conveyed to their 
destination at the rate of thirty miles an hour, and 
from the beginning have a market for their produce 





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at their very door. All this was different in the 
early days of De Kalb County. Then, when one 
desired to remove from the far East, it required 
long and extensive preparations, their conveyance 
generally being an ox team hitched to a heavy lum- 
ber wagon. The route lay through a wild and 
rough country; swamps and marshes were crossed 
with great exertion and fatigue; rivers were forded 
with difficulty and danger, nights were passed in the 
dense forests, with mothet earth for a couch and the 
trees and foliage for a shelter; long weary days and 
weeks of travel were endured, but finally their eyes 
were gladdened and their hearts beat faster when a 
vision of their future home burst upon them. 

The first thing upon their arrival was to set about 
building a cabin. While this was being done the 
family slept in the wagons or upon the grass, while 
the horses or mules, tethered to prevent escape, 
grazed on the grass around them. Trees of a suita- 
ble and uniform size were selected, felled and pre- 
pared for their places. The day for the raising was 
announced and from far and near came other pio- 
neers to assist in the labor. The structure went up, 
a log at a time, those engaged in the work stopping 
now and then to " wet their whistles," and soon it 
was ready for the clapboard roof, which was held on 
by huge weight-poles. A door and a window were 
cut where the good wife directed, a chimney built, 
and the building was ready for its occupants. The 
space between the logs was filled with split sticks of 
wood, called " chinks," and then daubed over, both 
inside and out, with mortar made of clay. The 
floor was sometimes nothing more than earth tramped 
hard and smooth, but was commonly made of " pun- 
cheons," or split logs, with the split side turned up- 
wards. The roof was made by gradually drawing 
in the top to the ridge-pole and on cross-pieces 
laying the clapboards, which, being several feet in 
length, instead of being nailed were held in place by 
weight-poles, reaching the entire length of the cabin. 

For a fire-place, a space was cut out of the logs 
on one side of the room, usually about six feet in 
length, and three sides were built up of logs, making 
an offset in the wall. This was lined with stone, if 
convenient; if not, then earth was used. The flue, 
or upper part of the chimney, was built of small 
split sticks, two and a half or three feet in length, 
carried a little space above the roof, and plastered 
over with clay, and when finished was called a "cob 






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and clay " chimney. The door space was also made 
by cutting an aperture in one side of the room of the 
required si/.e, the door itself being made of clap- 
boards secured by wooden pins to two cross-pieces. 
Tne hinges were also of wood, while the fastenings 
consisted of a wooden latch catching on a hook of the 
same material. To open the door from the outside, 
a strip of buckskin was tied to the latch and drawn 
through a hole a few inches above the latch bar, so 
that on pulling the string the latch was lifted from 
the catch or hook, and the door was opened without 
further trouble. To lock the door it was only neces- 
sary to pull the string through the hole on the inside. 
Here the family lived, and here the guest and way- 
farer were made welcome. The living-room was of 
good size, but to a large extent it was also kitchen, 
bed-room, parlor and arsenal, with Hitches of bacon 
and rings of dried pumpkins suspended from the 
rafters. These simple cabins were inhabited by a 
kind and true-hearted people. They were strangers 
to mock modesty, and the traveler seeking lodgings 
for the night, or desirous of spending a few days in 
the community, if willing to accept the rude offer- 
ings, was always welcome, although how they were 
disposed of at night the reader may not easily imag- 
ine. 




Character of the Pioneers. 

HE character of the pioneers of De Kalb 
County falls properly within the range of 
the historian. They lived in a region of 
exuberance and fertility, where Nature had 
sc attered her blessings with a liberal hand. 
The forest supply, the fertile prairie, and the 
many improvements constantly going forward, with 
the bright prospect for a glorious future in every- 
thing that renders life pleasant, combined to deeply 
impress their character, to give them a spirit of en- 
terprise, an independence of feeling, and a joyous- 
ness of hope. They were a thorough admixture of 
many nations, characters, languages, conditions and 
opinions. There was scarcely a State in the Union 
that was not represented among the early settlers. 
All the various religious sects had their advocates. 
All now form one society . 

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Clothing. 

HE clothing of the early pioneers was as 
plain and simple as their houses. Neces- 
sity compelled it to be in conformity to the 
strictest economy. The clothing taken to the 
new country was made to render a vast deal of 
service. In summer, nearly all persons, both 
male and female, went barefooted. Buckskin moc- 
casins were worn considerably. Boys twelve and fif- 
teen years of age never thought of wearing any- 
thing on their feet except during three or four months 
of the coldest weather in winter. Boots were un- 
known until a later generation. 



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Wolf-Hunting. 

N early days more mischief was done by 
wolves than by any other wild animal, and 
no small part of their mischief consisted in 
their almost constant barking at night, which al- 
ways seemed menacing and frightful to the set- 
tlers. Like mosquitoes, the noise they made 
appeared about as dreadful as the real depreda- 
tions they committed. The most effectual, as well 
as the most exciting method of ridding the country 
of these hateful pests, was that known as the circular 
wolf hunt, by which all the men and boys would 
turn out on an appointed day, in a kind of circle 
comprising many square miles of territory, with 
horses and dogs, and then close up toward the cen- 
ter field of operation, gathering, not only wolves, but 
also deer and many smaller " varmint." Five, ten or 
more wolves, by this means, would be killed in a 
single day. The men would be organized with as 
much system as a small army, every one being 
posted in the meaning of every signal and the appli- 
cation of every rule. Guns were scarcely ever al- 
lowed to be brought on such occasions, as their use 
would be unavoidably dangerous. The dogs were 
depended upon for the final slaughter. The dogs, 
by the way, had all to be held in (heck by a cord 




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*Mf in the hands of their keepers until the final signal 
was given to let them loose, when away they would 
all go to the center of battle, and a more exciting 
scene would follow than can easily be described. 



Snakes. 



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rattlesnake, adder, milk-snakes, gar- 
ter and water snakes, and others. If, on 



meeting one of these, you would retreat, they 
f. 1 ) would chase you very [fiercely"; but jf you 

would turn and give them battle, they would 
immediately turn and crawl away with all possible 
speed, hide in the grass and weeds and wait for a 
"greener" customer. These harmless snakes served 
to put people on their guard against the more danger- 
ous and venomous kind. 



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Bee Hunting. 

ECREATIONof this sort was a peculiar one, 
d many sturdy backwoodsmen gloried in 
excelling in this art. He would carefully 
. lj ,Vr watch a bee as it filled itself with the product of 
some sweet flower or leaf bud, and notice par- 
ticularly the direction taken by it as it struck 
a " bee-line" for its home, which, when found, would 
generally be high up in the hollow of some tree. The 
tree would be marked, and in the fall a party would 




go and cut down the tree and capture the honey as 
quick as they could before it wasted away through the 
broken walls in which it had been so carefully stowed 
by the busy little bee. Several gallons would often 
be taken from a single tree, and by a very little work, 
and pleasant at that, the early settlers could keep 
themselves in honey the year round. By the time 
the honey was a year old it would turn white and 
granulate, yet be as good and healthful as when 
fresh. This was called by some " candied " honey. 






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Eeligion. 

HE religious element in the life of the pio- 
neer was such as to attract the attention of 
those living in more favored places. The 
pioneer was no hypocrite. If he believed in 
horse-racing, whisky-drinking, card-playing, or 
anything of like character, he practiced them 
openly and above board. If he was of a religious 
turn of mind he was not ashamed to own it. He 
could truthfully sing 

'• I'm not ashamed to own my Lord, 
Or blush to speak His name." 

But the pioneer clung to the faith of his fathers, 
for a time at least. If he was a Presbyterian he 
was not ashamed of it, but rather prided himself on 
being one of the elect. If a Methodist, he was one 
to the fullest extent. He prayed long and loud if 
the spirit moved him, and cared nothing for the 
empty form of religion. 




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IKN the pioneers of De Kalb 
County came here to seek a 
, home they found the coun- 
try inhabited by the once 
powerful tribe of Potto- 
vvatomie Indians, though the 
«: country had some years be- 
fore been ceded to the whites. 
This tribe came originally from Canada. 
and as civilization advanced they were re- 
required to take up their line of march to- 
ward the setting sun. While there has 
been much maudlin sentiment written of 
the " noble red men," yet one cannot help 
expressing pity as they witness how loth 
they were to leave the home of their fa- 
thers. Some writer thus speaks of them : 
"Like most Indians, they were in person rather 
above than below the average height of Europeans. 
The usual expression of their countenance, when in 
repose, was grave, even to sadness. They had 
high cheek-bones, faces uncommonly wide below the 
eyes, retiring foreheads, long, sleek, black hair, finer 
than a horse's mane, but much resembling it, but no 
beards, for a beard was considered disgraceful, and 
untold tortures were endured in plucking out the 
first faint symptoms of one that sometimes appeared. 
They were of rugged health, straight and well 
limbed, and with a stoical indifference to pain that 
was either a wonderful exhibition of fortitude, or 
more probably the result of physical insensibility. 
They were generally sullen, seldom impatient, or 
' hurried into intemperate warmth, except in hatred of 




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their enemies; generally feigning a proud indifference 
to their families, yet often giving evidence of strong 
attachment to them, and always indolent except in 
the chase or on the war path." To this general de- 
scription a local writer added : " This was rather the 
natural character of the Indians than that which 
most of them bore at the period of the settlement of 
this county. The use of intoxicating liquors had at 
this time demoralized them and destroyed their no- 
bility of character. They had become more puerile 
and purposeless, and their most conspicuous traits 
were their indolence and their disgusting personal 
habits." 

The art of limiting nut onlj supplied the Indian 
with food, but, like that of war, was a means of 
gratifying his love of distinction. The male chil- 
dren, as soon as they acquired sufficient age and 
strength, were furnished with a bow and arrow, and 
taught to shoot birds and other small game. Suc- 
cess in killing large animals required years of care- 
ful study and practice, and the art was as sedu- 
lously inculcated in the minds of the rising gen- 
eration as are the elements of reading, writing and 
arithmetic in the common schools of civilized com- 
munities. The mazes of the forest and the dense 
tall grass of the prairies were the objects of the 
most searching scrutiny, and revealed at a glance 
the animal that made any visible traces, the direc- 
tion it was pursuing, and the time that had elapsed 
since it had passed. In a forest country he selected 
the valleys, because they were most frequently the 
resort of game. The most easily taken, perhaps, of 
all the animals of the chase was the deer. It is en- 



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dowed with a curiosity wliich prompts it to stop in its 
flight and look hack at the approaching hunter, who 
always avails himself of this opportunity to let fly 
the fatal arrow. 

Their general councils were composed of the 
chiefs and old men. When in council they usually 
sat in concentric circles around the speaker, and 
each individual, notwithstanding the fiery passions 
that burned within, preserved an exterior as immov- 
able as though cast in bronze. Before commencing 
business a person appeared with the sacred pipe, 
and another with lire to kindle it. After being 
lighted it was first presented to heaven, then to the 
earth, then to the presiding spirit, and lastly to the 
several councilors, each of whom took a whiff. These 
formalities were observed with as close exactness as 
state etiquette in civilized courts. 

The dwellings of the Indians were of the simplest 
and rudest character. On some pleasant spot by 
the bank of a stream, or near an ever-running spring, 
they raised their groups of wigwams, constructed of 
the bark of trees, and easily taken down and re- 
moved to another spot. The dwelling-places of the 
chiefs were sometimes more spacious, and con- 
structed with greater care, but of the same materi- 
als. Skins taken in the chase served then for re- 
pose. 

Though principally dependent upon hunting and 
fishing, the uncertain supply from these sources led 
them to cultivate small patches of corn. Every 
family did everything necessary within itself, com- 
merce, or an exchange of articles, being almost un- 
known to them. In case of dispute and dissension, 
each Indian relied upon himself for retaliation; 
blood for blood was the rule, and the relatives of the 
-slain man were bound to obtain bloody revenge for 
his death. This principle gave rise, as a matter of 
course, to innumerable and bitter feuds, and wars of 
extermination, when such were possible. War, in- 
deed, rather than peace, was the Indian's glory and 
delight — war, not conducted as in civilization, but 
where individual skill, endurance, gallantry and 
cruelty were prime requisites. For such a purpose 
as revenge the Indian would make great sacrifices, 
and display a patience and perseverance truly heroic ; 
but when the excitement was over he sank back into 
a listless, unoccupied, well-nigh useless savage. 
During the intervals of his more exciting pursuits, 



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the Indian employed his time in decorating his per- 
son with all the refinement of paint and feathers, 
and in the manufacture of his arms and canoes. 
These were constructed of bark, and so light that 
they could easily be carried on the shoulder from 
stream to stream. His amusements were the war 
dance, athletic games, the narration of his exploits 
and listening to the oratory of the chiefs ; but during 
long periods of such existence he remained in a 
state of torpor, gazing listlessly upon the trees of 
the forest and the clouds that sailed above them ; 
and this vacancy imprinted habitual gravity, and 
even melancholy, upon his genera! deportment. 

The main labor and drudgery of Indian communi- 
ties fell upon the women. The planting, tending 
and gathering of the crops, making mats and bas- 
kets, carrying burdens, — in fact, all things of the 
kind were performed by them, thus making their 
condition but little better than slaves. Marriage 
was merely a matter of bargain and sale, the hus- 
band giving presents to the father of the bride. In 
general they had but few children. They were sub- 
jected to many and severe attacks of sickness, and 
at times famine and pestilence swept away whole 
tribes. 

The Indians had not only their " manitous" but 
also their evil spirits ; and the wild features of the 
lake scenery appears to have impressed their savage 
minds with superstition. They believed that all the 
prominent points of this wide region were created 
and guarded by monsters ; and the images of these 
they sculptured on stone, painted upon the rocks, or 
carved upon the trees. Those who " obeyed " these 
supernatural beings they thought would after death 
range among flowery fields filled with the choicest 
game, while those who neglected their counsels 
would wander amid dreary solitudes, stung by gnats 
as large as pigeons. 

The principal Indian settlements in this county 
were at Shabbona Grove, where for many years the 
noted chief, Shabbona, resided; at Squaw Grove, in 
what is now Squaw Grove Township; at the point in 
De Kalb Township, where the village of Coltonville 
was subsequently located, but which has since been 
vacated; and in Kingston. The early settlers have 
many interesting incidents to relate of the habits of 
the Indians when the settlements were first made in 
this county. It was a custom of an Indian when 
passing and desiring a rest in the middle of the day 



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to unceremoniously open a door of a cabin and throw 
in Ills blanket, [f it were suffered t>> remain, lie- 
would walk in, lie down upon it and take a nap; if it 
was immediately thrown out, he would piek it up and 
go on his way. No Indian was ever known to knock 
at a door. While engaged in their household duties, 
the women would often be frightened on looking up 
to find one who had noiselessly entered, and who 
usually went in only for the purpose of obtaining 
something to eat. When their wants were supplied 



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they would go away as unceremoniously as they 
entered. 

In September, i S 3 5 , the last payment was made to 
the Indians at Shabbona drove, and those who were 
then here, with the exception of Shabbona and his 
family, were removed across the Mississippi River to 
their new reservations. Shabbona remained for some 
years, and is well remembered by many who came in 
even at a later day. The reader is referred to page 
533 for a lengthy sketch of Shabbona. 

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HE first permanent settle- 
ment in De Kalb County 
was doubtless made by Wil- 
liam Sebree in the fall of 1834, 
at Squaw Grove. By some it 
is thought that Peter Lamois 
$ located north of the present city 
of Sycamore in the summer of 
the same year. The evidence, 
we think, is not sufficient to 
substantiate the claim, Lamois' 
settlement being made early in 
1835. A house for some years oc- 
cupied by Reuben Root in Somo- 
nauk Township is thought by some 
to be the first one erected in the county, its erection 
being claimed for the summer of 1834. A Mr. Rob- 
inson is said to have occupied this house in the win- 
ter of 1834-5. No one seems to have any personal 
knowledge of the man; and should it be true that he 
was there at the time stated, his settlement here 
could not be said to have been a permanent one. 

Early in 1835 settlements were made at Paw Paw 
by David A. Towne, Benoni Harris, Edward Butter- 
field; in Somonauk, by Reuben Root, William Poplin, 
Joseph and William Sly, Thomas and William Brook, 
Capt. William Davis and others; in Sycamore, by 



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Peter Lamois, Lysander Darling and others; in De 
Kalb, by John B. Collins, N. C. Moore and others. 
There were also settlements made in Kingston, Clin- 
ton and May field Townships. For a full history of 
each of the settlements the reader's attention is 
directed to the various township histories, where the 
settlement of each is treated in detail. Suffice it to 
say, in this connection, that when it became known 
that the Indians were removed settlements were 
rapidly formed, and in 1837 a county was organized. 
The first settlers of De Kalb County, like those of 
every other section of the country, located in the 
groves, or in the timbers along the streams. The 
Government survey had not then been made, and 
each man made claim to a tract of timber, covering, 
as he supposed, about 80 acres, and generally about 
160 acres of prairie land. In order to protect them- 
selves in their claims when the land came into mar- 
ket, claim associations were formed in which the 
members pledged themselves to defend one another 
in their rights, and to deed to each other free of cost 
any part of the claim made which might be part of 
the purchase made from the Government. There 
were two associations formed in this county, one in 
the northern and the other in the southern part. 
That in the northern part was formed in 1836, while 
that in the southern was formed shortly after. 

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jfOUNDING De Kalb County, 

we find on the east Kendall 
and Kane Counties ; on the 
west Lee and Ogle, on the 
north Boone and McHenry, 
and on the south La Salle 
ShsJfS County. It is in the second 
S»j tier of counties south from 

the Wisconsin line. The 
county comprises 18 Congressional town- 
ships, and is iS miles across from east to 
west and 36 miles from north to south. 
The surface of the county is a rich, roll- 
ing prairie, with here and there a small 
natural grove, and watered by a few small 
streams, the largest of which is the Kish- 
waukee River. The county occupies 
the elevated ground between the Fox 
and the Rock Rivers, which are noted 
for their purity and beauty. 

The central portion of the county contains but 
little timber, and only a few running streams. There 
is more timber and water in the northern and south- 
ern parts of the county. The largest stream in 
the county is the Kishwaukee River. This stream 
heads in the town of Shabbona, and flows through 
the towns of Milan, Afton, De Kalb, May field, Syca- 
more, Genoa, Kingston and Franklin ; and empties 
into the Rock River, in Winnebago County. It has 
several branches, one of which heads in the town of 
Virgil, Kane County, and flows through Cortland and 
Sycamore Townships, and enters the main branch in 




the town of Mayfield. There are several small creeks 
that flow through the northern part of the county, 
which are valuable to the farms which they water. 
Along the banks of the Kishwaukee, in the northern 
half of the county, stretches one continuous forest 
composed principally of white, red and burr oak trees, 
and some maple, butternut, black walnut and hickory. 
This grove furnished at an early day the north half of 
the county with fuel and fencing timber. The rolling 
prairies occupy almost the entire surface of the cen- 
tral portion of the county. The early settlers of the 
county made their claims in close proximity to the 
timber and water, and could hardly believe that the 
distant prairies would ever serve any other purpose 
than that of a large range for stock. They felt sure 
that no farmer could live there, so far away from the 
timber. They little thought that many of them would 
live to see it all settled and occupied by man. Some 
of the wealthiest farmers and the most productive 
farms of the county, are now found on the prairies. 
The central portion of the county has but little water. 
The southern portions of the county, like the north- 
ern, are better watered and timbered than those 
towns which occupy the center. The townships of 
Paw Paw and Shabbona are watered by the Big In- 
dian Creek, while Shabbona Grove and Ross Grove 
furnish its timber. The Little Indian Creek waters 
the townships of Victor, Paw Paw and Clinton; while 
Somonauk and Squaw Grove Townships are watered 
by Somonauk Creek; and along this stream will be 
found timber enough to supply the wants of the sur 
rounding country. Some limestone is found in 
Kingston, Franklin and Afton Townships. 



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EGULAR steps were taken 
shortly after the settlement of 
the county for its organization. 
Therefore, on the first Monday 
in May, 1837, in accordance 
with an act of the Legislature, 
the election was held to deter- 
mine whether the county of De Kalb 
hould be set off from the county of 
Cane, of which it then formed a 
iart. The result was a majority in 
avor of the division. By the same 
ct calling this election the bound- 
ries of the new county to be created 
/ere denned as follows : " All that 
tract of country beginning at the southeast corner of 
township 37 north, range 2 east of the third principal 
meridian, thence north to the northeast corner of 
township 42 north, range 2 east of the third principal 
meridian, and thence along the northern boundary of 
township 42, in ranges 3, 4 and ■; east of the third 
principal meridian, thence south on the southeast 
comer of township 37 north, range 5 east, thence 
west on said township line, to the place of beginning." 
By section 8 of the act determining the bound- 
aries of the county, for the purpose of fixing the per- 




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manent seat of justice of the county, Benjamin • 
Thruston, of La Salle County, James Walker, of - 
Cook County, and Germanicus Kent, of Winnebago = 
County, were appointed Commissioners, and required V> 
to meet at the house of Frederick Love, on the first 
Monday in June, or as soon thereafter as may be, for ( 
the performance of their duty. 

When the result of the election to determine 
whether De Kalb County should be set off from the 
county of Kane was officially announced, the County 
Clerk of Kane County issued a call for an election to 
be held at the house of Frederick Love, at which 
there should be chosen three County Commissioners, 
one Sheriff, Recorder and Coroner. The election 
was held July 3, 1837, resulting in the election of the 
following named : Rufus Colton, Robert Sterrett, 
Levi Lee, County Commissioners; Joseph C. Lan- 
der, Sheriff; Jesse C. Kellogg, Recorder; Eli Barnes, 
Surveyor; Lysander Darling, Treasurer. 

De Kalb County was named in honor of the re- 
nowned Baron De Kalb, who, on the outbreak of the 
American Revolution, offered his services to the 
Colonies, was accepted, and after nearly four years' 
fighting, bravely fell in battle, thus giving his life, as 
he so aptly expressed it, for the rights of man. He 
was bom in a German province, which, at the time 
of his birth, was in possession of France. 



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Location of the County Seat. 

HE commissioners appointed by the Legis- 
lature to locate the county seat met at the 
house ot Fred. Love sometime during the 
month of October, 1837. There were three 
competing points, and citizens representing 
each of the three met with the commissioners 
and proceeded with them to view each separate one. 
After three days spent in riding about and listening 
to the pleas of the interested persons, the commis- 
sioners decided upon the present site of Sycamore, 
and drove their stake where the court-house now 
stands. A local writer thus describes this scene : 
" In the presence of quite a crowd of interested 
observers, they set a long pole upon the green 
prairie, placed on it a streaming flag, and declared it 
to be the location of the county seat of the new 
county of De Kalb. Captain Eli Barnes now ad- 
vanced and christened the new town by the name 
of Orange. No objection was raised to this, and for 
some time thereafter the point was known by that 
name. Some objection had been made to the exact 
spot selected by parties who thought the land a 
half mile south more favorable. This was admitted; 
but it was decided that this spot was as far out 
on the broad prairie as the center of the town ought 
to be placed, and here it was put. It did indeed 
seem to be, in the phrase of the country, clear out of 
sight of land, a lonely, windy, grassy, desolate spot. 
The inhabitants of the rival locations, disappointed 
at the result, ridiculed and denounced the selection, 
chiefly for this reason. It was argued, however, that 
the great State road from Vandalia, the capital of the 
State, north to Lake Superior, passed through this 
place, that the State road from Chicago to Galena 
would cross here, and that consequently it would be 
more accessible than the Coltonville and Brush Point 
settlements, which were further to the west. It was 
also held that there was a great deal more timber on 
the eastern side of the county than on the western 
side ; and as, of course, the settlements must always 
be near the timbered lands, the center of population 
would rather be at the east than at the west. The 





location was made north of the center of the county, 
partly because it was thought that the southern end, 
divided from the north by a broad stretch of bare 
prairie, would ultimately be set off into some other 
county." 



County-Seat Contests. 

HE selection by the commissioners of the 
present site of Sycamore for the location of 

% the county seat, did not end the matter. 

The question was not to be decided so easily. 

The hopes raised in the breast of the citizens 

of Brush Point and of Coltonville were not to 
be thus rudely quenched by the dictum of any three 
men. 

During the session of the Legislature of 1837-8, 
Henry Madden, a citizen of Brush Point in the pres- 
ent township of Mayfield, and a member of the 
Legislature, procured the passage of an act provid- 
ing that a vote should be taken for or against the re- 
moval of the county seat from Orange. The design 
was that the friends of Brush Point and Coltonville 
should combine to carry the measure through, then 
have the question submitted as to which of the two 
should be the county seat. Boies, in his History of 
De Kalb County, thus speaks of this attempt to 
procure the removal of the county seat : " Madden 
returned and made no public mention of the passage 
of this act, but it was strongly suspected by the 
Orange men that something of the kind had been 
done and was to be put through on the sly. It was 
finally discovered in this way: A certain bachelor 
of Genoa, Gleason by name, who was attached to the 
Orange party, invaded the Brush Point settlement 
one Sunday night in search of a wife. From his fair 
Dulcina, he learned to his surprise that on the next 
Monday week an election was to be held in that set- 
tlement to remove the county seat. Gleason in- 
formed his friends of what he had learned, and it 
was agreed that the Orange men should meet them 
at the polls and vote the removal project down. J. 
C. Kellogg and E. G. Jewell were dispatched south 
in the night to rouse their friends in Somonauk. In 
due time the polls were opened, and, to the surprise 
of the Brush Pointers, were opened in those precincts 
opposed to the change as well as in those favor- 



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able to it. The unfairness of the secret conspiracy 

was so apparent that in Sonionauk precinct, which 
then included six townships, 45 of the 47 votes cast 
were against removal. The project was voted down 
by 17 majority in the whole county." 

An election was subsequently held, at which but 
few votes were cast, but a majority in favor of the re- 
moval of the county seat to Coltonville. On the 3d 
of January, rS4o, an act was passed by the Legisla- 
ture to " permanently locate the seat of justice for 
the county of De Kalb." On the third Monday in 





August following, an election was held in pursuance 
of the act. There were given at this election 240 
votes in favor of the removal of the county seat from ' 
Coltonville, and 143 votes against the removal. At 
the same time there were cast 207 votes in favor of v 
Sycamore to be the permanent county scat and 
137 votes in favor of Brush Point, showing a ma- 
jority of 70 votes in favor of Sycamore. 

Other attempts have been made from time to time 
to take from Sycamore the seat of justice of the 
county, but without avail. 



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A (is of the County Commissioners. 

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HE first meeting of the Coun- 
ty Commissioners' Court was 
held at the house of Rufus 
Colton, July 3, 1837. There 
were present Rufus Colton, 
Levi Lee and Robert Sterrett. 
v After administering the oath of 
office to each other they ap- 
pointed Jesse C. Kellogg Clerk 
of the Court. Mr. Kellogg at 
once entered into bonds with Eli 
Barnes as security in the sum of 
)i,ooo to faithfully perform the 
duties of the office. On the nth 
of July a special term of the Court 
was held at the house of Rufus Col- 
ton and the county was divided into 
five election precints, each precinct 
being made a justice's district. The 
first precinct was called Kingston, 
its boundary being as follows: Com- 
mencing at the northwest corner of 
the county, from thence south 12 
miles, on the county line, from 
thence northeast, crossing the Sycamore River, in- 
deluding Benjamin Stephens in the precinct, from 






thence north to the county line, from thence west to 
the place of beginning. 

The second precinct was called Sycamore and was 
bounded as follows : Commencing at the northeast 
corner of Kingston precinct, from thence westerly to 
the line of Kingston- precinct to the southwest corner 
of the same, thence south so far that an east line 
will cross Sycamore stream between James and Isaac 
McCollum's, thence easterly so as to include Char- 
tres' Grove to the east line of the county, thence 
north to the place of beginning. 

The third election precinct was called Orange, 
with the following boundary line: Commencing at 
the northeast corner of Sycamore precinct, from 
thence westerly on the line of Sycamore precinct, to 
the southwest corner of the same; thence south so 
far that an east line will include Lost Grove; from 
thence east to the county line ; from thence north to 
the place of beginning. 

Somonauk was the name given the fourth precinct, 
with boundary lines as follows: Commencing at the 
southeast corner of Orange precinct, from thence 
westerly ten miles, from thence south to the south 
line of the county, from thence east to the southeast 
corner of the county, from thence north to the place 
of beginning. 

The fifth precinct was named I'aw Paw, and was 






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bounded as follows: Commencing at the northwest 
corner of Somonauk precinct, thence west to the 
west line of the county, from thence south to the 
southwest corner of the same, from thence east on 
the county line to the southwest corner of Somonauk 
precinct, from thence north to the place of begin- 
ning. 

Elections were ordered and judges of election 
appointed for the several districts as follows: 

Kingston district, at the house of Levi Lee, with 
George H. Hill, John Whitney and Jonas Hait, 
judges of election. 

Sycamore precinct, at the school-house near Ly- 
sander Darling's, with William A. Miller, James A. 
Armstrong, and Samuel Cory, judges of election. 

Orange district, at the house of Rufus Colton, 
with Frederick Love, James Root and Eli Barnes, 
judges of election. 

Somonauk district, at the house of Woodruff and 
Lane, with William Davis, Frederick A. Witherspoon 
and Samuel Price, judges of election. 

No election was appointed for the Paw Paw pre- 
cinct, and there probably was none held, for on the 
nth day of August the Commissioners allowed the 
sum of one dollar each to the judges of election for 
each of the foregoing districts, without reference to 
Paw Paw. 

At this term of court it was ordered that Levi Lee, 
Benjamin Harris and Richard Hogeboom obtain a 
writ of ad quod damnum for the purpose of damming 
the Sycamore River for the erection of mills. 

At this session the clerk prepared three tickets, on 
the first of which was written, " one year," the sec- 
ond, " two years," and the third, " three years." The 
Commissioners then proceeded to draw, the 
ticket drawn representing the term of years each 
was to serve. Levi Lee drew one year, Rufus 
Colton two years, and Robert Sterrett three years. 

In August, 1838, another election was held for 
three county commissioners, made necessary by a 
change in the law. E. G. Jewell, Bur rage Hough 
and Henry Hicks were elected. They issued an 
order that the October term of the Circuit Court 
should be held at the house of Eli Barnes at the 
proposed county seat. The house not being 
erected at the time mentioned, court was held at 
Colton ville. 

At the September meeting of the board the ques- 



tion of the erection of a court-house and jail was 
considered, but no plan adopted. 

Eli G. Jewell was authorized to secure the ser- 
vices of a surveyor to plat the new county seat. 

The compensation of jurors was fixed at 75 cents, 
but subsequently reduced to 50 cents per day. 

Three tavern licenses were granted this year — one 
to Russell Huntly, at which is now the town of De 
Kalb; one to John Eastabrooks, at Squaw Grove, 
and one to H. N. Perkins, at Genoa. 

In j 8 $9 the county was divided into three assess- 
ment districts — the election precincts of Franklin, 
Kingston and Kishwaukee constituting one, with H. 
F. Page as assessor. Sycamore, Orange and Ohio 
precincts were made the second district, with Austin 
Hayden, assessor. Somonauk and Paw Paw was 
the third, Stephen Arnold being appointed assessor. 

The total receipts and expenditures of the county 
this year amounted to $452.15. 

In 1840 the principal duty was to devise ways and 
means to run the county without money. The 
license for grocery-keepers was raised to $25 per 
year. 

For some years about all that was done by the 
County Commissioners was to lay out and locate 
new roads. In 1848 the increasing population 
demanded the division of the county into more 
election precincts. Squaw Grove precinct was 
formed out of what is now Squaw Grove Township 
ami the south half of Pierce. Somonauk precinct 
was changed so as to include Somonauk Township 
and part of Victor. The name of Wooster precinct 
was changed to Genoa. 

In March, 1849, commissioners were appointed 
to provide for the building of a new court-house. At 
the same time an order was passed authorizing the 
erection of a jail. 

At the December term, 1849, William A. Miller, 
William J. Hunt and Robert Sterrett were appointed 
to divide the county into townships for a new organ- 
ization under the township organization law. They 
divided the county into thirteen townships, to which 
were given the following names : Genoa, Kingston, 
Franklin, Vernon, Liberty, Sycamore, Richland, 
Orange, Shabbona, Clinton, Squaw Grove, Somonauk 
and Paw Paw. 

The following comprises the list of those who 
have held the office of County Commissioner : R. 




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Cotton, Levi Lee, Robert Sterrett, Barrage Hough, 
K. G. Jewell, 11. Hicks, M. M. Mack, David Merritt, 
Sylvanus Holcomb, A. Hayden, George H. Hill, 
Joseph Newberry, W. Young, A. Hill, John S. lirown. 

Board of Supervisors. 

^AVING adopted the township organization 
law, a Hoard of Supervisors was elected in 
1850. The first meeting was held at Syca- 
more, Oct. 7, 1850. James Harrington, of 
Sycamore, was chosen Chairman. Among the 
first acts of the Board was to change the name 
of the townships of Orange to De Kalb, of Richland 




to Pampas, of Libeity to Mayfield, and of Vernon 
to South Grove. From 1850 to the present time 
the township organization system has been in vogue 
and has generally been acceptable to the people. 
Wise counsels have usually prevailed in the Hoard, 
and much has been accomplished by the members 
to advance the welfare of the county. Especially 
during the perilous times of the Rebellion was the 
Board active in providing means and measures to aid 
the Government and the people at home. 

For a list of Supervisors, see the respective town- 
ship histories, where a lull list of the Supervisors of 
the county, serving the various townships in this 
capacity, is given. 



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JHE County Commissioners, in 
1838, when the seat of jus- 
tice for the county was deter- 
mined upon, after providing 
for the survey and the plat- 
ting of the village, issued an 
■w W^k order requiring EliG. Jewell 
to sell certain lots at public auc- 
tion, the proceeds to be applied to 
the erection of a court-house and 
jail. The auction was held and 
some 15 or 20 lots were sold at 
prices ranging from $20 to $50 each. 
Among the purchasers were Fred- 
crii k Love, J. C. Kellogg, James S. 
Waterman, Harvey Maxfield, Dan- 
iel bannister, Almon Robinson, 
Erastus Barnes and Timothy Wells. 
Steps were at once taken to erect a court-house, and 
accordingly a building 20 x 30 feet was erected on 
the south side of the public square, in which the 
June session of the Circuit Court, in 1839, was held, 

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I'his building was 



used until the winter of 1850-1 as a court-house, 
and afterwards used for various purposes until 1881, 
when it was torn down and the lumber removed. 

In consequence of increase in population, and in 
the volume of business transacted by the county 
officers, it was but a few years before a larger and 
better building became absolutely necessary. The 
people throughout the county felt unwilling to bear 
the expense of the entire building, believing that the 
count seat, which they thought would be benefited 
thereby, should bear a large proportion. After much 
discussion, at the March term, 1849, of the Commis- 
sioners' Court, three commissioners were appointed 
to contract for building a new court-house. The 
commissioners were E. P. Koring, Kimball Dow and 
J. C. Kellogg. The building was to be erected in the 
center of the public square, to be of brick 60 x 40 
feet, two stories in height, and cost not to exceed 
$6,000. Of this amount individual citizens, presum- 
ably of Sycamore, were to contribute $1,500, being 
allowed to pay in notes, two-thirds of which should 
be paid Nov. 1, 1849, and the remainder one year 
thereafter. The County Commissioners further or- 



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dered that it should be agreed that in case the 
county seat should ever be removed from Sycamore 
the county should return to the persons the amount 
paid by each. It was ordered that the notes be 
registered on the court records and be evidence of 
the liability of the county for the re-payment of this 
advance. An active canvass was at once made to 
secure the required amount from the citizens of Syca- 
more, with flattering results. Among those con- 
tributing, with the amounts given, are the following 
named: E. B. Barnes, $roo; Amos Story, $20; 
John Maylield, $40; Thomas Woolsey, $20; Kim- 
ball Dow, $50; E. P. Young, $150; W. H. Beavers, 
$37; W. J. Hunt, $50; Ellsworth Rose, $25; E. 
Hall, $25 ; E. H. Barnes, $25 ; Alonzo Brown, $20; 
O. P. White, $25 ; Z. B. Mayo, $50 ; E. L. Mayo, 
$50; John Chatfield, $20; J. S. & J. C. Waterman, 
$[50; M. Stark, $50; O. M. Bryan, $30; Thomas 
H. Wood, $25 ; E. Wharry, $20; E. G. Jewell, $20; 
Darius Williams, $25; R. Wyman,'$2o; William 
Connell, $20; J. C. Kellogg, $25; R. Hopkins and 
VV. P. Dutton, $75 ; D. Easterbrooks, $25 ; A. Jack- 
man, $20; Homer Roberts, $20 ; Sylvanus Holcomb, 
$25; W. Fordham, $30; G. W. Kretsinger, $20. 

The agents for building were also authorized to 
sell the old court-house and all town lots owned by 
the county at auction, and apply the proceeds in 
payment of the $4,500 in bonds issued by the county 
for the new building. In the winter of 1 850-1 the 
new court-house was completed and occupied by the 
county officers. 

No changes were made to this building until 1863, 
when a fire-proof addition was made upon the west 
side for the use of the offices of of the circuit and 
county clerks, at a cost of $4,500. 

At the same time in which the order was passed 
appointing agents to superintend the erection of the 
court-house, one authorizing the erection of a jail at 
a cost not exceeding $1,500 was passed. Nothing, 
however, was done under this order. 

In 1S55 another attempt was made to secure an 
appropriation and an order authorizing the erection 
of a county jail. After much discussion an order 
was passed appropriating $3,500 for this purpose, 
provided the citizens of Sycamore would subscribe 
$1,500. An effort was made by interested persons 
to secure this amount, but without avail. At the 
January terra of the Board of Supervisors, in 1856, 



the committee appointed to solicit subscriptions re- 
ported no success in their mission, and recommended 
that the county proceed to build the jail without 
their aid. After considerable discussion, the Board 
appropriated $5,000 for the purpose, and appointed 
J. S. Brown, James Harrington and Alonzo Ellwood 
a building committee. The work was at once begun 
and soon completed. Thus the first jail in DeKalb 
County was not erected for 19 years after its organi- 
zation. 

In 1853 the Board of Supervisors appointed W. C. 
Tappan and Jesse Tindall a committee to contract 
for a tract of land for a poor-farm, the expense of 
keeping the poor becoming quite burdensome to the 
county. A loan of $3,000 was called for with which 
to purchase it. In September, the farm of A. H. 
Cartwright, between Sycamore and De Kalb, was 
purchased for the purpose. Suitable buildings were 
erected and for a number of years met the wants of 
those for whom it was intended. 

At the November term of the Board of Supervisors, 
in 1870, Moses Dean, W. L. Simmons, C. W. Brough- 
ton, J. F. Glidden and Curtis Smith were appointed 
a committee for the purpose of taking into consider- 
ation the purchase of a new farm for the poor and 
the erection of more suitable buildings. The com- 
mittee at the January, 187 1, term, reported against a 
change of location, but urged the erection of new 
buildings, according to certain plans and specifica- 
tions filed with their report. The report of the com- 
mittee was adopted and recommendations concurred 
in. Moses Dean and J. F. Glidden were appointed 
a committee to superintend the erection of new- 
buildings. An appropriation of $9,500 was made for 
the purpose. At the September term, 187 1, the 
committee reported the cost of improvements would 
amount to about $[4,000. An additional appropriation 
of $1,500 was made. The buildings were completed 
before winter. In that year there were ^^ inmates 
in the poor-house. For the year 1884, the cost of 
operating the farm and caring for the poor was 
$2,263.38. The average appropriation annually is 
$1,800. For the year 1884 it was reported there 
were 26 inmates in the house ; three deaths and one 
birth had occurred. The cost of each inmate for 
the year, exclusive of farm products used, was $1.59 
per week. The institution is well and economically 
managed, all parties being satisfied with it. 



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^N its organization De Kalb 
County was made part of the 
7 1 li Judicial Circuit. The 
• first session of the Court was 
is held at the house of Rufus 
^^ Cohort, in Coltonville, on the 
9th day of October, 183S. There 
were present Hon. John Pearson, 
Judge of the Circuit, Joseph C. Lan- 
der, Sheriff, and Rufus Cohort, Clerk. 
The first suit on record was that of 
Erasmus D. Walrod vs. Stephen 
Sherwood. This was a case of appeal 
from a justice's court, the plaintiff 
having obtained a judgment for the 
same of $ico. The judgment of the lower court was 
sustained. 

The following named composed the first grand 
ury: George H. Hill, Nathan Billings, William A. 
Miller, Lysander Darling, John Whitney, John Easta- 
brooks, William Miles, Henry Madden, Eli Barnes, 
Phineas Stevens, Alpheus Jenks, Russell D. Crossett, 
John Maxfield, William Davis, Maltby B. Cleveland, 
D. S. Ballard, Zachariah Wood. Ralph Wyman, Ben- 
jamin Stephens, Joseph A. Armstrong, Henry B. 
Barber, Reuben Nichols, Justin ("rafts. 

The petit jurors for the same term were C. W. 
Branch, E. F. White, Abner Jackson, Peter Lamois, 
Clark Wright, John Elliott, Clark I.. Barber, Joseph 
A. McCollum, Russell Huntley, Ora A. Walker, John 
Corkins, Solomon Wells, H. N. Perkins, Jacob Cox, 
Lyman Judtl, Henry Durham, F. A. Witherspoon, 
fohn Sebree, Marshall Stark, Jeremiah Burleigh, John 



Riddle, Win. Russell, W. Y. Pomeroy, Ezra Hanson. 

There were 20 cases on the docket at this term. 
The only indictment found by the grand jury "as 
one against William Taylor for passing counterfeit ' 
money. Taylor was supposed to be one of an organ- " 
ized gang that was then infesting the country and 
swindling honest citizens. Not being ready for trial 3 
he was retained until the next term of court. After ] 
being boarded for some weeks by the Barber family 
the County Commissioners ordered him sent to the v£, 
Will County jail, to do which cost the county $45. «: 
When he was next brought out for trial he escaped ( 
from the guard and was never afterwards heard from. 

The June session of the Circuit Court convened at 
Coltonville with Hon. Thomas Ford, Judge of the 
9th Judicial Circuit, presiding. While in session the 
Board of County Commissioners ordered its clerk to 
notify the Judge that a court-house had been erected 
at the county seat and was ready for occupancy, re- 
questing that he direct the Circuit Clerk to there keep 
his office. Boise thus speaks of this matter: "Cap- 
tain Barnes served the order upon the Judge, and 
the crowd of attendants, augmented by a large body 
of citizens, assembled to see what action would be- 
taken upon this order, awaited with great interest the 
argument upon the proposition to remove to Sycamore. 
When the Judge decided that the court must be re- 
moved thence a shout of triumph went up from the 
Sycamore party, while the opponents of removal were 
correspondingly depressed. Judge Ford took his 
record under his arm, State's Attorney Purple bundled 
up his papers, the Sheriff, the lawyers, juries, parties 
ami witnesses followed suit, and, led bv Captain 




DE KALB COUNTY. 



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Barnes on that well-known spotted horse that he rode 
upon all public occasions for more than 20 years 
later, all took up their line of march through the thick 
woods and across the green prairie, to the new seat of 
empire at Sycamore. The assemblage was enter- 
tained at a grand public dinner at the new tavern, 
when all the luxuries that the country afforded were 
freely provided by the successful party. When the 
Court repaired to the new court-house, it was found 
that the declaration of the Commissioners that the 
court-house was ready forQecupancy was rather more 
than its condition warranted. It had a frame, a 
roof, and some siding upon it, but there were no 
doors or windows, and the only floor was some loose 
boards covering one half of the upper story. When 
the officers of the Court had clambered up to the seat 
of justice in the second story, they found furniture 
somewhat scarce. A tilting table was the judge's 
desk, and a broad, rough board was provided for the 
( ) clerk's and attorney's tables. It was a rough and 
primitive arrangement for the entertainment of the 
, blind goddess, and if she had had her eyes about her 
1 she would have fled from the spot in alarm. A 
I question arose whether processes having been made 
: returnable at Coltonville, suits could be tried at an- 
other locality, and except a few agreed cases no liti- 
gation was carried on. William Taylor, the only 
criminal, having fortunately run away, and the arrest 
of all others carefully avoided, there was no use for 
a grand jury, and it had been at once dismissed, and 
the court speedily adjourned." 

Judge Ford presided at each session of the Circuit 
Court from 1839 to 1841, inclusive. The Judge sub- 
sequently became Governor of the State, a biograph- 
ical sketch and portrait of whom will be found upon 
other pages of this work. 

Hon. J. D. Caton, one of the Judges of the Supreme 
Court, was assigned to circuit duties, and presided 
here from 1842 to 1849 inclusive. Judge Caton is 
well known to be one of the ablest judges ever upon 
the bench in the State of Illinois. 

Hon. T. Lyle Dickey was assigned to the circuit 
in 1850. He is at present a popular Judge of the 
Supreme Court. 

Hon. Isaac G. Wilson was the first Judge elected 
to the new 13th Circuit, under the Constitution of 
1848. He was commissioned in June, 185 r. Judge 
Wilson was born in Middlebury, N. Y., April 26, 




1815. He received a good collegiate education, and 
in law few men are better read. Of a line, dignified, 
personal appearance, a cultured gentleman, he re- 
ceives the respect of all. As a judge, he ranks among 
the best, and in his long career upon the bench, he 
has never been accused of corruption or favoritism. 

Judge Wilson was succeeded by Allen C. Fuller, 
who is widely known as the Adjutant General of the 
State during the Rebellion, discharging the duties of 
that office in a most acceptable manner. Judge 
Fuller was and is a man of great force of character, 
with indomitable will and energy, and, as a lawyer, 
ranked high. He remained upon the bench but a 
few months, resigning to accept the appointment of 
Adjutant General. He has become immensely 
wealthy. 

Hon. Theodore D. Murphy was elected to succeed 
Judge Fuller, his commission bearing date Sept. 1, 
1862. He was re-commissioned June 27, 1867, and 
served until 1879 as Judge of the 13th and of the 
Second Circuit as re-organized under the Constitution 
of 1870, and again as one of the Judges of the 12th 
Circuit created by the act of 1877, of which De Kalb 
County forms a part. Judge Murphy is of Irish de- 
scent, born in Virginia. He was very popular with 
the people. 

By the act of 1877 three judges were elected to 
to each circuit, and at present Judges Clark W. Up- 
ton, Isaac G. Wilson and Charles Kellum serve the 
circuit. No circuits in the State have more popular 
judges. Isaac G. Wilson has already been men- 
tioned. He is now one of the Judges of the Appellate 
Court also. Of Clark W. Upton much could be said 
in his praise. He is a native of Vermont, a man of 
great and diversified experience, well read in litera- 
ture and law, an upright judge and well liked by the 
Bar. In personal appearance he is one to attract at- 
tention, having a smooth face, florid complexion, and, 
to sum it all up, is a handsome man. 

Of Charles Kellum it is unnecessary to speak in 
this connection. A full biographical sketch appears 
elsewhere in this volume, accompanied by a well 
executed portrait. Suffice it to say, as a lawyer he 
is regarded highly ; as a judge, among the best, hav- 
ing the confidence and respect of the Bar and peo- 
ple alike ; as a citizen, ever ready to do all in his 
power to advance the best interests of the commu- 
nity in which he lives. 









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MONG the learned profes- 
sions, none rank higher than 
* the legal. Its members exert 
probably a greater influence 
upon a community than that 
ajT of any other. The lawyer is 
"■) expected to occupy a leading 
position upon all questions af- 
fecting the well-being of the peo- 
ple. In all public assemblies 
he is expected to take a promi- 
nent part and his views are often 
accepted and endorsed. The Bar 
of De Kalb County has always 
ranked high, embracing among its 
members some of the brightest legal talent in North- 
ern Illinois. 

Mr. Crothers, a young attorney, located at Colton- 
ville shortly after the village was laid out, in 1837, 
and has the honor of being the first lawyer to reside 
in the county. He was a man of great natural abil- 
ity and well read for one of his age. He remained 
until about the time the county seat was removed to 
Sycamore, when he moved to Ottawa, became the law 
partner of T. Lyle Dickey, and became quite dis- 
tinguished at the Bar. 

Andrew J. Brown, who is usually supposed to have 
been the first lawyer to locate in the county, was 
doubtless the second. He remained here but a 
short time and then moved to Chicago, where he 

■X 4 ^*- — =-^008 



subsequently became quite distinguished. He is now 
dead. 

Mr. Masters is said to have been the next attorney 
to locate here. He did but little if any business, 
and has been forgotten by most of the older resi- 
dents. 

E. L. Mayo and W. J. Hunt were next in order. 
The latter did little or no business at the Bar, but 
the former became quite distinguished. 

Among those who have lived and practiced here 
at the Bar, whose names are readily recalled, and 
who now reside elsewhere, have quit practice, or 
who have since died, are John L. Beveridge, a man 
of sterling worth, who has been Governor of the 
State of Illinois; Mr. Favor, J. A. Simons, A. C. 
Allen, D. B. James, Z. B. Mayo, A. C. Babcock, K. 
L. Divine, John J. McKinnon, William Fordham, O. 
S. Webster, A. C. Bryant, Gilbert Winters, Volney 
Owen, Charles Balliette, H. D. Willis, F. \V. Bart- 
ridge, Mr. McBroom, George Kretsinger, J. H. Sedg- 
wick, L. E. Hay and Frank Stevens. 

I). B. James was admitted to the Bar in his native 
State of Vermont about 1847. In 1849 he dropped 
his law books and went to California, where he re- 
mained some two years engaged in mining, but with 
poor success. Returning to Vermont, he made his 
arrangements to come to Illinois, arriving in De Kalb 
County in 1852, where he at once formed a partner- 
ship with E. L. Mayo, which continued until 1S58. 
He then formed a partnership with Luther Lowell 









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and Cliauncey Ellwood, under the firm name of 
James, Lowell & Ellwood, which continued some 
months, when Mr. Ellwood withdrew. The follow- 
ing four years the firm of James & Lowell had an 
existence. In 1S64 the partnership of James & 
Lowell was dissolved and that of James & Jones 
formed. In the fall of this year Mr. James was 
elected County Judge. Taking the office Jan. r, 
1S65, he served four years. Some time in 1866 he 
received a stroke of paralysis, from which he never 
entirely recovered, but notwithstanding he continued 
to discharge the duties of his office. On the expira- 
tion of his term he was appointed Postmaster and 
served one term. Judge James was a man of good, 
native ability and a very popular man. According 
to his ability he did as much to advance the inter- 
ests of Sycamore as any man that ever resided here. 
He did too much for his own good, financially speak- 
ing. As a lawyer he ranked high during the first 
ten years of his life in Sycamore. He was not a 
close student, but was a man of quick perception, a 
fluent speaker, and as an advocate before a jury met 
with great success. Like many other lawyers he 
devoted much of his time to politics. During the 
war he was very active in promoting enlistments, 
and was appointed upon the staff of Gov. Oglesby, 
with rank of Colonel. His wife was Ann George. 
Col. James died Jan. 29, 1877. 

George Kretsinger was a brilliant, though not a 
profound lawyer. His best work was as an advocate 
before a jury. He served the county one term in 
the Legislature. Many years ago he removed to 
California, where he has since died. 

J. A. Simons was a good chancery lawyer. He 
removed to Missouri Junction, Iowa, and has since 
died. 

A. C. Allen was from Bradford Co., Pa. As a law- 
yer he ranked high during the second decade of the 
county's existence. He died here. 

John J. McKinnon was a native of Canada, but 
came here from Chicago. He was a man of fine 
ability, well read in literature and law. 

A. C. Babcock was a stirring fellow, a fine advo- 
cate, but while here devoted himself more to the ab- 
stract business than the law. 

R. L. Divine was from Sullivan Co., N. Y. He 
was a man of great ability, surpassed by few in the 
State as a criminal lawyer. A good sketch of him 
will be found elsewhere in this volume. 




Volney Owen was from Herkimer Co., N. Y., and 
was here a portion of the time during the second 
and third decades of the county's history. He * 
formed a partnership with Cliauncey Ellwood after 
the withdrawal of the latter from the firm of James, v 
Lowell & Ellwood. He was a well read lawyer. 
After remaining in this State a few years, he returned 
to New York, was subsequently elected County Judge 
of Herkimer County, and has since died. 

William Fordham was from Montrose, Susque- 
hannah Co., Pa. He was here in the second decade. 
Mr. Fordham was a man of more than ordinary abil- 
ity, a little erratic, but well read in law. He now 
resides in Morgan Co., Tenn. 

O. S. Webster settled at Cortland shortly after the 
completion of the railroad through that place, 
where he remained a short time and then moved to 
Sycamore. He was regarded as a promising young 
man. On the breaking out of the war he enlisted, 
served his time, and then located in Sagamon Co., 
Ill, where he now resides. He served as County / 
Superintendent of Public Schools of that county for z 
some time. 

A. C. Bryant was from Vermont. He was a \ 
bright young man, but ill health prevented his doing ^> 
much business in this county. He removed tempo- 
rarily to Minnesota, but returned and died here. 

Gilbert Winters was a lawyerof considerable ability, 
a fine special pleader. He went into the army, and at 
the close of his term of service returned to Mans- 
field, Ohio, from whence he came. 

Charles Balliette was .a young man, but one who 
was not content to remain unknown. As a lawyer 
he was painstaking, with a steadfast determination 
to succeed. He now resides in Nevada, Story Co., 
Iowa, where he has attained a fine reputation as a 
lawyer. 

H. D. Willis was a young man of much ability. 
He remained but a short time, moving to Elgin, 
where he has since obtained prominence, being 
State's Attorney for Kane County. 

F. W. Partridge was from New York. He located 
here in 1858, read law and was admitted to the Bar 
shortly before the war. He opened an office in 
Sandwich, and was building up a good practice 
when the President issued his call for the first 300,- ' 



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i lose of the war rose to the rank of Colonel and was 
brevetted Brigadier-General. Returning home, he- 
was elected to the office of Circuit Clerk, was subse- 
quently appointed Consul to Siam, and now has a 
i lerkship in one of the departments at Washington. 

J. H. Sedgwick is a native of Ohio, born in 
Hartford, Licking County. With his parents he 
moved to Little Rock, Kendall Co, 111., in 1844, 
where he remained until [856, when he removed 
to Sandwich. He read law with F. W. Part- 
ridge, attended a law school in Chicago, and was 
admitted to the Bar aliout i860. Serving his time- 
in the war, he returned to Sandwich, purchased an 
interest in the Gazette, and for a few months engaged 
in editorial work. Disposing of his interest in that 
paper, he removed to Sycamore, and for a time was a 
partner of Judge Lowell. Again returning to Sand- 
wich, lie became a partner of his brother, W. W. 
Sedgwick, which partnership continued till the fall 
of 1879, after which time he practiced alone for two 
years. He then went to Chicago, where he remained 
one year and then went to Peoria, where he yet re- 
sides, and is numbered with the best legal men of that 
city. 

L. E. 1 lay came to Sandwich with his parents in 
1S54. He subsequently read law with S. B. Stinson, 
attended the law department of Ann Arbor Univer- 



sity, and was admitted to the Bar. Remaining in 
Sandwich some eight or ten years, he attended to 
active practice in connection with other business. 
He moved West some years ago. 

Frank 1-'.. Stevens was born in Dixon, 111., in 1855, 
and is the son of Capt. John Stevens, also a lawyer, 
and who was a soldier in the late war and killed in 
battle. Frank was educated at Dixon, studying law 
with Mr. Treusdale, and was admitted to the Bar in 
in 1877. He is now a banker at Huron, Dakota. 

The Bar at present (1885), will compare favorably 
with that of any other period. 

In Sycamore there are C. A. Bishop, Geo. Brown, 
I). J. Carnes, G. H. Denton, G. W. Dunton, J. J. 
Flannery, L. S. Hodge, H. A. Jones, W. C. Kellum, 
J. H. Kenyon, Chauncey Ellwood, J. L. Pratt, C. D. 
Rogers, G. S. Robinson, J. B. Stephens, Luther 
Lowell. 

In De Kalb, E. B. Gilbert, Thos. M. Hopkins, 
W. L. Pond, Win. W. Rathbun.I. V. Randall, D. E. 
Reed. 

Sandwich is represented by E. G. Coe, C. G. 
Faxon, W. W. Sedgwick, S. B. Stinson, J. I. Mont- 
gomery. 

Kirkland is represented by Wm, B. McDowell. 

Sketches of the greater number of these men will 
be found in this work. 



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BE KALB COUNTY. 




Criminal 





1R e c o r b . 




INCE the days of Cain crime 
has existed in the world. While 
the county of De Kalb will 
rank with any other in the State 
as a law-abiding community, 
yet there have been some law- 
less characters among the greater 
number of law-abiding men and wo- 
men. In the early day of the coun- 
ty's existence it was cursed with a 
gang of horse-thieves whose presence 
was very undesirable. Possessors of 
valuable horses never felt secure in 
possession of their property. For 
some years it was necessary either to 
employ faithful watchmen or to keep 
horses under a strong lock. Horses once stolen 
were seldom recovered, the organization of the 
thieves being so perfect that stolen animals were 
quickly taken long distances. 

Following we give an account of all the murders 
committed in the county, with the final disposition 
of the murderers so far as the court records show. 

The Driscolls. — Brodie's Grove, in Ogle County, 
was a resort of the gang, and doubtless headquar- 
ters, Brodie being regarded as one of the chiefs of 
the gang. South Grove was generally considered 
another rendezvous of the gang, David and John 
Driscoll being thought to be engaged in the nefari- 
ous business. Gleason's house, in Genoa, was also 
thought to be a safe place for the thieves. Lynch- 
ing parties were formed in this and adjoining coun- 




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ties, and suspected parlies were ordered to leave the 
country within a specified time. 

Among those ordered to leave by the Lynching 
Club, were the Driscolls at South Grove. John 
Long, of Stillman's Run, was Captain of several 
combined companies of lynchers, and was proprietor j 
of a large saw-mill. The banditti sent him a threat- 
ening letter defying the society to combat them, and : 
threatening him with personal violence. Beingintim- 
idated by these threats, Mr. Long resigned, and John «; 
Campbell, of White Rock Grove, Ogle County, was 
elected Captain. The Club, headed by Campbell, 
visited the Driscolls and ordered them to leave 
within twenty days. To David Driscoll it is reported 
Campbell said : " If after that time you are found 
east of the Mississippi River, we will brand your 
cheeks with R. S., and crop your ears, so that none 
shall fail to know your character as a rogue and a 
scoundrel wherever you may be seen." 

This threat aroused the passions of the banditti 
and they determined to resist. They held a meeting 
at which this was resolved. Says Boies, in his history 
of the occurrence: " On the Sunday morning follow- 
ing this meeting, old man Driscoll was seen about 
the premises of Campbell, He walked around the 
grounds, passed up to a clump of bushes, closely 
observed the location and then went away. He 
might that night have easily gone home, but he did 
not. He stayed at a neighbor's without any apparent 
reason, and slept there. Was it because lie knew a 
foul crime was about to be committed and wanted to 
prove an alibi ? It was so supposed. That evening, 



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DE KALB COUNTY. 












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just at dusk, Captain Campbell, who had returned 
from attending church at Rockford, was passing from 
his dwelling to his stable, when he was accosted by 
two men who enquired 1 lie road to Oregon. His wife 
heard him call out " Driscoll," and immediately after 
there was the report of a gun, and as she rushed 
toward him he fell lifeless in her arms, shot through 
the heart. 'The two men immediately and delib- 
eratelv walked off in the direction of Driscoll's 
Grove. The brave son of Campbell, a lad of thir- 
teen years, seized his father's gun and rushed toward 
the retreating murderers and snapped it at them 
three times; hut the effort to avenge the murder was 
unavailing: tin- gun would not go off. The murder- 
ers disappeared in the distance, and the grief-stricken 
family was left alone with its honored dead." 

Great excitement was aroused and detachments 
were sent out to scour the country and capture the 
guiltj pair. John Driscoll, the father, was captured, 
and the house of David Driscoll burned and his 
family left shelterless upon the prairie. Afterwards 
William Driscoll and his young brother, Pierce, were 
taken into custody. William Driscoll had been the 
first to tell the story of the murder to the settlers at 
the grove. Conscious of his own innocence, he felt 
sure of acquittal. He was told by the party taking 
him into custody that they only wanted him to go 
before Mrs. Campbell, that she might see if he was 
the man who killed her husband. Toward evening 
they arrived at the residence of the late Captain of 
the lynchers, when Mrs. Campbell unhesitatingly 
stated that neither one was present at the murder. 
The party having the prisoners in charge were 
excited and determined to avenge the death of their 
leader upon some one. 

The next day the Driscolls were taken to White 
Rock Grove, in Ogle County, which had been selected 
as a place of rendezvous by the lynchers. The three 
Driscolls were carried in one wagon with ropes 
around their net ks. A form of trial was gone through 
with and Pierce Driscoll was discharged, but John 
nd William Driscoll were sentenced to death, not 
because .they were thought to be guilty of murder, but 
because they were believed to be of the gang of 
horse-thieves. Efforts were made to have the sen- 
tence changed to banishment from the country, but 
without avail. The old man was first led out, blind- 
folded, and made to kneel upon the grass. The 




lynchers then drew up in a long line, with guns in 
their hands. The fatal one, two, three was called 
and a hundred guns were discharged, and the lifeless 
body of the old man fell over. William Driscoll was 
then led out by the side of the old man and he, too, 
shared the same fate. Only a portion of the guns of 
the lynchers were loaded with balls, the remainder 
being with powder only, that no one might know who 
find the fatal shot. 

It is due to the relatives of William Driscoll to 
saj that few people ever believed him to be one of 
the gang of horse-thieves, but he was a Driscoll, and 
the community had a prejudice against the name. 

Asa Baldwin lived in Belvidere, Boone County, 
but owned a farm in the northern part of De Kalb 
County. Karh in 1862 he went to the farm to inter- 
view his tenant in regard to some matters in dispute. 
He failed to see him, but met a young man named 
Mi ( rinnis, who was working for his tenant. With 
him he had some words, which so angered Baldwin 
that he shut him. ' He was arrested, an indictment 
was found against him and he was brought before the 
court for trial. A change of venue was asked for, 
granted, and the case was removed to Boone County. 
After a trial in which he was prosecuted by A. B. 
Coon, assisted by William Brown, now a Circuit 
Judge, and defended by Gen. Hurlbut and Mr. 
Thompson, he was acquitted. 

Robert Moles. — On the night of August 29, 1864, 
Robert Moles, living in the north part of the county, 
was killed by being thrown into a well, and with 
sticks and dubs kept under the water till death 
ensued from drowning. Pat. Whalen and Ann 
Moles were indicted by the grand jury for the com- 
mission of the crime. No record was ever made as 
to the disposition of the case, but it is asserted they 
were taken before the Judge of the Circuit Court on 
a writ of habeas corpus and discharged. 

Henry C. Atwood was a young man, residing in 
the village of De Kalb. He had been married but 
a short time to a woman of whom it was said that he 
was somewhat jealous. On the 18th day of December, 
[865, he was at home engaged in cleaning a revolver, 
while his wife was engaged in her household duties. 
In some way the revolver was discharged, the ball 
penetrating the abdomen of his wife, causing her 
death. Atwood was arrested, indicted, tried, found 
guilty and sentenced to five years in the penitentiary. 




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After the expiration of two years, he was pardoned 
by the Governor. He claimed that the killing "was 

accidental. 

Sylvester P. Taylor. — Sylvester P. Taylor and 
Amos H. Chase had a dispute in regard to the 
possession of certain lands near the village of De 
Kalb. Taylor, who was in possession, loaded a horse 
pistol and ordered ("base not to come upon the 
premises. Regardless of the threats of Taylor, the 
latter attempted to enter the premises, when he was 
shot by the former. This was June 2, rS69. Taylor 
was arrested, indicted, tried, and the jury disagreed. 
Pending a new trial, he was admitted to bail. When 
the case was next called, a continuance was had on 
the ground of absence of material witnesses. A 
continuance was had from time to time on the same 
ground, until tbe patience of the court was exhausted 
and the case was stricken from the docket. 

George Shaw, a constable, in company with E. 
Stone Abbott, went into Shabbona Township, for the 
purpose of serving, for the latter, a writ upon William 
Unwin, on the 24th day of August, 1871. Unwin, 
becoming enraged, attacked Shaw with a pitch-fork, 
when the latter shot him. Shaw and Abbott were 
jointly indicted, tried and acquitted upon the ground 
of self-defense. 

Horace Grover. — There was a young man living 
near the village of Shabbona named Horace Grover. 
He was a student of the military school at Fulton, 
111., and was home on a visit in 1870. Hearing that 
William Stimpson had made remarks derogatory to 
one near and dear to him, he visited the latter in his 
blacksmith shop at Shabbona, and after talking with 
him a while shot him through the head and heart, 
and also split his skull with a blacksmith's chisel. 
After committing the deed, Grover fled, was cap- 
tured, and tried at the following term of the circuit 
court at Sycamore. Pleading guilty, and the exten- 
uating circumstances being made known, he was 
sentenced to three years in the penitentiary. He re- 
mained in prison but a few days before receiving a 
pardon from the Governor. 

John Reed, a young Irishman, was in love with 
Johanna McCormick, and sought her hand in mar- 
riage. He was refused with scorn, and determined 
that he would have revenge upon the young lady for 
the slight offered him. About the 1st of July, 187 1, 
he asked her company to attend a Fourth-of-July 



celebration at De Kalb, and was refused. On the 
3d of July, he went to a neighbor and borrowed a gun, 
on the pretense of wanting it to shoot some wolves 
that had been committing some depredations in the 
neighborhood. On the evening of that day, while 
the McCormick family were at supper, he slipped up 
to the house and discharged the gun twice through a 
window, the first charge passing into the brain of 
Johanna, killing her instantly. The second charge 
passed over the head of a younger sister' and was 
buried in the wall. A few days subsequently he was 
arrested and made a full confession, saying that he 
had contemplated the deed for one year, and only 
awaited a good opportunity to do the act. He said 
that the second discharge of the gun was for the pur- 
pose of ending his own life, and failing in this he 
returned the gun and obtained some poison from the 
'family, which he ate, but the dose was too large and 
he threw it up. He then tried to escape. An in- 
dictment was found against him, but before a trial 
could lie had he broke jail and made good his es- 
cape. No clue has ever been obtained as to his 
whereabouts. 

Mrs. Bowler. — Timothy Bowler, his wife Mary 
and their family lived a miserable life. The par- 
ents were addicted to liquor. On the night of July 
31, 1872, the old man was killed, his head being al- 
most severed from his body, which had many wounds 
upon it, inflicted with an ax. Mrs. Bowler was ar- 
rested, charged with the commission of the crime. 
On her trial it was proven that the couple had had 
anything but a pleasant time for weeks previously, 
the old man sleeping much of the time out-doors to 
escape the wrath of his wife. She was found guilty 
and sentenced to five years in the penitentiary. 

George Alexander, a colored man, living at Syca- 
more, married a white woman, of whom he was ex- 
ceedingly jealous, so much so that finally the woman 
could no longer live with him, and, leaving him, went 
to reside in De Kalb. Sometime in 1878, Alexan- 
der borrowed a shot-gun, went to De Kalb, visited 
the house where his wife was stopping, and, calling 
her out, shot her through the neck, killing her in- 
stantly, lie claimed that the discharge of the gun 
was accidental; that in some way it got caught in 
.1 hedge fence, and in pulling it away it discharged, 
the gun bursting and throwing him several feet. He 
was arrested, and at the June term, 1879, was tried, 



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convicted and sentenced todeath. The scaffold was 

erected and every preparation made for his execu- 
tion, when the Supreme Court interfered and -ranted 
him a new trial. The second trial was held in June, 
l88l, when lie was sentenced to the penitentiary for 
a term of 25 years. 

Flow/ Givens lived at Malta with his parents. 
Some time in the fall of 1879, he met a cousin on the 
streets of that city, charged him with the commis- 
sion of a certain crime, and then shot him. He was 
arrested, indicted, a change of venue was had to 
Kane County, where he was tried and acquitted. 

Walter Upstone was a native of England, and of a 
family of 12 children. He was a blacksmith by trade 
and had resided in or near the village of Fielding 
for about 15 years. He was a married man, and 
had a family of three children, one daughter being, 
married. His mother was insane at the time of his 
birth, and he had two or three brothers and one sis- 
w ho were said to be insane; also two aunts on his 
mother's side. Walter had been intemperate for some 
years, and when under the influence of liquor was ex- 
ceedingly violent. Peter Melson was a boon com- 
panion of Upstone, and the two were often together. 
About the first of February, 1882, the two went to 
Monroe, a small village west of Fielding, where they 
procured some liquor and became intoxicated. Re- 
turning to Fielding, on Sunday morning, February 5, 
the two went into Upstone's blacksmith shop, shut 
the door, ami it is supposed drained a bottle of alco- 
hol. About noon Willard Crill went to the shop, 
when Upstone offered him a drink, but the alcohol 
was so strong that ('rill refused to drink it. Upstone 
then tried to get Melson to drink; but the latter was 
too drunk to take any more. Upstone raised his 
head from the floor on which he was lying and 
placed a coat under it. Crill left the shop. The 
next thing known was between one and two o'clock. 
George Clark, a young lad, was riding by the shop, 
when Upstone came to the door, singing and wav- 
ing back and forth a small hammer which* he held in 
his hand. Seeing him, he called out, "George, look 
here." Upstone turned and struck the body two or 
three blows with a sledge hammer, then told George 
to go and tell some one that a dead man was there. 
The boy went down the street and gave the alarm., 
Several men hastened to the shop and found Up- 
stone striking the body with a scoop-shovel. Up- 



stone stopped beating the body and then commenced 
talking in a maudlin manner: " Pete, come home 
with me:" "Pete; this don't look like Pete, but 
them's his boots;" "this looks like Pete, but them 
ain't his boots." 

Melson's body was removed from the shop to a 
hotel near by, and Upstone was placed under arrest. 
He was taken to Sycamore and placed in jail. A true 
bill of indictment was found against him, and when 
the case was called a change of venue to Winnebago 
Count) wis -ranted. At the February term, 18S3, 
of the Circuit Court of Winnebago County, he was 
tried, convicted, and sentenced to the penitentiary 
for 17 years. The case was prosecuted by J. B. 
Stephens, Prosecuting Attorney of De Kalb County, 
assisted by C. A. Works, Prosecutor of Winnebago; 
Charles E. Fuller, of Belvidere, and D. J. Carnes, of 
Sycamore. Upstone wasMefended by John I,. Pratt, 
of Sycamore, William Lathrop, of Rockford, and 
A. J. Hopkins, of Aurora. The defense was based 
upon insanity, — that if the deed was committed by 
Upstone he was insane, caused probably from liquor! 
it being proved that liquor acted differently upon him 
from ordinary persons. His actions both before and 
subsequent to the deed were those of an insane man. 
The prosecution, admitting that insanity existed in 
the family, and that Upstone, under the influence of 
liquor, became frenzied, averred that Upstone was 
aware of the fact that liquor had that effect u|>on 
him, and therefore should have abstained from its 
use; that he had the power to refrain, having for one 
whole year gone without tasting it, and was then a 
law-abiding and respected citizen. 

The defense appealed to the Supreme Court, which 
sustained the decision of the lower court, and Up- 
stone received his sentence and was taken to Joliet. 
From the State's prison he has since been removed 
to the Insane Asylum at Elgin, the authorities con- 
sidering him a fit subject for the latter institution. 

Hiram P. Alien. — On the night of Feb. 15, 1880, 
Hiram P. Allen, of Sandwich, was murdered by some 
one who was attempting to burglarize his residence. 
Will Thomas and three others were arrested, charged 
with the commission of the crime. Thomas obtained 
a change of venue to Kane County, where he was 
tried and sentenced to prison for a term of years. 

James M. Brogan, Oct. 28, 1881, shot and killed 
Williarn Henry in his room at Sandwich. He claimed 



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that Henry made an attack upon him and the shoot- 
ing was in self-defense. He was arrested, an indict- 
ment was found against him, and lie was brought 
before the Circuit Court at Sycamore for trial. A 
change of venue to I)u Page County was granted, 
and he was there acquitted. Brogan himself was 
mysteriously murdered in the winter of 1883-4. 

Nicholas Kittle. — Nelson Hinkston rented a farm 
of Nicholas Kittle, near the village of Shabbona. 
While in a saloon in that village one day in August, 
1S84, the two got into a quarrel about the division 
of some oats raised upon the land, when Kittle 
slabbed Hinkston, causing his death. Liquor was 
doubtless the cause of the crime. Before his death, 
Hinkston asked that Kittle should not be prosecuted. 

Lewis Taylor was a young man in the employ of 
H. H. Mitchell, in Mayfield Township. On the 13th 
of August, 1884, the family of Mr. Mitchell, with the 
exception of his daughter Florence, went to Syca- 
more. Florence was left in charge of the house, and 
Alice Dennis, a young lady neighbor, was sent to 
keep her company. Taylor that morning was engaged 
in work near the house. From surrounding circum- 
stances, it is surmised that Florence went out to the 
barn to obtain some eggs, when she was discovered 



785 



by Taylor, who held a grudge against her for her re- 
fusal to accept his attentions, and was immediately 
fired upon with a revolver by the latter. The ball 
not taking effect the girl ran into the house, pursued 
by the villain, who stopped not until his deadly ob- 
ject was accomplished and the lifeless body of Flor- 
ence lay in the cellar. He then sat lire to her 
clothes, and also attempted to fire the house, and 
then escaped. All this occurred within the space of 
a half-hour and before Alice Dennis reached the 
house. When she arrived she went into the sitting- 
room and kitchen, calling for Florence. Not finding 
her, she went to the cellar and discovered the smoke 
and Florence's body lying cold in death. She rushed 
out and gave the alarm. Fortunately two men were 
passing the house, who rescued the body of the girl, 
and then hurried to Sycamore and spread the sad 
intelligence. No words can describe the agony of the 
parents. A large crowd soon gathered and hastened 
to the scene of the tragedy and to capture the mur- 
derer. After committing the horrible crime, Taylor 
fled to the river, and, first taking off his watch and 
tying it to a barbed-wire fence, waded into the water, 
placed the revolver to his heart, pulled the trigger 
and thus ended his miserable life. 










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ANY of the earlier elections 
were held without party 
Pfr° lines being very closely 
draw n, at least so far as 
the Democratic and Whig 
parties were concerned. 
CJp to the time of the or- 
ganization of the Republican party 
the county almost invariably went 
Democratic. Many of the Demo- 
crats, however, were of Free-soil pro- 
clivities, and when the Republican 
arty was organized embraced its 
principles. Early in 1854 the s< at- 
t tered Free-soil forces, or more prop- 
erly those opposed to the Anti-Ne- 
braska bill, and opposed to the further extension of 
slavery, began to crystallize. On the 14th day of 
September, 1854, a mass convention of those holding 
these views was held at Sycamore to appoint dele- 
gates to a Republii an convention to be held at Au- 
rora. There were three parties represented in this 
county — Democrats, Whigs and Free-Soilers. In 
choosing delegates, representatives of each of these 
old parties were elected as follows: 

Democratic : Horace W. Fay, G. A. Colton, Jo- 
seph Sixbury, James Harrington and Royal Crossett. 
Free-Soilers: Pierpont Edwards, Stephen Town- 
send, Thurston Carr, David West, James H. Bever- 
idge, E. S. Oregon . 

Whigs: Reuben Pritchard, W. J. Hunt, H. A. 
Joslyn, William Byers, Dr. E. Rose and John N. 
I01 k. 
From the organization of the party to the present 



time De Kalb County could always be relied upon 
to give a large majority for the Republican party. 
In a political view, therefore, there is nothing excit- 
ing for the historian to relate. 

Among those who have served the Nation, State or 
county during the period of its existence are the fol- 
lowing : 

GOVERNOR. 

John L. Beveridge was elected to the office of 
Lieutenant Governor on the ticket with Gov. Oglesby 
in 1872. He served in that capacity but about ten 
days, when he succeeded Oglesb) as Governor, the 
latter being ele< ted to the United States Senate. I le 
served four years with marked ability. Gov. Bev- 
eridge was for m.in\ years a citizen of this county. 
He now resides in Evanston, 111. 

STATE TREASURER. 

James H. Beveridge, brother of the above, now re- 
siding near Sandwich, was State Treasurer from Jan. 
9, 1865, to Jan. 10, 1867. 

CONSTITUTIONAL CONVENTION, 1847. 
A convention to amend the Constitution of the 

State convened .at Springfield June 7, 1847, and ad- 
journed Aug. 31, ^847. George H. Hill represented 
De Kalb County. 

CONSTITUTIONAL CONVENTION, I 862. 

In this convention I >e Kalb, together with Kane 
County, was represented by Stephen B. Stinson and 
Adoniram J. Joslyn. 

CONSTITUTIONAL CONVENTION, I 870. 

De Kalb and Boone Counties were represented in 
this convention by Westel W. Sedgwick and Jesse 
S. Hilclrup. 



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GENERAL ASSEMBLY. 

On the organization of the county, De Kalb was 
part of a district comprising the counties of La Salle, 
Kane and Iroquois. In the Tenth General Assembly 
(1836-8) the county was represented by William 
Stadden, of La Salle, in the Senate, and Henry Mad- 
den, of De Kalb. 

In the Eleventh Assembly, William Stadden still 
represented the county in the Senate, while Joseph 
W. Churchill was in the House. 

William Stadden, in the Senate, in the Twelfth As- 
sembly. The Legislative Directory omits the De 
Kalb Representative in the House. 

In the Thirteenth Assembly, Ira Minard was in 
the Senate and Henry Madden in [the House, repre- 
senting this county. 

Ira Minard, in the Senate, and William M. Jack- 
son, E. G. Jewell and James L. Loop were in the 
House, representing this county together with the 
the counties of Kane, McHenry and Boone. 

In the Fifteenth Assembly, Elijah Wilcox was in 
the Senate, and James Harrington, George W. Kret- 
singer and James T. Pierson represented the same 
counties. 

Under the constitution of 1848, an apportionment 
was made, and the counties of De Kalb, Ogle, Lee 
and Kane formed the Twenty-second Senatorial 
District, and were represented by William B. Plato, 
of Kane, in the Sixteenth General Assembly. De 
Kalb and Kane were made the Fifty-first Repre- 
sentative District, and were represented in the same 
Assembly by H. W. Fay, of De Kalb, and E. W. 
Austin, of Kane. 

In the Seventeenth General Assembly, William B. 
Plato was still in the Senate, but the Fifty-first Rep- 
resentative District was represented by Benjamin F. 
Hall, of De Kalb, and Augustus Adams, of Kane. 

In the Eighteenth General Assembly, in the Sen- 
ate was William 15. Plato, while in the House were 
William Shepherdson, of De Kalb, and John Ransted, 
of Kane. 

In 1854 another apportionment was made, with 
De Kalb, Kane, Lee and Whiteside forming the Fifth 
Senatorial District, and the counties of De Kalb and 
Kane the Forty-sixth Representative District. In 
the Nineteenth General Assembly, Augustus Adams, 
of Kane, was in the Senate, while William Patten 
and Benjamin Hackney were in the House. 




In the Twentieth General Assembly, Augustus 
Adams was still in the Senate, but the Forty-sixth 
Representative District was represented by David M. 
Kelsey, of De Kalb, and William R. Parker, of Kane. 

In the Twenty-first General Assembly, Richard F. 
Adams, of Lee, was in the Senate, and William Pat- 
ten, of De Kalb, and William B. Plato, of Kane were 
in the House. 

In the Twenty-second General Assembly. Ri< 1, ml 
F. Adams was Senator, and Edward R. Allen, of De 
Kalb, and Thomas S. 'Perry, of Kane, were in the 
House. 

A new apportionment was made in [861, and De 
Kalb, Du Page and Kane formed the Nineteenth 
Senatorial District, and De Kalb and Boone the 
Fifty-first Representative. In the Twenty-third Gen- 
eral Assembly, Edward R. Allen, of Kane, repre- 
sented the district in the Senate, and Westel W. 
Sedgwick, of De Kalb, and Luther W. Lawrence, of 
Boone, were in the House. 

In the Twenty-fourth General Assembly, Edward 
R. Allen was in the Senate and Ira V. Randall, of 
De Kalb. and Allen C. Fuller, of Boone, were in the 
House. 

In the Twenty-fifth General Assembly, William 
Patten, of De Kalb, was in the Senate, while in the 
House the district was represented by Robert Hamp- 
ton, of De Kalb, ami Stephen A. Hurlbut, of Boone. 

In the Twenty-sixth General Assembly, William 
Patten was in the Senate, and Charles W. Marsh, of 
De Kalb, and Elisha II. Talbott, of Boone, were in 
the House. 

In 1870 an apportionment was made in which De 
Kalb, Du Page and Kane became the Nineteenth 
Senatorial District, and De Kalb the Eighty-fourth 
Representative Distrtct, with two Representatives. 
In the Twenty-seventh General Assembly. Charles 
W. Marsh, of De Kalb, and James W. Eddy, of 
Kane County, represented the district in the Senate, 
and Reuben M. Pritchard, of Shabbona, and Lewis 
M. Mb Ewen, of De Kalb, in the House. 

In 1872 another apportionment was made, the 
State being divided into Senatorial Districts as pro- 
vided by the constitution of 1870, each district being 
entitled to one Senator and three Representatives. 
De Kalb, Kendall and Grundy became the Thirteenth 
District. In the Twenty-eighth General Assembly, 
Miles B. Castle, of Sandwich, De Kalb County, was 















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in the Senate, while Lyman U. Ray, Georgi \l 
Hollenbeck and Perry A. Armstrong represented the 
district in the I louse. 

In the Twenty-ninth General Assembly, Miles B. 
Castle, ol Sandwich, was still in the Senate, the dis- 
trict being represented in the House by Philip Col- 
lins, Joshua McGrath and 1>. B. Bailey. 

In the Thirtieth General Assembl) , Miles B. Castle 

was Senator, and Peter S. I.ott, William M. Byers 

and Amos D. Glover were Representatives. 

In the Thirty-first General Assembly, John R. 
Marshall represented the district in the Senate. 
William M. Byers, Robert M. Brigham and Alonzo 
B. Smith were in the House. 

In the Thirty-second General Assembly, J. R. 
Marshall "as Senator, with Henry Wood, Hiram 
Loucks and John Clark, Representatives. 

In the Thirty-third General Assembly, Lyman B. 
Ray was Senator, and Henry Wood, H. M. Board- 
man and Andrew Welch were in the House 

In the Thirty-fourth General Assembly, Lyman B. 
Raj still represented the district in the Senate, with 
H. C. Whittemore, Mr. Hanna and Andrew Welch 
in the House. 

1 \ I K BOARS OF EQUALIZATION. 

Washington L. Simmons, of Sandwich, was elected 
a member of the Board Nov. 3, 1868, and held the 
office until June 29, 1872, when he resigned. 

lames H. Furman, of Sandwich, was appointed 
June 29, 1S72, and tilled out the unexpired term of 
Mr. Simmons. 

Samuel Alden was elected in [882 and served one 
term. 

CONGRESS. 

When organized, He Kalb County formed part of 
the Third Congressional District, represented by 
William L. May, of Springfield, in the 25th Congress. 

In the 261I1 Congress it was represented by John 
T. Stuart, of Springfield, who likewise served in the 
27th Congress. 

Under the apportionment of 1843, De Kalb be- 
came part of the Fourth District, with John Went- 
worth as Representative in the 28th Congress. Mr. 
Wentworth represented the district in the 29th, 30th 
and 31SI Congresses. In the 32d Congress, Richard 
S. Molony was the Representative. 

Under the apportionment of 1852, De Kalb County 
was thrown into the Second District. John Went- 
worth represented the district in the 33d Congress; 



James II. WoodwoA in the 34th; John F. Farns- 
worth in the ,}5tli and 36th ; and Isaac N. Arnold in 
the 37th Congress. 

De Kalb was again placed in the Second District 
under the new apportionment made in 1862. John 
I I '.11 nsworth was elected and re-elected, serving in 
the 38th, 39th, 40th, 41st and 42d Congresses. 

In 1872 another apportionment was made, De 
Kalb County being then placed in the Fourth Dis- 
trict. Stephen A. Hurlliut represented it in the 43d 
and 44th Congresses. William Lathrop in the 45th, 
John C. Sherwin in the 46th, and Reuben Ell wood 
in the 47th Congress. The latter was re-elected to 
the 48th Congress, De Kalb now being a part of the 
Fifth District. 

UNITED STATES ASSESSOR. 

Alonzo Ellwood from 1862 to 1866. 

Reuben Ellwood from 1866 till the office was 
abolished. 

UNITED STATES CONSUL. 

J. M. Hood, of Sycamore, was appointed Consul 
to Siam in 1864. 

Frederick Partridge was appointed to succeed 
Hood. 

COUNTY CLERKS. 



J 



V 



[. C. Kellogg 1837-38 

I . K ll.uiilin 1839-42 

E. P. Young. 1843 

w 11 Beavc rs 1844-48 

I . B. Prescott 1849-5' 



W. H. Beavers '853-56 

A. K. Stiles 1857-64 

Daniel Dustin 1865-68 

W. It. Moore 1869-72 

CM. Conrad 1872-85 



< 






( 



CIRCUIT CLERKS AND RECORDERS. 



J. C. Kellogg ' 

1: Colton 1838-40 

I. C. Kellogg 1841-42 

E. I.. Mayo 1 1 11 

J. ('. Kellogg 1845-47 

M. M. Mack 1848-51 



J. H. Reveridgc. ....... ..1852-59 

C. M . Brown 1860-63 

I . W. Partridge 1864-67 

E. K. Dutton 1868-75 

George C. Cox 1876-79 

Daniel Dustin 1880-85 



COUNTY TREASURERS. 



G. H. Hill 1838 

I ysander Darling 1839-41 

I '1I1 11 Waterman 1842-43 

Carlos Lattin 1844-45 

John &. Waterman 1846 

William Shepardson 1847-49 

F. I . Miller 1850 

[osepb Si vim 1 v 1850-52 

J. Little 1853 



Joseph Sixbury 1854 

Roswcll l>"« 1855-58 

It. Ellwood 1 859-62 

R. A. Smith 1863-72 

Daniel Dustin 1873-74 

Robert Hampton 1875-76 

R, II. Roberts 1877-83 

C, 1.1 treenwood 1884 



SHERIFFS. 



fames C. Lander 1838-39 

M . Walrod 1840-45 

E. P. Noting 1 1 r 

M. Si. irk 1848-49 

II. Furness 1850-51 

I I Gliddcn 1852-53 

William Phelps '854-55 

Sila rappan 1856.57 

II. Safford 1858-59 



B. W ... i riifT 1860-61 

II. Safford 1862-63 

II V [oslyn 1864-65 

\l. Holcomb 1866-67 

I.. P. Safford 1868-69 

I . s. Reynolds 187C-72 

R. I. Hotcoml 1875-80 

1 I', w 1 1881.85 



CO! Vl'Y JUDGES. 



■ 



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^ Ai 



I . 1 Mayo 1849-52 

G. II. Hill 1853-60 

E. L. Mayo 1861-64 

D. II. J. tines 1865-68 



<M8Dn$4^ ^€3^ 



1 it 1 1 r Lowell 1869-76 

G. S. Robinson 1377-81 

s. I;. Stinson 1882 

Luther Lowell 1883-85 ' 





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5) 



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DE KALB COUNTY. 



789 



SUPERINTENDENTS OF SCHOOLS. 



Frederick Love 1 1 

Marshall Siark 1843-44 

lames 1 larrington 1845-46 

Shi Idon Crossetl 1847-5° 

J. K. Crossetl 1851-56 

.lames Hariington 1857-58 

N. S. < Ireenwood 1859-60 



1 '. Crossetl 

11. C. Beard. .. 
M. V. \ lion .. 

II. P. Hall 

S. I.. 1 iraham . . 
Geo. 1. Talcotl 



SURVEYORS. 



Eli Barnes 1837-39 

C. Churchill 1840-41 



1 1, .in - 1 Potter. 
D. W. Lamb.. 



1 . - 1 
.1865-68 
.1869-76 
.1877-81 
.1882-85 



1861-62 
1863-65 



li. W. Lamb - 

H. W. Kay 1853-58 

I. W. Reed 1859-60 



I 1 1 Mill. 1 . . .1S66-81 
S. T. \\ ... 1882-84 
Charl. I Fa m 1884-85 



CORONERS. 



S: el I hompson 1838-39 

M . Mil mmiik 1840-41 

ll,i. fewell 1 

1 hi »ti 1 Potter. . - 1844-45 

E. Wharry 1841 19 

Eli Barnes ... 1850-53 

1.. Whittemore 1854-61 

J. R. Crossetl 1862-63 



I . Wli ill' in 1 1 1864-69 

I. li. Russell 1870-73 

Charles Preston 1874-75 

M. R. Hubbi II 1876-77 

I M . Sivwright 

John K Kuter 1879-83 

Joseph (.Ini. 1884 








ROM the formation of the 
Government for a period of 
over three-fourths of a cen- 
tury the institution of slavery 
was a source of trouble be- 
tween the free and slave- 
holding States. Bitter feelings 
were engendered, threats often 
indulged in, and compromise 
measures passed to avert what 
many had believed would ulti- 
mately come to pass — a bloody 
civil war. Increase in power, 
with a strong following in the 
free States, had made the slave-holders bold and ar- 
rogant in their demands. The Missouri compromise, 
which limited the spread of slavery in the terri- 
tories south of an imaginary line, was repealed by 
the passage of the Kansas-Nebraska bill, and the 
friends of freedom were aroused. The Republi- 
can party rapidly gained in numbers and in 
strength, and in i860, in consequence of the divis- 
ion existing in the Democratic party, succeeded in 
electing their candidate for the Presidency — Abra- 
ham Lincoln. Threats of secession were made by 













the Southern States in the event of Lincoln's elec 



tion, and almost as soon as the result was known, 
State after State in the South, by their respective 
conventions, passed articles of secession. Lincoln 
was inaugurated on the 4II1 of March, 1861, and is- 
sued an inaugural address full of kindly feelings and 
assurance that the rights of no State would be inter- 
fered with, but it was without avail to allay the fan- 
cied fears of the Southern people. Preparations 
were made for war by the so-called Southern Confed- 
eracy, which had been organized, and on the 12th 
day of April, 1861, the first gun was fired upon Fort 
Sumter, which, on the 14th, was compelled to sur- 
render to the rebel forces. 

The first gun that was fired echoed and re-echoed 
through the North, and was as much the signal for a 
call to arms as the proclamation of President Lin- 
coln for 75,000 men which immediately followed. 
No call by any government that ever existed upon 
the face of the earth was more speedily answered. 
De Kalb County was behind no other section of the 
country. " In nine days after the fall of Fort Sum- 
ter," says a local chronicler, " a company of troops 
from Sandwich, under Captain Carr, was garrisoning 
the fortifications erected at Cairo, and on the rothof 
May, a company of which Z P. Mayo was Captain, 
and E. F. Dutton and K. A.. Smith were Lieutenants, 
leftSycamore to join the famous 13th Illinois at Dixon 















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790 



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DE KALB COUNTY. 



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Patriotic citizens raised subscriptions amounting to 

over $30,000, which the) pledged themselves to pay, 
if required, to maintain the families of volunteers 
while they were absent in the service. The Board oi 
Supervisors subsequently mel and passed liberal ap- 
propriations for this purpose. In October nine com- 
panies of De Kill) Count) men had gone into the 
service. Two were in the [3th regiment under com- 
mand of Captains Partridge and Dutton, one under 
Captain Can in the roth, one under Captain Stoll- 
brand in the id Artillery, one under Captain Butts 
in the ajd.one under Capt. Fox, two in the 8th Cav- 
alry under Captains Dustin and Whitney, and one in 
the 52d under Captain Stark." 

The year [862 will he remembered as one of gen- 
eral gloom. The Union armies had met with a num- 
ber of reverses and great apprehensions existed on 
every hand. All thought of a speedy triumph in the 
suppression of the rebellion was at an end. In its 
place was a fixed determination to maintain the su- 
premacy of the Union at whatever cost. Several 
calls had been made by the President for more troops 
to fill rrp the depleted tanks of our defeated armies, 
and most nobl) did the men of De Kalb respond to 
the call. In every portion of the county the ladies 
united to form Soldiers' Aid Societies, laboring with 
zeal and energy to supply the hoys in the field with 
such delicacies as the general Government did not 
supply. 

Call after call was made and responded to willingly, 
cheerfully, by the citizens of De Kalb, but in 1864 
the supply was exhausted. In the fall of that year 
the quota of the county had reached 2,133 men, and 
1,888 had responded, leaving a deficit of 273. In 
several towns a draft became necessary, and where it 
was possible the drafted man went into the service 
and fought as bravely as the man who volunteered. 
A number of the townships paid bounties, and drafted 
men who could not go were required to hire substi- 
tutes, at a large figure. 

But the war was drawing to a close. The brave, 
grand armies, under command of Grant, Sherman, 
Sheridan, Logan, and others whose names have been 
rendered immortal, were fast drawing in on the 
rebels, capturing their fortifications, taking prisoners 
corps and divisions of half-starved rebel soldiers, and 




soon the news Hashed over the wires that Lee had 
surrendered, that Richmond had fallen and the 
rebellion was virtually at an end. 

B 11 ie thus speaks of the close of the war: " About 
3,000 men had been furnished by the county for the 
great war now gloriously ended. The official records 
of the State credit the various towns the following 
numbers, probably reducing the number by estimat- 
ing and averaging them as if furnished for three 
years' service: Paw 1'aw, 136; Shabbona, 137; Milan, 
38; Malta, 94; South Grove, 103; Franklin, 99; 
Kingston, 98; Mayfield, 103; De Kalb, 223; Afton, 
89; Clinton, 11 1; Victor, 103; Somonauk, 3)1; 
Squaw Grove, 93; Pierce, too; Pampas, 134; Syca- 
more, 307 ; Genoa, 109. Total, 2,388." 

A glorious record truly ! 

The happy termination of the war was made 
gloomy by the sad death of the President of the 
United States, that great and good man, one whom 
the Nation was beginning to love as its Savior, 
Abraham Lincoln. Struck down by the hand of an 
assassin on the night of the 14th of April, 1865, on 
the morning of the 15th he breathed his last, all the 
nations of the earth mourning his loss. In every vil- 
lage and hamlet where the church spires pointed 
heavenward, services in commemoration of the noble 
dead were held. 

The war is over, but it is not forgotten by the loyal 
citizens of De Kalb County. In loo many homes 
exist the vacant chail ; too many mourn the loss of a 
kind father, a loving brother or an affectionate hus- 
band. In our graveyards lie the remains of many 
who lost their lives during that fearful rebellion, or 
have wasted away from disease contracted in that 
gloomy period. In the sunny South were left others 
of the brave men of De Kalb, where they will remain 
till the resurrection day. On our streets are daily to 
be seen the empty sleeve and the wooden limb of 
those who fought that the nation might be saved. 
No, the war is not forgotten, nor are the brave men 
who perished. Once each year the old soldiers and 
their friends meet at the graves of the departed, 
strewing them with beautiful flowers, shedding the 
regretful tear, but happy in the consciousness that 
they are at rest and have exemplified the thought, 
" How noble it is to die for one's country!" 









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DE KALB COUNTY. 



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It I NO the article on the phy- 
sic ,il features of tlie county, 
it will he seen that its soil is 
adapted to all the cereals 
peculiar to this climate. In 
;L the early day much wheat 
5 was raised, hut latterly this 
has given place to corn, the 
great staple product of the North- 
west. In 1884 there were but 843 
acres of wheat reported to the vari- 
ous township assessors, while ol 1 orn 
there was 112,546 acres. Among 
the other products there were in 
oats, 6 1 ,976 acres; meadow, 80,- 
05 1 ; field products, 5,1^06 ; inclosed 
lasture, 119,116; orchard, 4,503; 
wood land, 13,131. In the past few 
years much attention has been given 
by the farmers to stock-raising, which has proven 
more productive than general farming. The dairy 
interest has also been rapidly increasing, many 
farmers devoting their time to this branch of their 
business, which yields a satisfactory profit; hence the 
large amount of meadow land. For the general 
farmer, De Kail) County affords extraordinary induce- 
ments to make money easily and rapidly. 

Agricultural Societies. 

N the fall of 1852 the first exhibition of the 
De Kalb County Agricultural Society was 
held at Sycamore. Of this exhibition Boies 
says: " It was in marked contrast with the ex- 
tensive collections of the present era. One old 
white bull was chained to a stake in the center 
of .1 vacant open lot, and two or three stallions, with 





as many cows and colts, and a few beets and pump- 
kin-, completed the amusing exhibition.' The same 
authority says of the third annual exhibition: "The 
third annual fair of De Kalb County was held on the 
1 1 ill and i 2th days ol < Ictober, 1854. It was a very 
tame and spiritless affair, only 26 premiums being 
awarded in all, and these being divided among 18 
persons. Those of our citizens who participated in 
the demonstration were mortified at the poor display 
of the industry of the country, and at the close of the 
fair a meeting of the County Agricultural Society was 
held, at which it was resolved to put forth every effort 
to enlist a deeper interest in the annual fairs among 
the farmers of the county." 

On the 10th day of December, 1856, S. W. Arnold 
wrote the Secretary of the State Board of Agriculture, 
stating that no fairs had been held for two years, but 
that efforts were being made to revive the society and 
hold other exhibitions. A meeting was held at which 
the following named officers were elected for 1857 : 
John S. Brown, President; D. B. James, Correspond- 
ing Secretary; A. K. Stiles, Recording Secretary; A. 
Ellwood, Treasurer. A fair was held in the fall of 
that year, which must have been successful, tin- 
Secretary reporting that after all expenses had been 
paid there was $12 remaining in the treasury. 

In 185S a line exhibition was held, which greatly 
encouraged the society, and at its regular meeting it 
decided to locate a permanent fair ground adjoining 
the Kishwaukee River, directly north of the village 
of Sycamore, on grounds belonging to Clark Wright. 
Here about fifteen acres of land were secured and 
some improvements made. Not being able to ob- 
tain a perfect title to the land, at a meeting of the 
society in 1861, Moses Dean secured the appoint- 
ment of .1 ( omniittee to locate new grounds. At this 
time the citizens of De Kalb were very anxious to 






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DE KALB COUNTY. 



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m ol the i. in at their place and 

red such im rtts that the ci nittee decided 

to ac< epl the proposal. 

In reference to the proposition to remove i" De 
Kalb, the Secretary, in his report to the State Board 
.'i Agriculture, said : "The annual meeting ol 
was verj full) attended \ proposition came up for 

a change of location ol the s -t\ to ome grounds 

.it the village ol De Kalb, which after along and 
si>irit discussion was voted down. Secession being 
' about this time in fashion, and some members feeling 
themselves aggrieved at this action, they publicly 
seceded from the societj with a view ol forming a 
society at De Kalb." 

The members of the committee t" secure a per- 
manent location, and who had reported recommend- 
ing the society to accept the proposition of the 
citizens of De Kalb, were among the members re- 
ferred to by the Secretary. A new committee was 

appointed to select grounds .it Sycai e. They 

reported shortly alter in favor of securing some land 
of |. C. Waterman, west ol the city. Subsequently 
about fifteen acres were purchased ol Erasmus D. 
Walrod, the ground now ... , upied by the present 
iv. The land purchased from Mr. Walrod was 
fitted up and for some years after fairs were held 
therein. In 1864 no fair appeals to have been held, 
and no reports were made to the State Board until 
[866. Misfortune seemed to have overtaken the 
fan and exhibitions were finally abandoned, a new 
organization taking it-> place. 

The officers for the years [85810 [86: inclusive 
were as follows 

1858— Daniel Wait, Pres.; IV Waterman, Vice 
W. M Beavers, Rec . See. ; I >. B. hums, (',„-. 
See.; A. Ellwood, I' 

1859— Daniel Wait, Ties.; w. p. Kirk, Vice 
, William II. Beavers, Re< Sec. , W. J. Hunt. 
( !or. Sei .; A. Ellwood, I 

i860— John S. Brown, Pres. ; James S. (Hidden, 
Vice 1'res. ; T. < '. Wetmore, Rec. Se< - ; A. K. Stiles, 
Cor. Sec; William A. Nickerson, Treas. 

1861 — John S. Brown, Pres.; I. R. Crossett, Vice 
1'res. ; H. L. Boies, Rec. Sec; William H. Beavers, 
Cor.Sec; William A. Nickerson, 1 

The fair for 1S59 was ret try as 

" by far the most prosperous fair ever held in the 
;?* county." 



) 












Union Agricultural Institute. 

^WWSf.l'ON the 11th o! February, 1800, pursuant 

l^-'j ! ^ .v In M 1 S nidw ii h. 

>** for the purpose of organizing ,u\ agri< nl- 
tural sodety. William L. F. Jones was 

1 ill' d to the chail and J. A. I >i< kson was made 
Set retary. William l'attcn, S. Lay, J. A. I >ick- 
son and s. Guernsej were appointed a committee to 
draft constitution and by-laws. At a meeting held 
February 18, the committee reported, and the name 
"Sandwich Agricultural Institute " was adopted. At 
.1 meeting held on the 25th, the following named 
officers were elected: William I.. 1''. Jones, Presi- 
dent; A. Adam,, |. S. fuller. Vice Ties.; J, II. 
Can. [Veas. ; X. I-'.. Ballou, Cor. Sec. The first fair 
was held Oct. 1(1 to 1 S, i860, the receipt-, of which 
were $400.65, the expenses §290.95. This being the 
daj of "wild-cat" money, the Treasurer reported 
that a part of the balance remaining in his hand was 
uncurrent. 

In January, 1861, the Institute voted to purchase 
20 acres of land of J. A. Dickson, lying three-fourths 
of a mile west of the village. In Man h. [861, the In- 
stitute was incorporated, or, it might he said, a new 
y was formed under the name of" Union Agri- 
cultural Institute." Its incorporators were William 1 . 
F. Junes, II. F. Winchester, Hubbard Latham, A. 
H. Palmer, A. R. Patten and X. E. Ballou. Its 
offii ers for that year were William L. F. Jones. Pres. ; 
J. II. Furman, Vice 1'res.; X. E. Ballou, Sec; Jon- 
athan Able, Cor. Sec.; G. W. Culver, Treas. From 
1862 to 1883 the following named have held the 
offii es mentioned in this society: 

Presidents: William L. F. Jones, 1862-7; Will- 
iam Patten, 1S68: C. A. Reed, 1869; Willi, mi I. P. 
Jones, 1870-3; Hubbard Latham, 1874-6; David 
Harmon, 1877; F. Baldwin, 1877-82; T. P. Adams, 
.883. 

Vice Presidents: J. H. Furman, 1S62; S. B. Stin- 
son, (863-6; F. Baldwin. 1.S67: C. A. Reed, 1868; 
II. W. Sweetland, 1869; s D. Golman, 1S70; David 
E. Harmon, 187 1-6; W. II. Sweetland, 1877; 
William Patten and J. P. Adams. 1N77; J. P. 
Adams, [878-82; F. Baldwin, 1883. 
Secretaries V E. Ballon, 1862; S. B. Stinson, 












C: 






63-6; Joseph A. Dickson, 1S67; N. E. Ballou 

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■6V4«0llf^ 

DE KALB COUNTY. 




793 



186S-76; Amos Shepard, 1877; J. M. Hummel, 
1877-81 ; II C. Graves, 1882- 3. 

Treasurers: G. W. Culver, 1S62-76; M. B. 
Castle, 1877-83. 

From the Secretary's record it is judged that no 
fairs were held in 1861 and 1862, though in the 
meantime ground had been bought for the purpose, 
H. F. Winchester fencing the same for its use. In 
1863 a fair was held, the receipts being $549- Fairs 
were held without intermission from 1863 to 1874. 
In February, 1877, a re -organization was effected, die- 
stock of the institute being divided into 20 shares. 
Ten men took all the stock, paying therefor $2,000. 
A fair was held in 1877 under the auspices of the 
new association, at which their receipts were $2,154. 
In 1.X78 and until 1882 successful fairs were annually 
held, the assoi iation paying its premiums in full and 
having a good surplus each year. In March, 1883, 
the grounds were sold to Dieterich & Ebinger, since 
which time no fairs have been held. 



-~ 3- 



-S~- 



De Kalb County Agricultural and Mechanical 
Society. 

\R('H, 1 861, a meeting was held at De 
Kalb for the purpose of firming an 

f organization to advance the interests of 

\ agriculture and mechanics. A joint stock 
''/' company was formed with capital stock of 
$2,500, and a motion was made to pun base the 
grounds selected by the committee appointed by the 
old society. The foregoing name was adopted by 
whic h the society was to be known. The following 
named were selected as officers for [86] : J. F. Glid- 
den, Pres. ; N. Saum, Vice 1'res. ; J. YV. Smull, Sec; 
Harvey Thompson, Treas. The finest exhibition 
was held in September following, and was reported 
as being very successful. The grounds purchased 
from Mr. Glidden were fitted up in a satisfactory 
manner and for some years very successful exhibi- 
tions were held. This society generally secured the 
aid voted by the Male, amounting to $100 annually. 
Three fairs in the county were too much, and the De 
Kalb fair some time since suspended. 




De Kalb County Agricultural Association. 

?N the 12th day oi Man h, [870, the De Kalb 

County Agricultural Assoc iation was formed 
at Sycamore. One hundred and thirty two 










-^-^; 



lersons subscribed fo] from one to five shares 
each of the stock of the association. The 
capital slock was placed at $2,500. The fol- 
owing named were elected as officers for the year 
1S70: Henry Wood, President: s. C. Hale, Vice- 
President; T. K. Waite, Rec. Sec.: Samuel Alden, 

Cor. Sec.; Roswell Dow, Treasurer ; Alonzo Ellw I, 

A. H. Pond, Nicholas Saum, John M. Schoonmaker, 
James M. Byers, Directors. 

The first annual fair of the association was held 
at the old fair grounds, which had been purchased 
and several hundred dollars in improvements made 
thereto, commencing on the 6th day of October, 1870, 
and continuing four days. The fair was considered 
a success, the award of premiums being made from 
the judges' stand at 2 p. m. on the 9th day of ( >c to 
ber. 

Annual fairs have since been held, which have 
grown in interest year by year, the increase in re- 
ceipts being about $100 each year over the previous 
one. The fair grounds have been paid for, many im- 
provements made and premiums paid in full each 
year. The society is now, in January, [885, out of 
debt, with money in the treasury. Much of the suc- 
c ess is due to the earnest work of the officers. 

The following is a list of offic ers from 1871 to 
1S85, inclusive : 

187 1 — Henry Wood, President; Stephen 
send, Vice-President; T. K. Waite, Secretary 
well Dow, Treasurer. 

1872 — Samuel Alden, President; A. II. 
Vice-President; H. C. Whittemore, Secretary 
.ml V Smith, Treasurer. 

1873— S. C. Hale, President; \. II. Pond, Vice- 
President ; H.C. Whittemore, Secretary; E. P. Saf- 
ford, Treasurer. 

1S74 — S. C. Hale, President; R. A. Smith, Vice 
President; Edwin Waite, Secretaiy; E, P Safford, 
Treasurer. 

1875 — R.A.Smith, President; I.. D. Evans, Via 
President; Edwin Waite, Secretary; William Town- 
send, Treasurer. 





1 own- 

; Res- 
Pond. 
Rich- 



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794 



DE KALE COUNTY. 



1876 — Damon Decker, President; Kli.is C. West, 
President; Edwin Waite, Secretary; Hiram 
I [olcomb, Treasurer. 

1877 -Elias C. West, President; John G. Smith, 
Vice-President; Edwin Waite, Secretary; Hiram 
I [olcomb, Treasurer. 

1 878 -No re< ord. 

1 s 7 <> — Hir.mi Holcomb, President; K. P. Safford, 
Vice-President; Edwin Waite, Secretary; B. F. 
Wyman, Treasurer. 

18S0 — Hiram Holcomb, President: A. P. Stone, 




Vice-President; B. F. Wyman, Secretary; Vmos W. 
Townsi ml, rreasurer. 

1881— Hiram llohoinb, President; E. 1'. Safford, 
Vice-President; 11. !•'. Wyman, Secretary; A. W. 
Townsend, Treasurer, 

[882 — All the offi< ers re ele< ted 

r883 -Hiram Holcorab, President; C. I 
Vice-President; 1!. F. Wyman, Secretary; 
Tow 11 send, Treasurer. 

1 S.S.| — All the officers re-elected. 

1885 — All the of tii ers re-elected. 






[wood, 
A. W. 



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TLbc iDclkalb Count? press. 







-: 



'3 : 1 STLY lias the printing press been 
jfc*,, said tu lie the Archimedean 
^: lever that moves the world. By 
it the thoughts of the wise men 
of ever\ age are reproduced over 
and over again, circulated broad- 
cast, and find their way into al- 
most everv home, exerting an in- 
llueni e as lasting as time. While 
the great dailies of our metropoli- 
tan cities supply the general 
news of the world almost as soon 
as the events occur, the local 
press of each town and county is 
expected to chronicle items of 
interest transpiring in the community in which it is 
established. While the great dailies are of special in- 
terest to those who desire to lie posted in the affairs 
of the whole world, the home paper is indispensable 
to those who feel a more than ordinal) interest in 
the local happenings of the day, and in events of 
which they are cognizant aid an active participant. 

/> *&^ ^X:» 



The Republican-Sentinel. 



'■"' Sw 




EPUBLICAN-SENTINEL, edited and pub- 
lished by H. A. Hough, at Sycamore, was 

f' the first paper printed in He Kalli County. 
The first issue made its appearance Ma\ 31 
iXv|. The Sentinel gave a vigorous and en- 
thusiastic support to the prohibitory liquor law 
presented to the people of the State for its adoption. 
In 1858, the Republican-Sentinel was purchased by 

DIK^A^ ^^ -0tBi 



G: 



3E 



•■r ■ 



In comparison with its circulation, the home paper 
exerts even a greater influence than the so-called 
greal papers <il the metropolitan cities. At the pres- 
ent tune 1 >e Kalb County is well supplied with home 
papers. In the list are the following : True Republi- 
can and City Weekly, Sycamore; Chronicle and Re- 
view, De Kalb; Index, Genoa; Mail, Malta; Re- 
view, Hinckley; Gazelle, Free /'/ess and Argus, 
Sandwich; Reveille, Somonauk; Express, Shabbona, 



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DE KALE COUNTY. 



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the friends of Senator Douglas, its name changed to 
the Sycamore Sentinel, and it became, under the edi- 
torial management of E. L. and /.. B. Mayo and 
Jacob A. Simons, an earnest supporter of Senator 
Douglas for re-election. This was the year in which 
the great debate was held between Douglas and 
Lincoln, which, as Lincoln subsequently remarked, 
elected Douglas to the Senate and Lincoln to the 
Presidency. The paper was continued until May 29, 
[861, when it was consolidated with the True Re- 
publican. 



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The True Republican. 

it N the|fall of 1857 the True Republican was 
J I started by C. W. Wake, editor and proprie- 
S/lv*'^ t° r - I' was a seven-column folio, and pre- 
Wj(j~" sented a very neat and attractive appearance. 
On the 30th day of March, 1858, the material 
and good will of the office was purchased by 
James H. Beveridge, D. B. James and C. M. Brown, 
and the paper was continued under the firm name 
of J. H. Beveridge & Co., proprietors ; O. P. Bassett, 
publisher ; C. W. VVaite was retained as editor. On 
the 5th day of April, 1859, O. P. Bassett purchased 
the material of the office and became publisher and 
proprietor, retaining Mr. Waite as editor. On the 
29th day of May, 186c, Mr. Bassett bought out the 
Sycamore Sentinel, consolidating the papers under 
the name of the Republican and Sentinel. Mr. 
Bassett remained as sole publisher until May 14, 
1862, when he disposed of one-half of the office to 
H. L. Boies, and the paper was continued under the 
firm name of Bassett & Boies, with Mr. P.oies in the 
editorial chair. The paper had some time previous 
been changed to an eight-column folio About the 
( lose of the war John Norris purchased Mr. Bassett's 
interest, and, under the firm name of John Norris & 
Co., the paper was published, Mr. Boies still attend- 
ing to the duties of editor. The name was now 
changed to Sycamore True Republican. In Janu- 
ary, 1S6S, Mr. Boies became sole proprietor. On 
the 15th day of December, 1869, the paper was 
changed to a semi-weekly, seven-column folio, con- 
tinuing as such to the present time. In September, 
1874, George P. Taylor purchased a half interest 



and the firm became Boies & Taylor. This arrange- 
ment continued until 1 <S 7 5 , when Taylor sold his 
interest to George O. Armstrong, and the firm then 
became Boies & Armstrong. On the 1 3 1 1 1 of March, 
1878, David L. Peck purchased Armstrong's interest, 
the firm name being changed to Boies & l'eck. On 
the 8th day of September, 18S0, D. W. Hartman 
purchased the interest of Mr. Peck, and the firm 
was then known as Boies & Hartman. In |uly, 
1884, Mr. I lartman retired and the paper now is pub- 
lished by H. L. Boies & Co. The True Republican 
is now in its 28th year. It has had its ups and 
downs, but has held steadfastly on its way, always 
being a consistent advocate of the principles implied 
in its name. Mr. Boies has been connected with it 
almost a quarter of a century, devoting the best part 
of his life to its success and in the advocai y of true 
Republican doctrine. 




— s**'. — ♦♦ 



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The People's Press. 

HE 10th day of September, 1857, the 
People's Press made its first appcaram e. 
It was the first paper published in Sand- 
wich, and was a neat six-column folio, 
"devoted to literature, science, agriculture, 
local and general news," and independent on 
all subjects. W. L. Dempster was editor and pub- 
lisher. He was a practical newspaper man and 
made an interesting paper. Notwithstanding the 
business men of the place patronized it liberally, at 
the expiration of about six months it ceased to exist. 
Its editor and publisher, having got deeply in debt, 
left the country, without bidding his friends and 
patrons an affectionate good-bye. 



-^ 




The Prairie Home and Advertiser. 

HE second paper established in Sandwich 
had the foregoing title. Its publication 
was commenced Oct. 13, 1859, by Matti- 

son v\: Higbee. The papn was a four-column 
lolio, with a border around each page. It-- 
existence was brief. 







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Tho Sandwich News 

K AS the third paper started in Sandwich. 
|' James M. Higbee was editor and pub- 
lisher. It was issued bi-monthly, and 
w.is .1 fi mi folio, with border. The 

was continued about five months, 
at which tunc it shared the fate of many m 
paper enterprises. It is a mosl difficult undertaking 
to establish a newspapei upon a paying and profit- 
able basis. 

■ I >S ofr $4a»fr-fr. 

The Sandwich Gazette 



AMES HIGBEE, in May. [865, began the 
publication of a five-column folio sheet 
under the above name, which he issued 
weekly. A short time afterwards he associated 
with him in its publication James II. Sedg- 
wick, and, under the firm name of Higbee & 
trick, the paper was continued, being enlarged 
to a seven-column folio. On the 14th uf April, 
1866, James H. Furman purchased the interest of 
Mi Sedgwick, and subsequently the firm of Ilighee 
& Furman enlarged the paper to an eight-column 
folio. On the 3d day of October, 1868, Mr. Fur- 
man became sole proprietor, and continued as such 
until the 29th d i\ "I May. [874, when he sold the 
office and good will of the paper to G. II. Robertson. 
Mr. Robertson continued its publication weekU as 
■ in eight-column folio but a short time, when he 
changed its form to a six-column quarto. As such 
it was 1 ontinued until 1X77, when it was changed to 
a seven-column folio, and its publication continued 
semi-weekly. For six yens Mr. Robertson con- 
tinued to publish a semi-weekly paper, and then he 
returned to the weekly issue, and resumed the old 
form of an eight-column folio, its present size. The 
Ga has had .1 prosperous career of 20 years, and 

in that time has always held aloft the Republican 
banner, advoi ating the principles of that party with 
signal ability. As a local paper, it has endeavored 

to advocate in a consistent mi er everything that 

has tended to build up the city in which it has been 






printed. Mi. Robertson, its editor, is a well edu< 
. with large experience in public life, and wields 

a read) p. 



De Kalb County Farmer. 
■ 

RING September, 1871, the first number 

alii ot the Li Kalb County Farmer made its 
1 ppearance, with V, Hixas editor and pro- 
prietor. It was a four-column quarto, the 
subscription price being ,si per year. Foi 
Miine time previous Mr. Ilix had been con- 
tributing a scries of articles to the True Republican, 
descriptive ol farming and stock-raising in De Kalb 
County, with practical hintsderived from experience. 

The .11 in les meeting with favor by the farming 1 

munity.it was thought advisable to establish .1 paper 

in which subjects oi rest to farmers could be 

treated more in detail than in the columns of a lo- 
cal paper. The experiment was not a success finan- 
cially, and the paper was discontinued at the end of 
one year. 











The City Weekly. 

MONG the leading papers of the count) is 
the Sycamore City Weekly. It may be said 
:; > to be the outgrowth of the De Kalb 
County Farmer, the. experience in the latter 
giving Mi lli\ .11, isle lor the profession. The 
first number of the Weekly mad. its appear- 
ance in September. 1872. It was .1 six-Colunin 

ipi.nl". independent in politics, devoted mainly to 
local news .111,1 miscellany. Mr. Ilix continued 
as sole proprietor for si\ years, when he admitted 
into partnership F. 0. Van ('.alder, .1 practical prin- 
tei and hi excellent workman. In [876 the 
Weekly became the supporter of Republican princi- 
ples, for winch it has continued to battle to the 
present time. In 1 S7 - the form of the paper was 
changed to an eight column folio, which it main- 
tained until August. 1879, when il was made a nine- 
column folio. In March, [882, it resinned its origi- 
nal form of a six-column quarto. The City Weekly 



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DE KALB COUNTY. 



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is a model local paper, keeping abreast with the 
times. Few items of any importance escape the 
watchful eyes of its editors, tts circulation is large 
and it is a No. i advertising medium. 



Sandwich Free Press. 

. 1'I.Y [6, [873, was the date the first issue 
^alt" of this paper bore. Its motto was, "Home 
• •' first,— the world afterward." II. F. Blood- 
good, a young printer, who had just entered 
upon his majority, and who had for several 
\ years been an employee on the Gazette, con- 
ceived the idea there was room for one more paper, 
and proposed to fill the vacancy. In his salutatory 
he said that with " malice toward none and charity 
for all," he. would endeavor to give the people a paper 
devoted specially to home interests; that he be- 
lieved in speaking a good wend for his town, when it 
could he done, and he would doit. He said further: 
"'Sandwich will not be able to support the second 
paper.'" some say ; but we believe she will, and shall 
test her thoroughly before we give it up. If we do 
not succeed, we can, with a little practice, hoe corn, 
quench potato bugs, draw water from Fox River (when 
the season is dry) for the neighbors to wash with, 
and in the fall go to plowing for John Keene, of Al- 
ton, who assures us we can have a job. We print 
advertisements, local notices, etc., and our charges 
are not very high. We have worked at the trade for 
the past five years, but never acquired the knack of 
placing every person's advertisement at the head of 
the first column, nor do we expect to. We will give 
them all a fair show, however. Our 'better half,' 
like Josiah Allen, despairingly says, ' Who'll read the 
paper after it is printed, Bloodgood?' We replied 
that we knew of three already who had promised to 
do so, and if the people would [follow suit we would 
soon have a list." 

It was soon found out that Sandwich would sup- 
port a second paper, so Mr. Bloodgood was not com- 
pelled to "quench potato bugs" to support his 
family. The paper, under his administration, soon 
became quite popular, audits popularity continued 
until his death. On the 5th day of October, 18S1, 
Mr. Bloodgood was caught in a revolving shaft and 




(rushed in a horrible manner. lie lingered along 
until April 4, 1882, when he died from the effects of 
the injuries received. From a sermon by Rev. (\. 
W. Crofts is gleaned the following: 

"Henry Francis Bloodgood was born in Rochester, 
N. Y., Feb. 6, 1852. He came to Sandwich when 1 6 
years of age and entered the office of the Gazette, 
where he worked five years, lie commenced the 
publication of the Free Press in July, 1S72. Small 
was its beginning, like the grain of mustard seed, but 
during the years as they passed it continued to grow 
111 popular favor, until it ranked in point of circulation 
and editorial ability with the very best local papers 
in the State. This fact was acknowledged by all the 
editorial brotherhood throughout the Slate. The 
Free Press had not a single exchange that did not 
again and again speak in the highest terms of its 
rank, of the marked ability and taste with which it 
was conducted, and of the genial and generous char- 
acter of the man who stood at its helm. A still 
higher acknowledgment was the fact of other jour- 
nals copying many of his sparkling and piquant 
savings. Few men possessed the lac idly of pulling 
things in a more condensed, telling and charming 
way. Some of his efforts in prose and verse would 
have secured favorable comment in more pretentious 
publications. He was original, witty and versatile." 

The Free Press was continued as a six-column 
folio for about two years, then changed to a six-col- 
umn quarto and subsequently to a nine-column folio 
Oh the death of Mr. Bloodgood the office was pur- 
chased by C. B. Taylor, who changed the form to a 
live-column quarto, running it as such for a few 
months, then changed it to a six-column quarto. 
Mr. Taylor was a man of line ability, coining here 
from Urbana, 111., where he had been engaged in 
newspaper work as a partner in the Herald. On re- 
tiring from the Free Press, he went to Danville, and 
for a time was on the News. He is now a Metho- 
dist minister, and is located at Lerna, < !oles 1 !o., 111. 
Barnes & Douglas purchased the office and good- 
will of the paper and issued their first number Oct. 
17, iSX^. They are still the publishers, tnd print 
one of the best local papers in Northern Illinois. 
They are both practical printers, and, like the first 
editor of the- paper, they believe in doing .ill they 
can to build up their town, while at the same time 
trying to observe well the motto at the head of their 
paper to " FearGod, tell the truth, andimake money." 

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DE KALB COUNTY. 






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Somonauk Reveille. 

OMONAUK REVEILLE first made its 
appearance Dec. 18,1875. Itwasaseven- 
■$? column folio, independent in politics, with 
'. .\s C A. West as editor and proprietor. After 
/ \ the expiration of the fust year the paper was 
* v changed to a five-column quarto, its present 
si/e. Mr. West continued the publication of 
the paper for three years, when he sold to S. I). New- 
ton, who since continued in its charge. The Re- 
veille under the administration of Mr. Newton has 
been .1 success in ever) particular. Having but a 
limited field for circulation, it has made the best use 
of its opportunities and has worked the field thor- 
oughly, and but few families in the vicinity of Somo- 
nauk are without the Reveille. The merchants of 
the place have been very liberal in advertising, show- 
ing a proper appreciation of the loeal press. Mr. 
Newton advocates the principles of none of the politi- 
1 al parties now in existence, while at the same time 
he is free to support such men and measures as he 
may think best. A good local paper is what he pro- 
|X)ses and does furnish his patrons. 

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Shabbona Express. 

URING the month of May, 1876, the Shab- 
bona Express was commenced by Blood- 
good & Hunt, of the Sandwich Free J'/tss. 
Mi. Hunt was the resident or local editor at 
i\ Shabbona, the paper being printed at Sandwich. 
It was a six-column folio. At the expiration of 
six months Mr. Hunt sold out to W. H. Ray, of 
Shabbona, the publi. ition of the paper being con- 
tinued byBloodgood& Ray. This arrangement con- 
tinued for two years, when Mr. Ray became sole pro- 
prietor. For some months he had the paper printed 
at Paw Paw, and then at Hinckley for two years, 
when he purchased a press and has since printed it 
at home. In May, 18S0, the paper was enlarged to 
a seven-column folio, and six months laterto an eight- 
column folio. It was thus continued till the expira- 
tion of the current year, when it was 1 hanged to a 
five-column quarto, its present form. In June, 1882, 





a Fail Haven power press was introduced, on which 
it is now worked. The paper is Republican in poli- 
ti< s, and, as a local newspaper, has done mm h to- 
wards building up the town and influencing public 
opinion. A biographical sketch of its editor is found 
elsewhere in this volume. 

— ~* yK^r <~- 

The Malta Mail. 

l|j C. NEEDHAM, as editor and proprietor, 

sail, issued the first number of the Malta Mail 
iCijiy '" February, 1877. It was a live-column 
jrjiv folio. Mr. Needham continued its publica- 
tion until November of the same year, when he 
sold to G. W. Morris, who for one year and a 
half continued as sole proprietor, when he took in 
one of his sons as a partner. Subsequently another 
son was admitted as a partner, the firm then being 
G. W. Morris & Sons. In 1881 one of the sons re- 
tired, leaving the father and one son as publishers, 
under the firm name of G. W. Morris & Son. The 
paper has changed its size a number of times, being 
enlarged each time. In 1881 it was changed to a 
seven-column quarto, which size it yet remains. In 
politics, the Mail is Republican, though liberal in its 
views. It is a neat and well-printed sheet, and ed- 
ited with considerable ability. 



The Hinckley Review. 

'AY, 1878, M. N. Tomblin commenced the 
publication of the Review, the first paper 
'jn published at Hinckley. It was a live- 
column quarto, six pages, patent. He oc< u- 
pied small rooms over the present barbershop. 
In about six months his brother, L. E. Tomb- 
lin, became a partner and changed their paper 
to a six-column folio, half [latent. With a Washing- 
ton hand press, a limited outfit of type, small quar- 
ters, and a steadfast aim for success, these two hard- 
working and enterprising young men struggled on for 
two years. On May 1, 1880, they associated with 
them Herbert W. Fay. and commenced operating un- 
der the firm name of Tomblin Bros. & Fay. The old 











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press was exchanged to a rotary Nonpareil, a large 
amount of new type was added and the office was 
moved down on the ground floor of the same build- 
ing, on an equal footing with other business places of 
Hinckley. The paper was doubled in size, and the 
subscription price increased to $[.25 per year. In 
June, 1S82, Herbert W. Fay bought out the interesls 
of his partners. On Nov. 4, 1882, he purchased the 
next building east of the one in which the paper was 
started. 

On March 1, 1883, the office was moved into the 
new and larger quarters. During all this; time the 
proprietors have published a branch paper for Water- 
man, 111., called the Leader. During the last two 
years the Review has adopted the plan of rejecting 
nearly all foreign advertising, especially patent-med- 
icine contracts. The plan has gre.tly increased its 
subscription and materially added to its home adver- 
tising patronage. At present no paper in the county 
has a better advertising patronage, and its circulation 
is not surpassed by many. 



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The Argus. 

November 9 , is 7 s, m. b. Castie&Son 

commenced the publication of the Argus, 
^ a seven-column folio. The salutatory was 
to the point. Among other things, the editor 
said: " The Argus starts with a clean record 
in all particulars, especially in the subscriptions, 
having but five ; but, like the mustard seed the 
woman put in a lump of dough, these will leaven the 
whole lump (we quote from memory), forming a 
nucleus for the 1,500 we are going to have. We will 
make but few promises, but will endeavor to do bet- 
ter in performance. There is one thing, however, we 
are quite sure of, and that is, that the Argus has 
come to stay, as we heard a young lady say the other 
day ' you bet,' which we suppose to be the elegant 
method of strong assertion. We have always done 
our ' level best ' to please everybody, and we have 
been remarkably successful therein. We have no 
doubt we shall succeed equally well in this enter- 
prise. But if by any chance we should not, it would 
grieve us sadly; and we at this early date, and in ad- 
vance, beg to offer apologies and be forgiven. . . . 
They do not expect to make a better paper than all 



799 - 



others, and do not expect to have it free from faults 
or above criticism, but they do expect to have a wide- 
awake paper. . . . The proprietors of the Argus 
are both young. J. B. Castle is young in years, and 
M. B. Castle is young in heart ; so they may be ex- 
pected to say and do some foolish things ; but they 
are ready to promise faithfully not to repeat them, 
when once they see the error, and that should be a 
merit in this world of obstinate wrong." 

On commencing its publication, the publishers 
used one-half foreign print, but on the 2 2d of March, 
1879, began the printing of the entire sheet at home. 
The second volume of the paper was enlarged to an 
eight-column folio, which size is still maintained, at 
the same time it being all home print. During the 
first year, a series of personal sketches of old settlers 
was published, which were of much interest to its 
readers. The paper has been very successful, having 
a large circulation, and fine advertising patronge. 



De Kalb County Chronicle. 

ARCH 8, 1879, the first issue of the De 
Kalb County Chronicle made appearance. 
For some time the Democracy of the 





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'W\ county were without an organ, and it was 
thought a favorable opportunity presented itself 
for starting and sustaining a paper that would 
advocate the principles of Jefferson and Jackson. 
The first number had at the head of its columns, D. 
W. Tyrrell & Co., publishers, and Clinton Rosette, 
editor. In his salutatory, the editor said : "It (the 
Chronicle) will advocate free trade, a uniform cur- 
rency, State rights ami personal liberty, as being not 
only the ancient Democratic faith and sound consti- 
tutional doctrine, but as best calculated to preserve 
the liberties of individuals, to conduce to the pros- 
perity of the people, and to the Union and the Con- 
stitution." When first established the Chronicle was 
a five-column quarto. In July, following, J. F. Olid- 
den became sole proprietor and the paper was en- 
larged to a six-column quarto. Mr. Rosette was 
continued as editor and remains as such to the 
present time. Under his able management it has 
taken rank as one of the leading Democratic organs 
of Northern Illinois, and is .1 credit to its proprietors 
and to the city and county in which it is published. 



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DE KALB COUNTY. 



Mr. Rosette is now one of the proprietors, the firm 
name being J, F. Glidden & Co. The paper is all 
printed at home. The office of the Chronicle is one 

of the largest in the State outside of Chicago, having 
four large cylinder power presses and several job 
presses. A large amount of job printing is annually 
done, the greater part of which is for the manu- 
facturing firms of De Kalb. 



The De Kalb Review. 

EBRUARY 1, 1883, the first issue of the 
De Kalb Review appeared. Its publica- 
tion was begun by H. L. Boies & Co., of 
. /.- 1 Suamorc, with S. L Graham as editor. After 
being issued about three months, the good will 
of the paper and subscription list was pur- 
chased by Tyrrell & Tomblin. The latter was then 
publishing a newspaper at Genoa, which he then 
suspended and removed the material of the office 
to De Kalb. The Review is an eight-column folio 
and presents a neat and creditable appearance. 
While its motto from the beginning has been "Inde- 
pendent in all things," it is yet an advocate of the 
principles and policy of the Republican party. D. 




W. Tyrrell, the editor of the paper, is a practical 
newspaper man, and wields a trenchant pen. The 
Review is constantly increasing in circulation. 



1 



^ 







Genoa Index. 

PAPER, under the above caption, was 
started in 1884, at Genoa, the first issue 
" * B bearing date Oct. 23, with D. W. Hartman 
& Co. as publishers. The Genoa Index is a 
neatly printed newspaper, bearing evidence 
that it is controlled by one who understands 
his business. In size it is a five-column quarto, well 
filled with original and miscellaneous matter. The 
business men of Genoa seem to appreciate the paper, 
as its advertising patronage is first-class. In the 
few months in which the paper has been published 
it has worked up a good circulation and bids fair to 
be long-lived 

Among the papers that have had a brief existence 
in the county are, Western World and De Kalb Re- 
view, published in De Kalb in 1858, by Mr. An- 
drews ; the Genoa Sif tings, at Genoa, by Lee 
Tomblin, in 1882 ; the Daily Free Press, Sycamore; 
the Daily News, Sycamore; Daily Herald, Sandwich. 







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NLY a few, if any, counties 

in the State can at all be 
compared with De Kalb in 
the number of useful inven- 
tions. Among the number 
worthy of special mention in 
this volume are the Marsh Harvesters, 
Whitney Self-Binder, Glidden Barbed 
Wire, "S" Barbed Wire, the Ellwood 
Cultivators, the Powers, Corn-Shellers 
and Cultivators of the Sandwich Man- 
ufacturing Company. Among the in- 
ventions made by citizens of De Kalb 
County, that of barbed wire for fenc- 
ing has probably given the county its 
greatest reputation. While wire for fencing pur- 
poses was used as early as 182 1, when the first 
patent was granted, it was not until 1874 that any- 
thing practical was invented. As early as 1873, J. 
F. Glidden began to experiment with barbed wire. 
Having upon his farm a large quantity of smooth 
wire fence, the thought occurred to him that he could 
place barbs upon the wire in a more satisfactory 
manner than had yet been done. With very simple 
^ instruments he twisted the barb around the wire and 
made the first practical test upon his own farm. En- 
listing the interest of I. L. Ellwood, the two formed 
a partnership and made application for a patent, 
which was granted in May, 1874, the essential fea- 
tures being that of "coiling a short piece of wire 
V^. between its ends around the fence wire," a device 



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which has never been deviated from in the slightest 
particular in the construction of the now world- 
famous Glidden Steel Barb Fence Wire. 

At the time Mr. Glidden was making his pra< tic al 
tests, Jacob Haish, of De Kalb, was also experiment- 
ing in the same line. The first patent secured by 
him was Jan. 20, 1874. The specification read as 
follows: "Two strands of wire twisted together, 
said wires cut into lengths of about one-sixth of a 
panel, their ends lapping so far as to permit hooking 
by turning each end back and then projecting them 
laterally upward and downward to serve as barbs." 
Other patents followed and improvements were made 
until the efforts of the inventor were crowned by the 
invention and introduction of the justly celebrated 
"S" Barb Wire. 

Reuben Ellwood has led a busy, active life. Hi-* 
mind seems never at rest. As an idventor he has 
presented to the world many useful articles, some of 
which are here enumerated : 

1. The Ellwood Riding Cultivator was first pat- 
ented July 1, 1873. Machines of this kind are made, 
either four or six blades, from which, together with 
the attachments, four complete cultivators are made. 
— four, five, six or nine blade cultivators. This Style 
has more good points with less complication than 
any other cultivator made. 

2. The Ellwood Walking Cultivator is the out- 
growth of a demand for a first-class implement of 
that kind. It was patented by Mr. Ellwood Aug. 

21, 1883. 

3. The Ellwood 400-Pound Sulk\ Plow was pat- 



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ented Aug. 22, 1879. Its weight is much less than 
any other, while the strongest. 

4. The Ell wood Self-Discharging Sulky Rake was 
patented April 22, [879. It is simple, strong and 
durable. 

5. Ellwood's Barrel Cart is one of the most < on- 
venient things about a farm. It was invented by a 
prac deal farmer to lighten the labor of carrying slops 
and milk from the house and dairy. It was patented 
April 3, 1877. 

6. Ellwood's Barn Door Manger is simple and sub- 
stantial in construction. The patent was issued July 
4. 1876. 

7. The Little Giant Wire Stretcher, for stretching 
barb-wire fences, was patented in 1SS2. Two hun- 
dred thousand made and sold. 

Among other inventions of Mr. Ell wood are the 
Hinge Harrow, One-Horse Power, Revolving Box 
Churn, Iron Fence Picket and Rolling Coulters, all 
practical inventions and in use throughout the coun- 
try. 

C. W. & W. W. Marsh have a national reputa- 
tion. Their inventions are in use throughout the 
Union and even in foreign lands. The following 
comprises a part of what has been invented by them: 

Harvester, patented by C. W. & \V. \V. Marsh, 
Feb. t4, 1865, consists of an open inside divider. 
This has generally been adopted by all harvester 
companies. 

Harvester, patented by C. W. & W. W. Marsh, 
June 7, 1865. A re-issue to cover the binding table 
and receptacle and the position of the binder. Vir- 
tually used by all harvester companies. 

Harvester, patented June 18, 1S72, by C. W. & 
W. W. Marsh, a simple device for hurrying forward 
the butts of the grain. 

Harvester, re-issue patented by C. W. & W. W. 
Marsh, Jan. 12, 1875. Consists of an elevating 
mechanism reaching forward of the sickle bar. This 
invention has been adopted by all manufacturers of 
harvesters. 

Harvester, patent re-issued Jan. 12, 1875, by C. 
W. & \V. W. Marsh. Patent consists of folding or re- 
moving the hand-binder table, in order to narrow up 
the machine in passing through narrow places. This 
is virtually used by all the harvester companies. 

Harvester, patent re-issued March 9, 1875. Claim, 
the hand-binding tables on the outside of the drive- 



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wheel, in order to balance the machine. This inven- 
tion was practicallj adopted by all the hand-binding 
harvesters manufactured in this country. 

Harvester, patent re-issued March 9, 1875, by C. 
W. & \V. W. Marsh This patent consists of a cover 
for holding the grain down on the lower elevator can- 
vass. This virtuall) has been adopted by all manu- 
facturers of harvesters, the only difference being, they 
use a canvass revolving (over. 

Harvester, patented by C. W. & W. W. Marsh, 
Feb. 2 r, 1876. A devise for protecting the finger- 
bar. 

Harvester, patented by C. W. & W. W. Marsh, 
June 13, 1876. This consists of a device for level- 
ing the hand-binder's foot-board table while the ma- 
chine is in motion. A useful invention. 

Harvester, patented by C. W. & \V. W. Marsh, 
June 13, 1876. Consists of a raising and lowering 
device. 

Harvester, patented by C. W. and W. \V. Marsh, 
Feb. 20, 1877. Consists of an adjustable reel. 

Harvester Reel, patented by C. \V. & W. W. 
Marsh, April 17, 1877. The claim consists of an ad- 
justable reel. 

Grain-Binding Harvester, patented by W. W. 
Marsh and M. E. Blood, April 10, 1883. Claim, a re- 
volting adjuster wheel for straightening and working 
grain back to the binder in proper position for bind- 



Grain-Binding Harvester, patented Feb. 10, 1S85, 
bj \V. W. Marsh and M. E. Blood. Claim, a vertical 
canvass placed over the drum of the platform can- 
vass, in order to force grain to the binder, thereby 
straightening the same. The vertical canvass is in 
a frame which is held down by a spring to accommo- 
date itself to the different thickness of the grain. 
Claim, also a vibrating butter used to square up the 
butts of the grain, together with a raised wall for re- 
sisting the flow of the grain in order to straighten it. 

These patents virtually cover the Marsh-Blood 
machine. 

Harvester and Binder, patented March 18, 1884, 
by Charles Whitney & W. W. Marsh. This patent ' 
covers rotating butts; combination of the trip and 
compresser; rotating bundle-discharging fingers; 
straight-sliding cord guide and knife. 

Grain-Binding Harvester, patented by C. Whitney 



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& W. W. Marsh, Jan. i, 1884. Claim, combination 
of the binder arm and packer fingers by connecting 
link, so that as the binding arm goes into the grain 
the packer fingers are raised out of the grain. 

The two last patents cover virtually the Marsh- 
Whitney Platform Machine. 

Back Belt, patented Nov. 12,- 1869, by C. W. & 
W. W. Marsh. This invention is used by almost all 
the harvester companies and was very profitable to 
the inventors. 

Painting Machine, patented by W. W. Marsh in 
1876. For painting straight work by the use of rub- 
ber rollers. 

Wheel Cultivator, patented by W. W. Marsh and 
H. Mclntyre, July 16, 1S72. This patent consists 
of an adjustable seat and foot rest for high and low 
corn. 

Com-Husker, patented by \V. W. Marsh in 1870. 
Consists of rubber rollers for husking corn out of the 
shock. 

Wind-Mill, patented by W. W. Marsh and O. E. 
Miles, July 15, 1S73. This patent consists of a mov- 
able shaft giving a graduating stroke to the piston. 

Wind-Mill, patented by W. W. Marsh, May 25, 
1875. A shifting device in combination with a mov- 
able shaft. 

These patents cover the Marsh mill. 

Wind-Mill, patented by W. W. Marsh, Aug. 15, 
1S76. Consists of a mechanism for folding the wheel 
in combination with an adjustable shaft. 

Sulky. Plow, patented by W. W. Marsh, Dec. 17, 
1878. Claim, an improved mechanism. 

Wire-Stretcher, patented by W. W. Marsh and 
Charles Burquist, in 1877. 

The Sandwich Manufacturing Co., at Sandwich, 
are owners of a large number of valuable patents, the 
inventions principally of some member of the com- 
pany. Augustus Adams and H. A. Adams deserve 
honorable mention in the list of De Kalb County in- 
ventors. Their inventions are of a practical charac- 
ter and for practical use, and have been brought out 
in the shops of the Sandwich Manufacturing Co. The 
following is a partial list : 

Horse-Powers, patented July 2, 1861, by A. Adams, 
No. 32,637. 

Corn-Shellers, patented by A. Adams, Aug. 6, 1861, 
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No. 32,97 r. Re-issued March 20, 1866, No. 2,205. 
Another patent on same issued May 15, 1866, No. 

54.659- 

On the 15th of October, 1872, H. A. Adams re- 
ceived a patent on corn-shelters, No. 132,128. 

The foregoing were the inventions making the 
foundation of the great corn-sheller manufacture 
which made A. Adams & Sons, and their success- 
ors, the Sandwich Manufacturing Company, known 
throughout the whole country and many parts of 
Europe and South America. 

Other sheller patents were granted to A. Adams, 
No. 123,758, Feb. 20, 1872; No. 135,306, Jan. 28, 
1873. H. A. Adams also secured one, No. 252,594, 
Jan. 24, 1882. 

Of harvester patents the following have been 
issued : 

To Adams & Low, No. 99, 451, Feb. 1, 1S70. 

To H. A. Adams, No. 144,179, Nov. 4, 1873; No. 
191,217, May 29. 1877 ; No. 191,631, June 5, 1877; 
Nov. 191,632, June 5, 1877 ; No. 256,812, April 25, 
1882; No. 306,891, Oct. 21, 1884. 

To Shogren & Adams, No. 187,159, Feb. 6, 1877. 

On grain-binders, several patents have been se- 
cured : 

To H. A. Adams, No. 214,980, May 6, 1879. 

To W. H. Payne No. 191,776, June 2, 1877 ; No. 
234,372, Nov. 9, 1880; No. 214,790, April 29, 1879; 
No. 219,304, Sept. 2, 1879. 

To Shufelt & Adams, Nc. 265,159, Oct. 17, 1SS2; 
No. 306,184, Oct. 7, 1884. 

On cultivators, A. Adams secured a patent, No. 
139,752, June 10, 1873, and H. A. Adams, No. 103,- 
537, May zi, 1870. 

On key-making machine, A. Shogren received a 
patent, No. 186,437, Jan. 23, 1877. 

The company has also bought rights and interests 
in a large number of other valuable patents. There 
has also been produced by them from time to time 
many improvements and inventions not patented, 
such as the circling side gears now so much used in 
threshing and shelling machinery and the like, and 
flexible iron cob spines for corn shellers. Nearly all 
the popular forms of hand shellers and many of the 
best devices used in both hand and power corn- 
shellers originated in this establishment. 

The feed-grinders, manufactured by the Enterprise 









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Company of Sandwich, are the invention of T. W. 
Beal and patented in 1883. The frame is of iron 
and can be bolted to the floor at any convenient 
place, the legs being provided with lugs and holes 

for that purpose. 

The climax cultivators are the invention of Harvey 
Pai ker, and were patented in [876. They arc manu- 
factured by the Enterprise Company, Sandwich, 111. 

The Climax Spring Walking Cultivator has an 
equalizer, the invention of T. R Polglase, the fore- 
man of the Enterprise Company, of Sandwich. The 
object of this equalizer is to require each horse to do 
its own share of the work, as well when one is 
slightly in advance of the other as when they art- 
even. It works like a charm. 

Wind Mill. — The invention of Harvey Packer, 
i>d in 1S76, and manufactured by the Enter- 
prise Company, of Sandwich, 111. The claim made 
for this invention is a solid wheel, made without joint 
or pivot, with hard-wood arms bolted into a strong 
cast-iron hub, hard-wood circles, into which the fan 
slats are securely fastened, the whole firmly bolted 
together, and forming a strong and durable wheel ; 
the vane is large and strong, made so as to hold the 
wheel at all times steadily and firmly in the wind, 
and when folded keeps the wheel with its edge to 
the wind, enabling it to withstand the fiercest gale. 
A revolving post and multiplying governor are also 
strong features. 

In 1870 Richard Emerson, of De Kalb, a practical 
mat hinist, began experimenting with a view of con- 
structing a reaping machine that would be an im- 
provement upon all then in use. In 1871 he had a 
complete machine manufactured and gave it a thor- 
ough test in the harvest field. The result was not 
satisfactory. In 1872 he constructed another, which 
likewise proved a failure. He did not yet despair, 
but believed that he would still succeed. Being a 
poor man, he could not pursue his investigations as 
he desired, and three years passed before he could 
build his third machine. Unfortunately, this too was 
condemned as being impracticable. In 1S76 he in- 



vented and patented an adjustable binding table, to 
ied on any of the machines then made. This 
invention was adopted b) the Marsh Harvester Com- 
pany and b) McCormick, and used until displaced by 
the self-binder. In 1877 Mr. Emerson turned his 
attention to and invented and patented a wire self- 
binder. For some years past Mr. Emerson has had 
the active co-operation of H. H. Mason, who has 
furnished him the means to continue his experiments, 
investing several thousand dollars for that purpose. 
For the confidence reposed in him by Mr. Mason 
and for the kindly aid furnished, Mr. Emerson is in- 
deed grateful, realizing his inability to continue with- 
out it. Wire binders being found objectionhble, Mr. 
Emerson, as well as other inventors, turned his at- 
tention to the construction of a binder using twine 
instead of wire. In 1884 he constructed another 
machine almost entirely different from any others. 
which he gave a thorough test in the field, with 
the best satisfaction. A patent for this was ob- 
tained. For this machine, which he terms the 
Emerson & Mason Harvester and Table Rake 
Spring Binder, Mr. Emerson makes the following 
claims : A reaper with a table rake to a diagonal ele- 
vation. By a swinging apron the grain is greatly 
compressed before reaching the elevator, which is 
comparatively short and from which the grain is de- 
livered into the packer. By a new and simple device 
a knot is formed after the twine has been made to 
encircle the grain, which by a swinging binder is dis- 
charged from the rear of the drive wheel. A further 
claim is made that the machine is lighter by 300 
pounds than the ordinary harvesters, at the same 
time equal in strength and more durable, in conse- 
quence of its principal part being of iron. 

In 1883 William C. Watkins secured a patent on 
an invention for stretching wire upon the posts. 
The stretcher is so constructed that it will stretch 
from either or both ends, while being unwound bum 
the spool. 

In 1880 Watkins & Ellwood secured a patent for 
a wire-stretcher. The R. Ellwood Manufactur- 
ing Co. now own the patent. 



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?>"-^(" l tft)\VNSHIP history is an es- 
'7J^\:,[f,// scntial and prominent part 
of the county history. The 
various parts of De Kalb 
County were settled by men 
must of whom have repre- 
sentatives now living in the 
county, or are still living here 
themselves. A careful reading of 
the incidents relating to the early 
settlement of the several town- 
ships will repay the reader, as each 
one contains the names of the 
first settlers, and many other items 
which are required to make the 
history complete. The township 
histories are given in their alpha- 
betical order, and the sketches of 
the villages are included in their respective town- 
ships. The cities of Sycamore, De Kalb and Sand- 
wich follow the townships. 



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AFTON TOWNSHIP. 



FTON Township lies in the third tier from 

■. the south, and is bounded on the east by 

Pierce, on the north by De Kalb, on the 

south by Clinton, and on the west by Milan. 

The land is a beautiful rolling prairie, well 

adapted to all the cereals peculiar to this lati- 

The head-waters of Little Rock Creek are on 



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17 Noble 1856-68 

C. w . Broughton 1869-72 

I [< t.i \ Kingsley 187^-77 

John A. Ryon -1878-80 



Svlx ester W. Patten . ...1881 

[ohn \ Ryon 1S82-S3 

David B. Stryker 1884 



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In 1855 the first school was held in a house belong- 
ing to Mr. Goodell. Mr. Lord was the teacher. In 












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section 14. It is said that John A. Harden, one of 
the early settlers of the township, was a great 
admirer of the song, " Flow gently, sweet Afton," 
and persisted in calling this stream " Sweet Afton," 
from which the township derived its name. 

W. R. Campbell is given the honor of being the 
first settler and John A. Hayden the next. Among 
other early settlers were Daniel Washburn, Timothy 
Pierson, John McGirr, Benjamin Muzzy, Charles 
Ward, Francis Bemis and Alexander Folger. 

Afton was one of the last townships in the county 
to be settled, on account of there being no timber 
in proximity to it. While having no village within 
its boundaries it is considered one of the best town- 
ships in the county. 

On the adoption of the township organization law , 
in 1S50, and the creation of civil townships, the 
northern half of Afton was attached to De Kalb and 
the southern half to Clinton. The township was organ- 
ized in 1855. The first election was held at the 
house of Sanford A. Tyler, on section 14. Timothy 
Pierson and Orson Pearl were elected Justices ; San- 
ford A. Tyler, Town Clerk ; ('lark Glidden, Assessor 
and Collector. Since that lime the following named 
have served the township as members of the Board 
of Supervisors : 









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1S56 the school section was sold, the township was 
divided into two school districts and a good school- 
house was built on the northwest corner of section 
24, in district No. i, which comprised the cast half 
of the township. The township was subsequently 
divided into nine school distrii is. 

The following items in regard to educational mat- 
ters in the township are gleaned from the report of 
the county superintendent of public schools for the 
year ending June 30, r884: There were 387 per- 
sons under 2 1 years of age, of whom 307 were over 
six and under 21, of which number 269 were 
enrolled in the public schools. In each of the nine 
districts lying within the township was a good frame 
school-house, the total value of which was $5,850. 
During the year 16 teachers were employed, at an 
average salary of $35.75 per month, the highest 
being $45 and the lowest $25. A tax was levied for 
school purposes amounting to $2,529. 

In 1867 the Second Adventists built a church at 
Afton Center. 

In reference to the part performed by this town- 
ship in the War of the Rebellion, Boies remarks : 
" Afton manfully did its part in the war. Eighty- 
one men went from that thinly populated township 
to fill the ranks of the Union Army. Its total popu- 
lation by the census of i860 was but 516. Fifty- 
nine men had volunteered when the necessity of 
the Government called for more men, and seven 
more were procured. In the summer of 1864 an 
additional tax was voted upon the township, amount- 
ing in all to $14,000, and 15 more recruits were 
enlisted. Among those who gave their lives in 
defense of their country were Charles Elliott, Demp- 
ster Wheeler, Alexander Campbell, Emerson T. 
Knight, Lewis Olverson and L. De Forest." 

Afton Township has 22,363 acres of improved 
land, assessed in [884 at $315,412. The personal 
property was assessed the same time at $68,386. A 
total of $383,798. The State board of Equalization 
reduced this to $339,603. Among the items of 
personal property enumerated were the following. 
Horses, 666; cattle, 2,738; mules and asses, 23; 
sheep, 204; hogs, 2,931; steam engines, 3; car- 
ami wagons, 193; watches and clocks, 101 ; 
sewing and knitting machines, 75; organs and 
melodeons, 23. 



CLINTON TOWNSHIP. 



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j&ONGRESSIONAL Township 38 north, 
,.7^<£S range 4 east, comprises the civil township 




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of Clinton. It is one of the most prosperous 
in the country. There is one small grove in 
the southwestern portion of the township, the 
remainder being a beautiful rolling prairie. Hon. R. 
M. Pritchard thus speaks of the first settlement : 

"The territory comprising the town of Clinton to 
the year 1835, was a part of the vast undisturbed, 
unbroken, and unsettled wilderness of the great North- 
west. It is only the haunt of the red man, and the 
home of the wild beast. The little grove in this 
town, covering about 100 acres, was up to this year 
only occasionally seen by the white manas he passed 
it on his way to some other part of the State. The 
capture of the old Indian Chief Black Hawk in 1832, 
and the disposition of his tribe, opened up this wild 
region to settlement by the white man. On the 22d 
day of April, 1835, Oliver P. Johnson, a daring young 
man about 23 years of age, with his young wife 
Elizabeth and a babe a few weeks old, settled at this 
grove and gave it the name of Johnson's Grove. Mr. 
Johnson found at the south end of the grove three 
Indian houses or wigwams made of elm bark, each in 
size about 1 2 x 16 feet. These houses were built by 
the Indians and occupied by them from time to time 
as they passed over the country in quest of game and 
during the summer months while cultivating their 
corn-fields which they had at this grove. Into one 
of these houses Mr. Johnson moved and stayed until 
he could build him a log house, which he commenced 
at once ; he soon had a fine, strong double log house 
erected, into which he moved and where he lived for 
three years with the Indians alone for neighbors, who 
occasionally got up their drunken pow-wows or ca- 
lousals, sometimes to the great annoyance of the 
young wife, who, in the absence of her husband, would 
become so frightened she would bar the heavy oaken 
door to her house, and pile all her furniture against 
it, and then brace herself againU the whole to keep 
the saucy, impudent red-skins out. In this way Mr. 
Johnson lived for three years, without a white man 
for a neighbor for many miles, and no prospect of any 
for many years to come. Awhile traveler would call 
upon him occasionally, and for a few weeks a young 



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Englishman by the name of C. H. Duck stayed with 
him, with the intention of making t h i-^ grove his 
home. He made an excavation into the bank, at the 
northwest end of the grove, lined it up with splil 
logs (the remains of which can he seen by the 
visitor to-day) ; this hut constituted the second habita- 
tion built by white men in this town. Dr. C. H. 
Duck, as he was called, soon got tired of his claim, 
deserted it and went to Chicago, where he now re- 
sides. 

Amongthe earliest settlers after Mr. Johnson, were 
W. B. Fields, Parker Thomas, Alexander McNisll, 
Silas Eiines, John and James Walker, Preston Curtiss, 
William Robertson, C. B. Whitford, Shelburne J. and 
Tracy Scott, Felix and Baldwin Woodruff, Sylvester 
Hall, N. S. and Thomas J. Greenwood, Benjamin 
Matteson, William Sherman, Sylvester and Elbert 
Hall, J. L. Bailey, J. L. Mighell, Arunej Hill, John 
Secor. 

Clinton, as a civil township, was organized in 
1.S50. At that time it included much more territory, 
but was reduced to its present dimensions in 1853. 
The name was applied to the township from the fact 
a number of the settlers were from Clinton, New 
York, and were attached to the name. 

The following named have served the township as 
members of the Board of Supervisors : 



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tchard 1850 

James R. Eastman 1851 

\ 1 1 11 1I1 Hill 1852 

1 \in. B. Whitford 1853 

\ i .in 1I1 Hill 1854 

Reuben Pritchard 1855-56 

O. A I iiMis 1857 

N. s. Greenwood 1858-59 

I' M Pritehard 1860-62 

W. ( M ,, v 1863-64 

R. M. 1 " 1 it. hart 1865 



J. L. Mighell 1866 

Robert H umphrey 1867-69 

R. M. I'riii hard ." 1870 

William 1 . Mace} . , 1871 

' 1 « rreenwood 1872- 74 

Edwin Praser '875-76 

Charles I . ' ireenw I 1877-79 

Edwin Fraser 1880 

lames I .. M ighell 1S81-S3 

James McC leery 1884 



The first school is said to have been taught by H. 
C. Beard, in 1S47. In 1S85 the educational advan- 
tages of the township were of a superior character. 
According to the report of the County Superinten- 
dent of Public Schools there were nine school 
districts in this township, with one graded and eight 
ungraded schools. There were 512 persons under 
the age of 21, of whom 353 are of school age. Of 
that number 297 were enrolled in the public schools 
for the year ending June 30, 1884. Eighteen 
teachers were employed. The highest monthly 
salary paid was $50, and the lowest $27.50. Each 
district is supplied with a good frame school-house, 
the total value of which is estimated at $9,050. The 



levy for the support of the schools in 1883-4 was 

$4,022. 

The Methodists and Baptists were pioneers in 
matters pertaining to the religious welfare of the 
people. Societies were formed by the Methodists 
north of the present village of Waterman, and by the 
Baptists southeast of the same village. The people 
now worship in the neighboring villages. 

Clinton township furnished 11 r men for the war, 
and raised for war purposes $13,746. The names of 
those who lost their lives in the service were, Jona- 
than Morris, Egbert Matteson, M. C. Kirkpatrick, 
Seeley Simpson, Henry Kellogg, James Low, Asahel 
Childs, C. Rose, jr., Corydon Heath, Alfred Hodgkin, 
Charles Nears and E. A. Pritchard. 

From the abstract of assessments in the office of 
the County Clerk, the following facts were obtained : 

Clinton Township in 1884 had 22,231 acres of im- 
proved land, valued at $331,551. Town lots were 
assessed at $25,480; personal property, $91,295; 
total $448,326. This amount was reduced by the 
Slate Board of Equalization to $396,809. Among 
the items of personal property, reported by the Asses- 
sor for that year, were the following: Horses, 632; 
cattle, 2,856; mules and asses, 26; sheep, 160; 
hogs, 3,501; steam engines, 3 ; safes, 4 ; carriages 
and wagons, 250; watches and clocks, 71; sewing 
and knitting machines, 138; pianos, 9; organs and 
melodeons, 50. Of hogs Clinton reports a larger 
number than any other township in the county, and 
of cattle, the largest number save South Grove, 
which reports 2,897, an( l Cortland, 2,857. 






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Waterman. 

'.'■ |.V7r'!ij HE village of Waterman was surveyed and 
l^^' plattid by S. T. Armstrong, Count} : 
^ veyor, in March, 1872. It comprised a 
Cic portion of the north half of the northeast quar- 
<*> ter of the southeast quarter, and the south 
half of the southeast quarter of the noil 
quarter of section 16, the property of Humphrey Rob- 
erts. Three additions have since been made. The 
village at the present writing presents a neat appear- 
ance, and has about 400 inhabitants. 

A station was established here on the completion 

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of the railroad, and a temporary depot build 
ted. The village was named in honor of D. \>. Wa- 
terman, oi Aurora, general solii itor of the n 

tn the spring of [872 David Chapman erected a 
dwelling-house, the first in the village. Soon after, 
Martin Fancher erected a small building just above 
where the depot is now located, and opened a stock 
of groceries. Mr. Fanchei was soon followed by V 
Bradbury, who also opened a grocery and provision 
More; Coy & Giles, who carried a miscellaneous 
stock; Hill & Fancher, with groceries. Humphrey 
mson commenced retailing lumber in the winter 
of 187 1-2. They also brought in the first coal dur- 
ing the same season. They put up the first scales, 
the same which are now in use at the stock-yards. 
With the foregoing in business, and the erection of a 
number of dwelling-houses, Waterman had a fail- 
Mart in 1871. For some time it had a good, steady 
grow th. 

The first grocer) store was by Martin Fancher in 
the spring of 1872. The present representatives in 
that line are A. Bradbury and F. Schrader. The 
latter has a restaurant in connection. 

Coy & Giles, the first general merchants. S. H. 
Perry and James Fulton, present representatives. 

Coy & Giles were the first to keel* drugs in stock, 
while Giles Bros, were the first exclusive druggists. 
E. Dean is now engaged in the trade, and is the sole 
representative in that line. 

I ' a\id Orr was the first to engage in the hardware 
trade exclusively, in 1872-3. In connection with 
his sons, he still continues in the business. 

In 1S73 Alex. Wallace engaged in the furniture 
trade, being the pioneer in that line. F. Wirts now 
represents that trade. 

J. R. Griffith is the first and last to engage in the 
harness trade. 

In the spring of 1S73 Mrs. Austin opened the first 
millinery store in the village. The present dealers 
are Mrs. J. K. Griffith, Mrs. R. Ostrander: 

Humphrey & Sam the first to deal in lum- 

ber and coal. In January, 1885, the Minnesota Lum- 
ber Company, with G. G. Kopp, manager, conducted 
the business. 

George W. Wakefield was dealer in grain and coal 
in January, 1S85. 

H. Roberts, Jr., at the same time was a grain 
dealer. 

The stock dealers early in 1885 were II. L. Ful- 



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lei & Co., Roberts Bros, and E. H. Baie. The first 
Inner was Robert Humphrey, of the firm of Hum- 
phrey & Mi (leery. 

The first hotel was erected in 1872, by John Ful- 
le, now known as the Clinton House, standing just 
opposite the depot. H. Leifheit is the present pro- 
prietor. The Irving House is run by Robert Irving. 

John M. Si. John was the first barber. William 
Marion now represents that trade. 

Newell & Persons in 1872 were the first wagon- 
makers. George W. Pla< e is now in the business. 

Richard Anderson for some years had worked near 
the present village at his trade of blacksmithing. 
When the village was started he moved into it with 
his shop, and became the pioneer in that line. 
Charles Tompkins and Isaac Edwards are the pres- 
ent blacksmiths. 

David Chapman and G. G. Kopp were the first 
carpenters. Henry Baie now carries on the trade. 

Mr. Schrader is the jeweler. 

E. Dean opened a meat market in the spring of 
1873. He is still in the business. 

D. Horton was the first painter to locate here. 
The trade is now represented by D. Horton, James 
Barmore, Henry Hudgen. 

Drs. G. M. Macklin and S. C. White attend to the 
physical well-being of the place. 

George Hutes is the shoemaker. 

The manufacturing interests are represented by 
M. Daly, in the manufacture of adjustable harrows 
and swill carts. 

Kirkpatrick & Andrews have a feed mill in sua ess- 
ful operation. 

Robert Telford and Charles Tompkins are livery- 
men. 

The village of Waterman was incorporated under 
the general act in March, '877. The following-named 
comprise the Hoard of Trustees since that date : 

1877— A. Little, David Orr, C. F. Mighell, E. 
Dean, C. Taft, Martin Fancher. 

1878— A Little, C. Taft, G. G. Kopp, E. Dean, D. 
Orr, C. F. Mighell. 

1879 — C. F. Mighell, D. Orr, G. G. Kopp, E. Dean, 
John Abbey, A. L. McCaskey. 

18S0— C. F. Mighell. David Orr, George G. Cong- 
don, E. Dean, A. I. McCaskey, John Abbey. 

1881— J. Abbey, A. I. McCaskey, G. G. Congdon, 
J. J A. /ellar. W. II. Moremus. George W. Place. 






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1882— W. H. Moremus, D. Orr, L. E. Phelps, H. 
Roberts, Jr., James W. Porter, (1. G. Congdon. 

1883— J. R. Griffith, G. W. Place, A. L. McCas- 
key, VV. H. Moremus, H. Roberts, Jr., G. G. Cong- 
don. 

1884— A. L. McCaskey, G. W. Place, J. R. Grif- 
fith, R. P. Rowley, G. G. Congdon, C. G. Kopp. 

The village is provided with a council-room and 
Calaboose combined. It has a well 55 feet deep by 
6 feet in diameter. The well is a never-failing one, 
and, doubtless, lies over a subterranean lake. Within 
two minutes after striking water it filled up. For the 
extinguishment of fires the village has 300 feet of 
hose, with a lever force-pump at whi< h ten men can 
work. 



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Religious. 




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||?T Waterman the Christian religion is repre- 
% sented by the Methodist Episcopals, Baptists 



and Presbyterians. In 1S55 a Methodist 
Episcopal class was organized north of the 
present village, to which was given the name 
of Malugin and Twin Grove class. It com- 
prised the following named : Hiram Greeley, Leader; 
Ora Greeley, O. G. Greeley, Ezra Samson, Catharine 
Samson, YV. YV. Fuller, Evaline Fuller, Lydia Fuller, 
M. S. Fuller, H. L. Fuller, L. K. Fuller, and Eber 
Greeley. In 1859 a class was organized known as 
the North Clinton class, of which Eber Greeley was 
Class-leader. For some time meetings were held at 
private residences and then in the school-house. Be- 
coming strong, numerically and financially, it was 
determined to erect a house of worship, in which 
both classes might unite. Accordingly, in 1867, a 
beautiful structure was erected and dedicated to 
the service of Almighty God. In the winter of 1S73- 
4, the building was removed from the farm of Robert 
Humphrey to the village. In 1884 the house was 
newly furnished and now presents a very attractive 
appearance. The Church is known as the North 
Clinton Methodist Episcopal Church. The present 
membership of the Church is 110. The pastors since 
187 1 are as follows: Revs. N. O. Freeman, 1871 ; J. 
R. Allen, 1872; Joseph Wardle, 1873; J. J. Tobias, 
1874; J. Hartman, 1875; W. R. Beans, 1876-7; C. 




A. Bucks, 1878-9-80; N. M. Stokes, 1881; John ( >. 
Foster, 1882; John Adams, 18S3-4. 

The N. Clinton Center Baptist Church was organ- 
ized in 1856. A preliminary meeting was held in 
Tuttle's school-house, two and a half miles south- 
east of the present village, Sept. 27, at w,hich the fol- 
lowing named expressed a willingness to enter into 
mutual covenant for the formation of a Baptist 
Church in that neighborhood : E. Mighell, John 
Curtice, Alexander Henderson, J. C. Miles, Mrs. 
Julia A. I. Henderson, Mrs. Ellen Miles, Mi-. 
Harriet Swift, Mrs. Benevolence Maple, Mrs. Eliza 
Mighell, Mrs. Delana Mighell. On the nth of Oc- 
tober a meeting was held for the purpose of perfect- 
ing the organization by adopting articles of faith and 
covenant. J. C. Miles first served the Church as its 
minister, while E. Mighell was its deacon. On the 
19th of May, 185S, a meeting was held at the Swift 
school-house, at which the organization was recog- 
nized as a Baptist Church. Among those serving 
the Church as pastor or supply, were : Elders Per- 
sons, H. R. Hicks, Paul Kinney, D. T. Richards, 
M. J. Martin, E. W. Hicks, S. P. Davis, P. Reynolds, 
Nelson Crandall and A. S. Orcutt, the present pas- 
tor. The present membership is 30. The President 
of the C. & I. Railroad, soon after the village of 
Waterman was projected, offered to transport material 
for the erection of a church edifice free of charge, if 
the congregation would remove here. The offer was 
accepted and work was commenced on the building 
in July, 1872, and completed in January, 1873. 

The Presbyterian Church of Waterman is in good 
condition, with a neat church edifice. 



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fHE school district of which the village of 
Waterman forms a part was organized about 
1856. The first school remembered by 
those consulted was in that year, Miss Rey- 
nolds being the teacher. The school was held 
in a small frame building that had been used 
as a dwelling. The first school-house was erected in 
1858, Tilda Kirkpatrick first occupying it as teacher. ! 
This house, which was a frame structure, stood ' 
about one-fourth mile south of the present one. In 
1875, a new building was ere< ted within the corpor- 
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ate limits of the village, and the school became a 
graded one, Charles W. Rolph was the first princi 
pal in this new house, with Sarah Andi i i issist- 
ant. Ella York succeeded Rolph, Miss Andei on 
remaining as assistant. The following yeai C. W. 
Curtis was made principal and Miss York was given 
the primary department, Hattie L. Norton was the 
successor of Mr. Curtis, with Finette Norton as the 
prima n teacher, The lattet is now in her fourth 
year a> teai her in this department. Miss Frank 
Hutchinson succeeded Hattie I,. Norton, and in 
turn was succeeded by Wirt F. Weston, the incum- 
The school is in a flourishing condition, with 
an enrollment in January. 1885, of 109. 




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Societies. 

\ N 1873 members of the Masonic fraternitj 
livingin the neighborhood, desiring to or- 
ganize a lodge, and there being no place in 
which they could meet, organized the Masonic 
Building Association, and erected a twostorj 
frame building, 26 \ 60, with 24-foot posts. The 
lower room was destined for mercantile purposes, 
while the upper was to be used as a lodge- room . 
The building was completed in 1874, and a dispen- 
sation was secured, under which they acted until Oc- 
tober 5, 1875, when a charter was granted to Water- 
man Lodge, No. 628, \. f. & A. M. The following- 
named were the charter members: Nathan S. Green- 
wood, W, M.; Irving \V. Pritchard, S. W.; Richard 
P. Rowley, J. W.; E. P. Rowley, I. J. Reynolds, 
Joseph Gilchrist, O. F. Matteson, E. Dean, George 
Hall, D. Horton, Milton Kain, George Greenwood, 
R. Humphrey, R. Telford, C. P. Sage, J. W.Giles, 
Martin McCleery, Edwin Reynolds, Kirk Anderson, 
John Deacon, R. M. Pritchard, C. F. Greenwood, H. 
N. Rose and J. H. Phillips. The following named 
have since served as W. M.: I. W. Pritchard, E. F. 
"*~> Greenwood, E. P. Rowley, J. M. St. John and Enoch 
Rowley. Thi latter is the present W. M.,with Rob- 
ert Humphrey, S. W.; A. J. Kirkpatrick, J. W.; 
George W. Wakefield, Sec; R. P. Rpwley, Treas. 
The lodge has lost the following named by death : 
V S. Greenwood, J. W. Porter and J. W.Giles. The 
\^_ present membership is 45. 



CORTLAND TOWNSHIP. 

_ 

1/ ', ORTLAND comprises one of the m\ 

townships lying upon the eastern border 

of the county, ft is bounded on the east by 

Kane County, on the north • 1 more, on 

I* the south by Pierce, and on the west by De 
Kalb Townships. It is well watered by the 
Kishwaukee River and its tributaries, and has a large 
I k 11 ly of timber land in the eastern part, the rem tindei 
being a rolling prairie. The Chicago i\: Northwestern 
Railroad passes through the southern part of the 
township, while tin 5yi tmore branch of the same 
road runs due north from the village of Cortland to 
Sycamore, a distance of four miles. 

The first settlement was made in 1835 at what 
was subsequently termed Ohio Grove, from the fact 
that the greater number of the first settlers in that 
neighborhood were from the State of Ohio. Among 
the pioneers of the township were George W. and 
I Gandy, John and Perry Ellet, David Wood, 

Henry Smith, Hale Perry, Alvin Dayton, Ralph 
Wyman, John Champlin, Peter Young, Elias Hart- 
man, the Crossetts, springs. Norcutts, Kites, Lowries 
and Osgoods. There may be others. All these it is 
believed settled in 1835 and 1836. They all settled 
as near as possible to the borders of Ohio Grove. 

About the same time James and Joseph Roberts 
settled at a small grove in the center of the town- 
ship, to which was given the name of Lost Grove, 
from the fact that it was separated from the main 
body of timber. These brothers for many years en- 
tertained travelers. 

The township settled slowly until the completion 
of the railroad, much of the land even at that time 
being owned by the Government. The early settlers 
could not bear the thought of locating upon the 
prairie. 

A postoffice was established at Ohio drove as early 
as 1841, Samuel Spring, at that time being Postmas- 
ter, the receipts of his office for the year amounting 
to $2.22 Mr. Spring was succeeded by II 
Roberts, who held the office for many years. 

At Luce's Corners, one-half mile south of the pres- 
ent village of Cortland, a number of houses had been 
erei ted, a tavern and store opened and a postoffice 
was established there about 1S50, with Chauncey 













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Luce as Pustmaster. The office was continued until 
the completion of the railroad, when it was moved to 
the station which had been established by the rail- 
road company, and is now the Cortland postoffice. 

The first name given tne township was Richland. 
This was soon after changed to Pampas, a name 
suggested by J. R. Crossett, from the resemblance of 
its prairies to the pampas or plains of South America. 
In 1864 the name was changed toCortland, the name 
of its village. 

The first school in the township was at Ohio Grove 
and held in a log house erected for the purpose. 
The first teacher was Rev. Castle Churchill. He 
was succeeded by Mary Ann Hamlin. 

In his report for the yen ending June 30, 1884, 

George I. Talbott, County Superintendent of Schools, 

gives the following interesting items in regard to the 

schools of the township: There were eight school 

districts, each having a frame school-house, the total 

value of which was estimated at $9,980. Of the 

schools one was graded and seven ungraded. There 

were 589 persons under 21 years of age, 299 being 

males and 290 females, of whom 421 were of school 

age, and of which number 341 were enrolled in the 

public schools. During the year iS teachers were 

'C/ 1 employed, the average salary paid being $31 per 

* month, the highest being $68 and the lowest $15. 

; ) The tax levy was $3,240. 

The record of Cortland in the war for the Union is 
honorable in the extreme, 134 having enlisted from 
the township. Of that number 16 lost their lives in 
the service: Ruthven Russell, Alonzo Russell, Rob- 
ert Close, W. Stark, Charles Plapper, Spafford De- 
ford, John Young, Charles F. Bannister, Charles V. 
Peck, Oliver Wilson, Emory Marshall, George H. 
Gould, T. D. Packard, W. H. Rose and Morris R. 
Wilson. For war purposes the township raised 
$12,103. 

There are two mills in the township — one at Cort- 
land and the other at Maple Park. The latter was 
built in 1S82 by Nathaniel A. Hail. The building is 
^\ 60x24, with 16-foot posts. There is one run of 
buhrs and a corn-sheller. It is a feed mill, run by 
steam, with a 30-horse power engine. A good busi- 
is done here. 

Porter S. Coolidge has the credit of being the fust 
to bring Norman horses into the township, and prob- 
ably the first in the county. Mr. Coolidge was also 




one of the first to engage in the dairy business, hav- 
ing at one time 100 1 

Oatman Bros., of Dundee, 111., built a cheese fac- 
tory near Maple Park, in the spring of 1S84. It is a 
commodious frame building, with a stone basement. 
The factory is run on the dividend plan, though 
some milk is bought. Alfred Hall is cheese-maker, 
and William Morrison butter-maker. 

In 18S4, according to the local assessor, there were 
22,068 acres of improved land in the township, val- 
ued at $326,061, an average of $14.77 per acre. The 
town lots ware valued at $24,773; personal prop- 
erty, $100,515; a total of $451,349. The State 
Board of Equalization reduced this amount to $400,- 
727. There were many articles of personal property 
listed, among the items the following: Horses, 800; 
cattle, 2,857 ; mules and asses, 9 ; sheep, 198 ; hogs, 
1,646; steam engines, 4; safes, 1; 1 trriages and 
wagons, 454; watches and clocks, 327 ; sewing and 
knitting machines, tjS; pianos, 23; melodepns and 
organs, 60. 

SUPERVISORS. 






David F. Finley 1850-52 

\ lis tin 1 i .1 yden 1 

I ';i vi<l !•'. Kinley 1854 

II orace S. Champlin 1 

Alonzo I. Lov.il 1859-61 

1'. s. t oolidge 1862 

I R t.'n.ssett 1 



Edwin ' .ilson 1S66 

! 'in, w righl 1867-68 

A . V. I.. Smith 1871-7- 

I 1 sett 1873-74 

William Raymond 1 875-77 

1 ' ighi Ci >ssett 1S78-81 

Thcodere Balis 1882-84 




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Village of Cortland. 

URING the month of January, 1855, the 
r^/s^-'Jl village of Cortland was laid out by Ezra 
■ Oft " and Maria Croit. The plat is located on 
j^Jfii the northwest quarter of section 29, township 
40, range 5. In April, 1855, Samuel L.Parker 
and J. T. Tubby platted the northwest quarter 
of the northeast quarter of section 29, in connection 
with that laid out by Mr. and Mrs. Croft, the whole 
forming the original plat of the town. Two addi- 
tions have since been made. 

Previous to the building of the railroad, which was 
completed quite a year before the platting of the vil- 
lage, some half-dozen or more houses had been 
erected at Luce's Corners. Some of these were 
moved to the station and a village soon sprang up, 
which for a time bid lair to be one of the most im 
tant in the county. From the beginning for a mini- 



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l>cr of years it was one of the best points on the 

railroad for grain. H. S. Champlin and John M. 

Lawrem e were the first to engage in the grain trade. 

The) »ere nut partners, but each commenced 

the same time in 1854. Other dealers soon estab- 

d business here, among whom wen Mr. Arnold, 

;e and Jerome Champlin, and I'ierce & Jewell. 

\ one time it is said there were 17 local buyers, 

renting, probably, some half-dozen firms. The 

trade continued to be good until the completion of 

the Sycamore & Cortland Railroad, when it began to 

decrease, much of its trade from the north going to 

more. Pressed hay for a time was quite largely 

dealt in b) I'ierce & Jewell. 

Horace S. Champlin and James S. Waterman, un- 
der the firm name of Champlin & Waterman, were 
pioneers in the trade of general merchandise. 
They commenced business in 1854, and while they 
had the monopoly had a very large and lucrative 
trade. 

Smith iV Brown were the next dealers. After run- 
ning about two years they failed, as the local rhyme- 
ster put it, "Smith (V Brown, they broke down." 

Jabez Gwinup was the first to engage in the man- 
ire and repair of wagons. 

Marcenus Hall and Charles Smith were the first 
blacksmiths. Albert Havens opened the second 
shop, Hall ..V Smith being partners. 

Lawrence & Washburn and Mr. Wbodworth might 
also be classed among the pioneer merchants of the 
pi i' e, commencing business but a short time after 
those already mentioned. 

\s Mated in the township history, the postoftice 
known as Lost Grove was removed to the station 
in [854. The following named have since held the 
position of postmaster: A. I). Brown, John Cadwal- 
lader, K. (). Joslyn, Theodore Loring, Marcus Wash- 
burn, I. Carpenter, Mrs. C. Sa< kett and Joseph 
Adams. The latter now holds the commission, but 
the business of the office is transacted by Mrs. 
\d.11ns. 

The school district in which the village is located 
was organized at an earl) day. There ivas a school- 
house near the present site in 1841, the first teachers 
being E. Eaton and Maiden Jonc>. 

There is but one religious organization in the vil- 
lage — the Methodist Episcopal. It was organized 
before the village came into existence. A neat church 



edifii e was subsequently erected here. The present 
membership is 54. Among those who have served 
as pastors since [862 have been Revs. C. M. Web- 
ster, I''. 1). Corwin, E. Smith, O. E. llurch, R. H. 
Wilkinson, N. O. Freeman, Fri( k, Swift, Samuel 
Hewes, Isaac Whitcomb and F. 15. Hardin. The 
latter is the present pastor. In the winter of 1884-5 
a revival was held in the church in which there were 
40 conversions, arrcl the Church greatly strengthened. 

About [S55 a frame building was erected for 
school purposes on the north side of the railroad. 
The village growing quite rapidly, it soon became 
too small to accommodate the pupils in the district, 
and one was erected on the south side. It being 
impossible to properly grade the schools using two 
school buildings, the district, in 1867, voted to erect 
another building, larger and more centrally located. 
Accordingly the present building was erected the 
same year. On its occupancy the school was divided 
into three grades. Dwight Crossett was the first 
principal. Since that time the following named have 
served in that office: Mr. Watson, J. M. Whitson, 
C. W. Curtis, J. A. Vroman, J. L. Calland and I.. S. 
Parsons, the latter being principal in 1884-5. 

The village was incorporated in 1866. The Pres T 
ident of the Board of Trustees, by virtue of his office, 
i-- also a member of the Board of Supervisors. The 
following named have served : 



I . I . Peck 1867 

John King 1867-71 

B. McGough 1872 

ip 1873 

John King 1 



Nathan Peck 1877 

Wood] i 1878 

w Saver) ... 1879 

John T. Wood ley 1880-81 

John King '. 1882-84 



The Cortland flouring mills are owned by Goodall 
& Holdridge, who purchased the same in the fall of 
1884. The mill was built about tS7o by Lovell, 
Smith & Craft, the village giving a bonus of §2,000. 
Lovell subsequentiy became sole proprietor, and sold 
to the present owners as stated. The mill has four 
run ofbuhrs, and is run by a 40-horse power engine. 

The butter and cheese factory of Wood & Delaney 
is one of the institutions of Cortland. It is consid- 
ered one of the best in this region of country. 

The best days of Cortland were previous to the 
building of the Svcamore & Cortland Railroad, still 
a fair busim dways been transacted here. It 

is surrounded by a fine country, and only its prox- 
imity to Sycamore and De Kalb is in the way of 
great prosperity. In the beginning of 1S85 the fol- 
lowing business was represented in the place: 



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General merchants— Henry Martin, E. Jordan & 
Co., James Murphy. 

Agricultural implements — W. J. Bates. 

Blacksmiths — Benjamin Champlin, Wheeler & 
1 [averts. 

Wagon-maker — James Cheasebro. 

Hotel— C. A. Talbot. 

Grist-mill — Holdridge & Goodall. 

Lumber and coal — J. T. Woodley. 

Meat market — Snyder & Ramer. 

Harness shop — C. A. Talbot. 

Livery — C. A. Talbot. 

Barber— Carl Mattice. 

Cheese factory— Wood & Delaney. 

* -^^ 4 

DE KAIjB TOWNSHIP. 

|Wf&jE KALB is one of the best townships in the 
aaJ lL county. It is mostly rolling prairie, while 
V, ' '' yet abundantly supplied with timber. The 
jMiy Chicago & Northwestern Railroad passes 
through the township from east to west, afford- 
ing its citizens an outlet for all their produce 
and stock The township is bounded on the east by 
Cortland, on the north by Mayfield, on the south by 
Afton, and on the west by Malta. 

The first settlement made in the township was in 
1835. Among the number locating that year were 
John B. Collins, Mr. McClellan, N. C. Moore, Phineas 
Stevens, Mr. Root, S. Jenks, James Cox, James 
Paisley, Levi Barber and sons. There may have 
been some others, whose names have been forgotten. 
Mr. McClellan is thought by Clark Barber, now 
the oldest living settler in the township, to have pre- 
ceded the others. He was from Indiana, and located 
on section 23, where he remained until in the 
winter of 1S36-7, or early in the spring of 1837. On 
one occasion during the winter, while away for the 
purpose of securing food for his family, they ate up 
everything in the house and were two days without 
food. (.'ailing upon Levi C. Barber, they made 
known their wants, but Mr. Barber's family were in 
almost the same condition. He gave them a few 
ears of corn, which he had been saving for seed, and 
which they hulled and ate. ("lark Barber hastened 
off to sour; neighbors and succeeded in getting some 






frozen potatoes and a few other articles of food, which 
lasted until the return of the husband and father. 
Mr. McClellan sold his claim to Mr. Powers. Whether 
now living is not known. 

|ohn B. Collins was from New York. He made a 
claim upon sections 13 and 14, where he remained 
about three years, when he sold out and moved to 
Fox River. His present whereabouts' is unknown. 

N. C. Moore was also from New York. With his 
family he settled on section 12 of this township 
where he remained about four years and left for 
parts unknown. 

James Cox was from Indiana. He had a large 
family and located upon sections 13 and 14. He 
sold to Joseph Hiland a few years after and dis- 
appeared. 

James Paisley came with Cox and settled upon 
the same sections. He died here some years ago, 
leaving a family, some of whom reside upon the old 
homestead. 

Among the number who came in during the year 
1836 were Frederick Love, C. Morey, Joel, Jacob 
and Alpheus Jenks, David Walrod. Samuel Thomp- 
son, Solomon Hollister. 

Samuel Thompson bought out S. Jenks, on section 
1. The latter removed to Winnebago County and 
died near Roscoe. Mr. Thompson remained here 
till his death. 

Frederick Love settled on section 12, and became 
noted in the early history of the county. He was 
the first School Commissioner of the county and held 
other local offices. He was considered a man of 
more than ordinary ability. Mr. Love is now dead. 

Levi C. Barber was a native of th.it portion of 
Allegany Co., N. Y., that has since been set off as 
Wyoming. He settled on sections 14 and 15, where 
he remained until his death. The Barber family 
were quite musical in their tastes, it is said that 
even in sleep they would sing some old familiar 
song, which would be commenced by one and joined 
in by the rest of the family! When awakened, not 
one of them would know anything about what hail 
transpired. Clark barber played for all the dames 
held for miles around. 

C. Morey settled on section 2, his claim being sub- 
sequently purchased by Rufus Colton, the founder 
of ( 'oltonville. 

foel, facob aud Alpheus |enk> were three broth- 



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DE KALB COUNTY 






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cis who came from < >hio and settled on section n. 
Jacob Jenks was a local preacher in the Meth 
Episcopal Church. The first revival of religion in 
ounty was held in the barn of the brothers and 
conducted bj Jacob in the summer of [837. The 
first saw-mill in the county, as well as in the town- 
ship, was put up by the Jenks brothers, run by water 
power. An upright saw was used. The mill was on 
section u. Misfortune overtaking the brothers, the 
mill, together with all their property, was sold at 
sheriffs sab some years alter. Clark Barber became 
the purchaser. lie sold it to John Cleghom in 1 S 5 r . 
and it was run by him until 1 S 5 5 . The Jenkses re- 
moved tO WtSCOTTSTll . 

Russell Huntley was from New York and un- 
m irried when he came to the county. He laid claim 
t<>, 1 large tract of land and during the first year broke 
300 acres and made four miles of rail fence. He 
was an enterprising man, reliable in his business af- 
fairs and had many friends while he remained in the 
1 ounty. 

Henry B. Barber and Rachel Spring were united 
in marriage Oct. 5, [837, by Rufus Colton, J. 
P. This was the fust marriage in the township. 
The fact of their marriage is the fust on record in 
this county. 

\ child was born to Mr. and .Mrs. i\. C. Moore in 
the fall of 1836, who is supposed to have been the 
in ,1 bom in the township. 

The first Justice of the Peace in the township, as 
well as in the county, was C. Morey, who was clec led 
at the regulai elei lion in 1836. 

The first death was that of a young son ot Or.i A.. 
Walker, who died in August, 1837. His remains 
were interred on land donated by Shubal Jenks for a 
burying ground. The second death was that of Mis. 
Ruth Cartu right, who died three weeks after the 
death of the Walker child. 

Dr. liassett was the fust physician. He subse- 
quently moved to Sycamore township and is believed 
the first in that tow nship. 

The first religious sen . ns to be in doubt. 

Services were held at David Walrod's house. 

ducted by one of his sons, early in 1836. Jacob 
Jenks held services, and continued .1 meeting 
days in the summer of 1857. Dr. Arnold also held 
services about the same time. There were servii es 




1*1 1 i Barnes p 11 oil the fust orchard, on his farm 
on sec Hon 1, in 1839. This was probably the first 
in the county. He brought seed from Vermont. W. 
R. Thompson put out the sec ond ore hard. 

In 1837 a mail route was established between 
Coltonville and < » 1 Count)'. Clark Barber 

was the first mail-carrier. The oath was adminis- 
tered to him by Judge, afterward Gov., Ford. 

The first school in the township was held at Col- 
tonville in the summer of 1838, with Mi>s Barber as 
teacher. The school was held in a log house erected 
for that purpose. The fust winter term was taught 
b\ Mr. Lawrence. Many changes have since been 
made and the pioneer school-house^ have long sun e 
been displaced by the more modern structures. De 
Kalb Township has no reason to-day to be ashamed 
of her position in reference to the public schools. 

From the County Superintendent's report for the 
year ending June 30, 1884, the following interesting 
facts are gleaned: There were 1,450 persons under 
2 1 years of age. of whom 983 were between 6 and 2 1 ( 
in the ten districts composing the tow nship. Of this 
number 765 were enrolled in the public schools. In 
the township were two graded and nine ungraded 
schools, in which had been employed during the year 
27 teachers. The highest monthly wages received 
by any teacher was $122.22 and the lowest $25. 
There was one brick and ten frame school-houses, 
the total value of which was estimated at $24,250. 
The tax levy was $9,335. 

In the early history of De Kalb County, no plate 
was more noted than that of Coltonville. Rufus Col- 
ton, in the winter of 1836-7, or in the spring of the 
latter year, purchased the claim of C. Morey, on sec- 
tion 2, erected a log house and soon after commenced 
the sale of merchandise, having a fond hope that 
around him would spring up a thriving village bear- 
ing and commemorating his name, and that would 
also be the shire town of the county. Having a por- 
tion of his land surveyed and a village plat made, he 
invited all who would to make this their home. 

Lyman Levings was the lust to avail himself of 
the privilege; of settling here. He built a house in 
which the fust term of the circuit court was subse- 
quently held. 

Jeremiah Hurley was the next man to build. Eight 
buildings in all were erected before the bubble burst. 

Stephen Sherwood opened a blacksmith shop here 




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in 1838, and in the same year a young lawyer, named 
Crothers, commenced the practice of law. The latter 
remained 1ml one year, when he removed to Ottawa. 

\ distillery was erei led by Rufus Colton and 
Phineas Stevens, which proved a financial failure, 
whether from mismanagement of the proprietors, the 
poor quality of whisky manufactured, 01 the want of 
a general market, the old settlers refuse to testify. 

Rufus Colton vvas a man of considerable enter- 
prise, probably a little visionary, yet worked hard to 
sec ure for the place the location of the county seat, 
but without avail ; consequently, the few inhabitants 
living here when the county-seat contest was set- 
tled, moved away, and Coltonville was numbered 
among the things that " might have been." 

De Kalb Township in 1884 had 21,539 acres of 
improved land, valued by the assessor at $343,265. 
Its town lots were valued at $322,775 ; personal 
property, $248,678. A total valuation of $914,7 18. 
The State Board of Equalization cut this down to 
$802,104, on which valuation the assessment was 
made. Among the items of personal property listed 
are found the following: Horses, 1,084; cattle, 
2,597 ; mules and asses, 7 ; sheep, 24 ; hogs, 2,802 ; 
steam engines, n; safes, 21; billiard tables, 6; 
carriages and wagons, 343; watches and (locks, 
448; sewing and knitting machines, 262; pianos, 
46 ; organs and melodeons, 95. This township has a 
greater number of horses than any other in the county. 
SUPERVISORS. 



Thomas M. Hopkins.... 1850 
I I Glidden 1851 

Thomas M. Hopkins 1852 

Vlonzo < onversi 1853 

Lo. II imtly 1854 

\ Lonzo c "n\ erse 1855 

Mm us White 1856 

1 P. Young 1857 

H 1 Kllwuod 1858-9 



S. I 'appan ,1860 

I I I Hidden 1861-2 

II 1 i, pson 1863 

Thomas M. Hopkins 1S64-5 

J. F. Glidden 1866-72 

Lewis M. Ml wen 'S73-4 

I. F. Glidden 1875-7 

I \1. Mi I wen 1878-S; 

Daniel D. Hunt 1884 



2=*-$-»fc 



FRANKLIN TOWNSHIP. 




s RANKLIN Township lies in the extreme 

I northwestern portion of the county, and is 



bounded on the east by Kingston Town- 
ship, on the sDuth by South Grove, on the west 
J)\$L by Ogle County, and on the north by Boone 
4^ County. The township contains more running 
streams, and has a larger body "I timber, than any 
township in the county. The Kishwaukee River is 

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V? 



the main stream, numerous tributaries flowing into it. 

The first settlement of this township seems t< 
a matter of doubt, but was probably about the same 
time with the settlement of groves in other sections 
of the northern part of the countj 

Among the persons living here in 1838 were I). 
M. Gilchrist, T. H. Humphreys, Theophilus Wat- 
kins, Samuel, Charles and Henry Hie ks, Andrew 
Brown, Henry Holmes, Allen Gardner, John Barrett, 
Wm. T. Kirk, Mr. Owen, B. N. Dean, John Mc- 
Dowell, Alvah and James Bennett, Job Trindle, Zal 
Young, Daniel Cronkhite, Martin M. Mack, Samuel 
Cronkhite, Robert Hoover, Spencer M. Myers, I rill 
Dibble, Mr. Parsons, William Miles, Andrew Miles 
and John M. Riddle. 

In 1837 Henry Hicks erected a saw-mill, deriving 
his power from the Kishwaukee River. He ran it 
until 1842, when it passed into the hands of Dr. 
Hobart, who also continued to run it for some years. 
Hicks' mill was known far and near and was quite a 
place of resort. A postoffice was established here 
at a very early day, called Hicks' Mill P. O. Henry 
Hicks was the first postmaster, and held the office 
until about 1842, when D. M. Gilchrist received the 
appointment. In 1841 the receipts of the office were 
reported at $7.72. In 1843, under Mr. Gilchrist's 
administration, it was increased to $9.93. Martin 
M. Mack was Gilchrist's successor and was suc- 
ceeded in 1847 by Morgan Losee, who in turn gave 
way to S. P. Harrington, Mr. Gilchrist and J. W. 
Elithorpe. The office was discontinued on the 
advent of the railroad. 

Lacey postoffice and Blood's Point postoffice were 
each established during the first decade of the 
county's existence. Lacey postoffice was on the 
line between Kingston and Franklin, and around it 
sprung up a little village, which is now a thing of 
the past. Blood's Point was on section 2, Franklin 
Township. 

Jones Abernethy and Betsey Rand, Miles Aber- 
nethy and Lucy Hatch, Daniel Rami and Miss 
Abernethy, were among the first married in the 
township. 

The first school was taught by Betsey Rand, in a 
log school-house on section 20, about 1842. The 
old log school-hou-.es have long since been displaced 
by mere pretentions buildings. From the report oi 
the County Superintendent of public 31 hools for the 
year ending June 30, 1884. the following item 

A. 






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DE KALB COUNTY. 






gleaned in relation to the schools of the township at 
thattime: Therewere522 persons under 21 yearsof 
age, of whom 335 were of school age, 324 of that num- 
eing enrolled in the public schools. There were 
1 1 51 li'Kil districts, with one graded and 10 ungraded 
schools. Each district had a good frame school- 
. the total value being estimated at $10,000. A 
tax was levied of $4,357 for school purposes. Dur- 
ing the year 27 tea* hers had been employed. The 
highest wages received by any teacher per month 
was $60, and the lowest $25, the average being 
$3058. 

The war record of Franklin Township is com- 
mendable. Among the number who distinguished 
themselves was Thomas W. Humphrey, Lieutenant- 
Colonel of the 95th Illinois Infantry. At the storm- 
ing of Vicksburg, lie was wounded the first day, but 

continued at the head of his regiment. On the 
22d of May, 1863, he was stunned by an explosion 
of a shell and reported killed, but crawled back to 
camp in the night. At the battle of Guntown he 
lest his life. A younger brother, James Humphrey, 
enlisted is a private in the 8th Cavalry and wrought 
his way up to a Captaincy. There were 99 men 
enlisted from the township. 

One Sunday in May, 1853, a terrible tornado 
passed through the northern portion of the township. 
It prostrated buildings, fences, trees, and everything 
that stood in its way. John Young's house was the 
first one struck. It was lifted up, shattered, and 
portions of it carried off so far they were never found. 
Mrs. Young was instantly killed. The residence of 
Ira Dean was next struck, and a lady relative visit- 
ing there had her back broken and died soon after. 
Two boys in the house were blown out of a window, 
but were not seriously hurt. Several other houses 
were unroofed and barns destroyed. 

In i860 another similar storm passed through the 
township, by which greal damage was done. 

The township of Franklin has 22,Si6 acres of im- 
proved land, on w-hich valuation as placed by the 
local assessor of $323,606. The town lots are as- 
sessed at $42,517 ; personal property, $98,359; total, 
$46 1.482. The State Hoard of Equalization reduced 
the amount to $410,668. Among the items of per- 
sonal propert) are the following as reported by the 
assessor in 1884: horses, 853; cattle, 2,2^ ; mules 
and asses, 19; sheep, 976; hogs, 1,742; steam en- 




gines, 4 ; billiard tables, 9; carriages and wagons, 
282; watches and clocks, 159; sewing and knitting 
machines, 166; pianos, 3: melodeons and organs, 41. 



SUPERVISORS. 



Clark llliss. 1850 

I dIiii Riddle 1851 

! 1 »it 1852-54 

« I l.nl 1855 

W Hi mii 1 . King 1856 

« I . Kirl 1857-61 

r. W. Elithorpc 1862-64 

I>. B. Kingsbury 1865-66 



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Stephen <"•. Rowen 1867-68 

1. W. Blithorpe 1869 

Stephen G. Rowen 1870 

Daniel b\ Kingsbury 1871 

Warren G1I1 lnist 1872-73 

li. V Dean 1874-80 

Charlc 1 Meyei 1881-83 

I lil ha \. Kirk 1884 



*®£3<OT7»>» 







Kirkland. 

IRKLAND village was platted in May, 
1876, by Nicholas Saum, though improve- 
ments had been made and epiite a start 

iSf given it the previous year. In July, 1875, 
Mr. Putney built a store-room in which he 
opened out a stock of groceries. H. H. Stow 
soon after opened a stock of general merchandise. 
A portion of his room was rented by Dr. Spiers and 
E. II. Gardner, who opened up a stock of drugs. 

During the same year John Dritzbaugh com- 
menced work at the shoemaker trade in the village, 
and Connelly & Delevan began blacksmithing. 

In 1876 Charles Miner started an exclusive hard- 
ware store, the first in the village, though Mr. Stow 
carried a line of such goods. 

The first harness-maker was Arthur Bassett. 

The first furniture dealer was James Hathaway. 

The first grain-buyer was G. W. Wood, who pur- 
chased grain which was stored in a ware-house erected 
by William 'I". Kirk in 1876. After using the ware- 
house some 18 months Mr. Wood put in an elevator. 

The first hotel was run by George Delevan, in 
1875. The village has a good hotel known as the 
Rowen House, erected in 1879. George W. Wood 
leased and ran the house for three years. Until 
dining cars were placed upon the railroad, trains 
Stopped at this house for meals. 

The first lumber dealer was Fred Edlar. 

As the village increased in population new busi- 
ness enterprises were engaged in and changes were 
made in the linns originating various lines of trade. 
In the spring of 1885 the business of the place was 
represented by the following named : 



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DE KALB COUNTY. 



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-J. W. Lyons & Co., Har- 






General merchandise 
rington & Griggs. 
Groceries — Harley Rowen, Ira Brooks. 
Notions — Black Brothers. 
2j Drugs — A. D. Blagden. 

Shoemakers — Peter Anderson, William Smith. 
Blacksmiths — Roberts & Gardner, Franklin Poust. 
Lumber— VV. C. Tuttle. 
Grain and coal — I). A. Syme. 
Skating Rink— E. A. Kirk. 
Harness-maker — I. N. Miner. 
Hardware— Charles Miner. 
Bank — -Dean & Rowen. 
Furniture — M. P. Perry. 
Meat market — George W. Kirk. 
Livery — Jacob Stenner. 
Attorney — William B. McDowell. 
Physician — R. B. Spiers. 

The Kirkland Creamery is one of the institutions 

of the place. It was erected in 1878 by W. H. 

It is a frame, with stone basement. 

An 

1 average of $2,500 per month is paid out. C. E. 
Feakins has been in charge of the factory for five 

* years. 

Kirkland comprises a part of School District No. 4. 
A small brick school-house which stood just south of 
the village was used for school purposes until 1879, 
when the present two-story frame structure was 
erected. The building is 40 x 60 in size, with four 
school rooms. It was opened in the fall of 1879, 
with Mrs. E. A. Hatch, Principal. S. G. Mason is 
the present principal, with Richard Haywood and 
Jennie Dick, assistants. 

There are at present no church edifices in the vil- 
lage, though the Methodist Episcopals have an or- 
ganization and hold regular services in the school- 
house. Rev. Mr. Edmundson is the Pastor. 

The village of Kirkland was incorporated under 

I the general act in 1882. An election was ordered 
held Aug. 10, 1882, at which the question was to be 
voted on as to whether it should incorporate. There 
were 42 votes cast for and one against incorporation. 
The first election for village officers was held Sept. r, 
1882, at which the following named were elected : 
H. P. Grout, Pres. ; Chas. Miner, Elias H. Gardner, 

* Dr. R. B. Pierce, R. W. Fox.G. W. Wood, Trustees ; 
W. M. Burroughs, Clerk ; W. B. McDowell, Treas. 

The officers for 1883 and 1884 were as follows : 

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Hintz, of Elgin 
• About 12,000 pounds of milk is used per day 






1883— W. B. McDowell, Pres.; E. H.Gardner, 
O. W. Rice, H. P. Grout, R. W, Fox. E. A. Kirk,. 
W. M. Burroughs, Ttustees ; G. W. Kirk, Treas.; W 
B. McDowell, resigning, 1'.. N. Dean was elected 
President of the Board. 

[884— F. W. Brock, Pres.; It. P. Grout, J. I). 

Morris, O. VV. Rice, E. H. Gardner. E. A. Kirk, 
Trustees; W. M. Burroughs, Clerk; G. W. Kirk, 
Treas.; John Trude, Marshal ; Win. B. McDowell, 
Attorney. 

Since its incorporation, two miles of sidewalk have 
been built and an expenditure of $3,000 made on the 
streets, about two miles being graveled. No direct 
tax has ever been made, the income derived from 
saloons being sufficient to meet the running expenses 
of the village government. A council room and 
calaboose is also numbered among the improvements 
made. 

The village has now about 400 inhabitants. About 
75 buildings have been erected since incorporation. 
The credit for progress made is due in a great 
measure to W. B. McDowell. 



Fielding. 

(NOTHER pleasant little village of this 

\ township is Fielding. It was laid out in 

ICisT " J uly ' l8 75' 1) - v Henry and Julia A. Koek. 

JMa on the southwest quarter of section 19, town- 

\g" ship 42, range 3. One addition has since been 

I made. 

Louis Keith erected the first building and opened 
the first stock of goods in August, 1875. He carried 
a line of general merchandise. 

L. W. King started the first drug-store in Sep- 
tember, 1875. 

Henry O'Roke built the first dwelling. 

Patten Bros, commenced business in the fall of 
1875 in the hardware line. 

The first shoemaker was Andrew Cristman. 

Henry Peake in 1876 started the first harness 
shop. 

Philip Upstone, in thesummerof 1875, started the 
first blacksmith shop. 

In the summer of 1875 Fred Elder commenced 
the lumber trade. 



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i 'has. Peake opened the first hotel in the fall of 

'875- 
Eugene Ridell « as the first grain-buyer, in < >< tobei 

t8 7S - 
The first wagon-maker was Louis Poole in the 

fall of 1875. 

Philip Van Voorhis was the first physician. 

For the first three years the village was quite 
prosperous, more so than at any period since that 
time. 

In 1X78 a frame school-house was erected, 30 x 40 

feet, at a cost of $[,200. Mr. Royal was the first 

ler. The teacher in the spring of 1SS5 was 

fames Davis, at which time there was an enrollment 

of 45. 

The religious interests of the place are represented 
liv the Methodist Episcopal Church. Rev. Mr. 
Schoonmaker is the present pastor. 

A postoffice was established at this point in 1 S 7 5 . 
^ B. B. Blare was the first postmaster. He was 
/\ ceeded by John Ball. The incumbent is E. N. Post. 

The most important industry of the place in the 
spring of 1885 was its creamery, which was started 
in 1882. Lovejoy Johnson, Jeremiah Davis and 
Joseph Goodrich were the proprietors, undor the firm 
name of Davis & Co. About 500 pounds of butter 
is manufactured per day. In the summer four teams 
are engaged in gathering ere. 1111. 

The business of Fielding is now represented by 
the following named : 

General merchants — Craig & Romney. 

Drugs— I,. W. King. 

Harness— E. N. Post. 

Bakery — M. C. Johnson. 

Shoe shop — Robert Brown. 

Blacksmiths— Philip Upstone, Smith VVyllys. 

\\ agon-maker— Joseph Mason. 

Boarding-house — Horace Johnson. 

I Urdu are — Miller Bros. 

Grain-buyers— H. < ». Leel & Co. 

I, timber — Frederick Ed ler. 

Coal dealer — Philip Upstone. 

M e ii market — Mr. Thomp ;i in 

Jeweler — Frank Ball. 

Physician — F. J. Weld. 






• 




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GENOA TOWNSHIP. 

EN< ) \ Township lies in the extreme north- 
, eastern part of the county, with Kane 
TAy5r K County formng its eastern boundary, Mc- 
' Henry County its northern, and the townships 
of Sycamore and Kingston upon its south 
and west respectively. The township is a 
beautiful rolling prairie, diversified by several 
natural groves, and watered by the ECishwaukee 
River and Raccoon Creek. It is one of the best im- 
proved townships in the county. 

The finest settlement in Genoa was made by 
'I nomas Madison, a native of Ohio. He was quite 
an intelligent man, but a regular frontiersman, 
preferring the life of the pioneer, with all its priva- 
tions, to the comforts secured in a well settled country. 
In 1837 he sold his claim, which consisted of about 
two sections of land, to Horatio N. Perkins, Samuel 
Corey, Thomas Monahan and Henry Durham. Upon 
part of this claim is now located the pleasant village 
of Genoa. 

Henry Durham moved into a portion of the cabin 
eiei ted by Madison when the purchase was made, and 
soon opened a stock of general merchandise. He 
was a man of energy, possessed of a determination 
to succeed, and success crowned his efforts. He 
died here many years ago. 

Daniel T. Whittemore was here in 1836. He was 
from Rhode Island, and remained here but a few 
years, disposing of his claim to E. P. Gleason and 
removing to California. 

Samuel Corey was from Ohio. Soon after his set- 
tlement he sold out, moved into Franklin township, 
and there died. 

Thomas Monahan was from Indiana, to which 
State he returned after a residence here of a few- 
months. 

Genoa settled quite rapidly for two or three years. 
Among those who came in 1837 and [838, or soon 
after, were Henry Preston, E. P. Gleason, Samuel 
Stephens, J. L. Brown, Putney.Brown, E. S. Gregory, 
Jesse Preston. Ephraim Hall, A. N. Hollembeak, 
Dr. H. F. Page. 

When Madison settled here he erected a block- 
house, 62 \ 16 feet, one story in height. This house 
came into possession of Mr. Perkins, who raised it 
another story, and for several years used it as a hotel. 





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In 1843, on the same site, he erected a frame build- 
ing, which has since been used uninterruptedly as a 
hotel/ 

The purchasers of the Madison claim each set off 
six acres of land on which to locate a village, but no 
regular plat was made. As stated, during the same 
year the purchase was made, Henry Durham opened 
tlic first store. He continued in the business about 
eighteen years. James S. Waterman was the second 
to embark in trade at this point. Daniel Ball opened 
the third store, Mr. Amsden the fourth and Robert 
Waterman the fifth. These were not all in business 
at once, but covered a period of several years. A 
very large business was transacted by some of these 
dealers, Robert Waterman reporting his sales one 
year at $90,000. 

Joseph Maltby was the first blacksmith, locating 
here about 1840. 

Mr. Preston was the first wagon-maker and A. N. 
Hollembeak the second. 

Mr. Gregory and Jerry Brown were the first shoe- 
makers. 

The first religious services were held at the house 
of H. N. Perkins, in the winter of 1837-8. Rev. Ora 
Walker preached the sermon. Rev. Mr. Geddes was 
the second preacher in the township. 

The first school was in 1838. A school-house was 
erected about three-fourths of a mile south of the 
present village of Genoa. Mary Ann Hill was the 
teacher. Improvements in educational facilities have 
been constantly going on. 

S. O. Pike claims to have built the first wagon in 
the county, at his home in this township, in 1845. 

From the report of the County Superintendent of 
Schools for the year ending June 30, 1884, the fol- 
lowing items are gleaned in relation to educational 
matters in this township: There were 510 persons 
under twenty-one years of age, of whom 358 were of 
school age. Of this number 300 were enrolled in the 
public schools. One district had no school during 
the year, while seven had more than 1 10 days each. 
One school was graded. Twenty teachers were em- 
ployed during the year, receiving an average salary 
of $28.41 per month, the highest being $90 and the 
lowest $22. The school property was valued at 
$7,000. A tax was levied for school purposes amount- 
ing to $3,87 9. 

The first celebration of Independence Day was in 



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1838, when Mr. Perkins provided entertainment for 
hundreds who assembled. Geo. H. Hill delivered 
the oration. There were people present from Aurora, 
St. Charles, Rockford and other places. 

A postoffice was established here in the fall ot 
1837, with Horatio N. Perkins as postmaster. Mr 
Madison had been endeavoring to get an office before 
Mr. Perkins' arrival, and had secured the promise of 
one. On selling, he recommended Mr. Perkins for 
the position. With the exception of a few months, 
Mr. Perkins held the office 47 years, resigning No- 
vember 11, 1884, when his grandson, II. A. Perkins, 
received the appointment. 

Balls were quite common in the early days, and 
Perkins' Hotel, at Genoa, was a popular place for 
them to be held. The young men and young ladies 
would come for miles around, and dance till the " wee 
snia' hours o' morn." Mr. Perkins has taken in as 
much as $225 in one night. 

Some of the early settlers of Genoa were no credit 
to the community in which they lived, and brought 
upon it an unsavory name. Whittemore had the 
reputation of being a leading member of the gang of 
horse-thieves, counterfeiters and burglars who infested 
the country. In 1838 Mr. Perkins had his house 
broken open, and was robbed of $300. While he 
felt morally certain as to who were the guilty parlies, 
he could not prove it, and never recovered his money 
or had the satisfaction of seeing the robbers punished. 

Gleason was thought to be one of the gang of coun- 
terfeiters. He was known to have counterfeit money 
in his possession, but never used it in the commu- 
nity in which he lived. He was arrested once, his 
case called in court, but no witnesses could be had 
to testify against him, and he was set at liberty. He 
was again arrested, but made his escape from the 
officers. Returning, after the evidence of his guilt 
was thought unattainable, he started in business 
again. He married here. A few years after, he be- 
came ill, and a traveling doctor, who was said to be 
attached to his wife, attended him, but he soon died. 
Soon after, the doctor and Mrs. Gleason were an 
for causing his death, but no evidence was directly 
obtainable, and they were discharged. Not long af- 
ter, they were married and moved to La Salle County, 
where the doctor died under circumstances that led 
people to believe that he, too, was poisoned. His 
wife soon after died ven suddenly. 



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Genoa furnished 109 men to aid in suppressing 
the Rebellion. 

On its organization, in 1850, Henry Durham was 
1 d to represent the township as a member oi the 
Board of Supervisors. He was -1 by G. F. 

King in 1851 ; Isaac W. Garvin, 1852; A. N. Hoi- 
lembeak 1853-4; Isaac W. Garvin, 1855; Jesse 
Doud, 1856; D. Buck, 1857; John Heath, 1S5S-9; 
J. L, Brown, i860; John Heath, t86i 2 ; J. L. 
Brown, 1863; D Bui k, 1864-5 ■ " N - Perkins, 
9; A. II. Pond, 1870-3; John Heath, 1874; 
Jeremiah L. Brown, 1875 ; John Heath, 1876; Henry 
N. Perkins, 1877-80; A. II. Pond, 1881-3; Kendall 
Jackman, 1884. 

Genoa Township, according to the report of the 
local assessor, in 18S4, had 22,862 acres of improved 
land, valued at $336,998. The town lots were valued 
at $48.5 16 ! personal property, $1 15,45 1 . A total of 
$500,965. The State Board of Equalization reduced 
this amount to $444,080. Among the items of per- 
sonal property assessed were the following: Horses, 
899; cattle, 3,121; sheep, 75; hogs, 2,107; steam 
engines, 3; safes, 2; carriages and wagons, 324; 
watches and clocks, 311; sewing and knitting ma- 
chines, 176; pianos, 6; melodeons and organs, 59. 
With the exception of Paw Paw, Genoa had a larger 
number of cattle than any township in the county. 

I.. P. Kellogg contributes the following as his ex- 
perience of pioneer life: He came to Illinois in the 
fall of 1844 and spent the first winter in the town of 
Harmony, McHenry County, moving on his farm in 
Genoa Township in the spring of 1845, where he 
broke enough land for temporary use, spending the 
remainder of his time in teaming. He used to make 
the trip to t'lii' ago with anything he could proi inc. 
returning with merchandise and immigrants. His 
hotel was where night overtook him on the way. He 
generally did his teaming with horses, but at times 
drove from three to five yoke of oxen. He was mar- 
ried Jan. 20, 1S47. The week after his marriage he 
went to move a family from near Belvidere to ( )ttawa 
and came near losing his life. He started with four 
but only got home with two. After reaching 
Ottawa, he concluded to take back with him a load 
of coal. There was no well-defined wagon mail, but 
only an Indian trail to follow. In crossing a slough 
on his return, the wagon broke through the ice and 
settled in the water and earth up to the hub. He 
could not get out without unloading, and had to carry 






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the entire load by hand a distance often rods. His 
lingers were all bleeding and he suffered intensely 
from the cold, but there was no help for it: the work 
had t( . and there was no house within twenty 

miles. He left the coal and drove hard to make 
some house to shelter himself and team, but too late. 
One of those winter blizzards came on, with hail 
and rain. His team could not follow the trail and it 
was soon so dark that it was impossible to see any- 
thing. There was no cover on his wagon to shelter 
himself, nothing for his team to eat, the winds howl- 
ing like demons and he lost in the wilderness. He 
concluded his best course was to unhitch his team, tie 
each horse to a wagon-wheel and wait till the com- 
1 the morn. His team was tired out, the trail 
was lost, and it would have been folly to attempt 
traveling any more that night. Covering the horses 
as best he could, he then took the end gate out of his 
wagon, and holding it before him to break the force 
of the wind he walked around the wagon the entire 
night. The night was a long and hard. one, but hope 
was kept alive within him by thinking of his newly- 
welded wife at home. Two of his horses died be- 
fore morning, chilled to death. 

On this trip he passed near the old log house on 
Indian Creek where 21 white women and children 
were massacred by the Indians. This trip was only 
one out of many hard ones that he experienced while 
following teaming. He lost five horses in the first 
four years. Once, when the thermometer registered 
40 degrees below zero, he lay out, wandering on the 
open prairie the entire night, having lost his way in 
one of those blizzards. He did not dare to stop 
walking, nor give way to the desire for sleep, for he 
well knew that death would follow. 

Thinking a good dog would be some comfort to his 
wife when he was away, he bought a young pup, look 
him home; but one night the wolves came up to his 
house, carried him off and killed him. 

Mr. Kellogg took up his claim on section 3, Genoa 
Township, in 1845, where he still lives. He says 
that although he has had a hard time in life, he has 
the satisfaction of knowing that he was never sued 
nor ever sued a man in his life. He has tried to live 
in peace with his neighbors, enjoying their respect 
^teem. In 1855 he experienced religion, since 
which time he has tried to live a consistent Christian 
life, although connected with no religious society. 









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Tlic Bililc is his daily study, and daily he gathers his 
household around him and offers up prayer and praise 
to God. 



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Village of Genoa. 



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OTWITHSTANDING a small village had 
sprung up at this point many years before, 
% it was not until 1853 that a plat was made 
and filed. In March, 1853, E. P. Gleason, 
who had purchased the interest of Whittemore 
& Corey in the claim made by Madison, 
platted the east half of the southwest quarter of 
section 19. For a time the village flourished, but 
the building of railroads in proximity to it cut off its 
trade, and, for a time, it seemed that one more vil- 
lage was to be a thing of the past. The building of 
the railroad through the county, in 1875, revived the 
place. At that time there were here one hotel ; a 
general store, by Henry N. Perkins; a grocery store, 
by R. S. V. Burrington; a postoffice ; two blacksmith 
shops, owned by J. A. Risden and William H. Laird; 
shoe shop, by L. Williams. There were about 20 
dwelling-houses within the present village limits. 

The railroad reached this place Jan. 2, 1S75, and 
in honor of the event the ladies of the village pro- 
vided the railroad employees with a grand free din- 
ner. During the year 1875 but little improvement 
was made, though a building was erected by J. E. 
Stott, who, in connection with a brother, opened a 
general merchandise store, and one by Walter Dick- 
erman, for a grocery store. The three following years 
many improvements were made, more than at any- 
other like period of time. 

In 1880 a destructive fire occurred in which 
several buildings were burned, involving a loss of 
$10,000. 

The Genoa Creamery is owned by Crawford & 
Hill. In 18S4 a business of $40,000 was transacted. 

The following comprises the business firms in 
Genoa in the spring of 1885 : 

General merchants — H. II. Slater, Alex. Crawford, 
Charles Stott, Mann Brothers. 

Groceries — H. A. Perkins. 

Drugs— W. P. Van Alstine, II. H. Slater. 

Hardware -William Saver, S. M. Davies. 



Furniture— A. Tyler, Charles Stott. 

Boot and shoe dealer — John Lembka. 

Harness — D. W. Schwartz. 

Millinery — Mrs. Carrie Wilson. 

Restaurant — James Allen. 

Blacksmith — Risdon & Downing, A. Tyler, Ti< hler 
& Smith, C. W. Baldwin. 

Meat market — W. Hix. 

Merchant tailor — F. O. Holtgren. 

Jeweler — W. H. Matthews. 

Bank — Brown & Brown. 

Lumber — K. Jackman & Son, also dealer in agri- 
cultural implements and coal. 

Grain — M. G. Leonard & Co. 

Stock dealers — Frank Jackman, H. 11. Yonken, 
Charles Whipple. 

Physicians— A. M. Hill, C. H.»Mordoff. 

Veterinary surgeons — G. J. Mordoff, I). S. Brown. 

Hotels— L. V. Corson, Mrs. C. S. Bailey. 

Creamery — Crawford & Hill. 

Attorney — A. S. Hollembeak. 

The village was incorporated under the general 
law in 1876, and the first meeting of the Board of 
Trustees was held April 24. The following named 
comprises the Trustees and Clerks since that date: 

1876 — Henry N. Perkins, President; James Mer- 
riman, George H. Ide, L. P. Whitney, A. M. Hill, 
Henry H. Slater, Trustees ; J. B. Stephens, Clerk. 

1877 — Henry N. Perkins, President : Alex. Craw- 
ford, J. B. Stephens, C. S. Bailey, James Stott, Henry 
Patterson, Trustees ; Oscar Jones, Clerk. 

1878 — Henry N. Perkins, President; Alex. Craw- 
ford, William H. Matthews, E. Sumner, George E. 
Wood, John Patterson, Trustees ; Oscar Jones, Clerk. 

1879— Horatio N. Perkins, A. M. Hill, W. H. 
Mathews, Alex. Crawford, Daniel Stephens, John 
Patterson, Trustees ; A. D. Blagden, Clerk. 

1880— Alex. Crawford, President; E. S. Will 
Charles Stott, D. W. Schwartz, John Flint, Samuel 
Slater, Trustees; J. B. Lee, Clerk. 

1881— Alex. Crawford, President; A. M. Hill, 
John McLean, George 11. Ide. E. S. Wilcox, Charles 
Stott, Trustees ; M. E. Sandall, Clerk. 

18S2 — A. M. Hill, President; John .McLean, Ceo. 
H. Ide, John Patterson, A. C. Senska, Gurdin Rowen, 
Trustees; F. M. Worcester, Clerk. 

18S3 — A. C. Senska, President; John Pattei 
Gurdin Rowen, D. S. Brown, Jam '. William 

E. Hill, Trustee-. ; H. A. Perkins, Clerk. 






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1884 D. S. Brown, President; James E. Stott, 
William E. Hill, R. Blanchard, Samuel Slater, ' 
Lembka, l 1 1 A. Perkins, 1 !lerk. 

Saloons have been licensed but one year since the 
village was incorporated, in 1880. 

Genoa is in School District No. 1, which was or- 
ganized al an early day. The present large and 
. 1 mvenient si hool-hi >usi rected 111 1 877, at 

which time the school "as thoroughlj graded 

:d in charge of Professor I 1 M. Gibbs. The 
building was erected al a cost ol $4,000, and has four 
rooms, in addition to cloak rooms and halls. Since 
1877 Professoi Gibbs has been in charge of the 
schools, with Mrs. J. A. Gibbs, his wife, as first 
issistant. Under his administration the school has 
taken rank with the best in the county. One class 
of seven were graduated in [88r. The graduates 
were M E. Sanvall, Herman Patterson, Charles 
Brown, W. L. Pond, M. Harned, Allie Cole, Mar) 
Gwinup. Of these graduates, M, E. Sanvall is now 
hook-keeper in a large establishment in Chicago; 
Herman Patterson is an engineer in Humboldt, Iowa, 
and married to Mary Gwinup; Charles Brown is a 
banker in Genoa; William L. Pond is a lawyer in 
De Kalb; M. Harned is a dentist in Oregon, 111.; 
Allie Cole is a teacher at Kingston. A se< ind class 
graduated in 1883. The graduates were Mary Pat- 
terson and Belle Ilnlroyd, both of whom have been 
teaching since graduation. The teachers in the 
school here since 1877, in addition to Mr. and Mrs. 
Gibbs, are Lottie Brown, Allie Cole, Addie White, 
Myra Smith. Lydia Richardson and Mary Silvious. 
In the past year there were enrolled 142 pupils, 42 
ol whom were from outside the district. 

Resaca Post, No. 478, G. A. R., was organized 
Aug. 22, 1884, with the followi 1 charter mem- 

bers: Almon M. Hill, Coin. ; Alex. B. Ross, S. V. 
C. ; George W. Johnson, J. V. C. ; A. S. Hollem- 
beak, Adj.; James M. Allen. Chap.: W.E.Hill, 
Serg.; George H. [de, 0. D.; Henry W. Slater, Q.; 
G 1'. Wolf, O. G. ; John F. Craver, S. M. ; 
Frank McQuarie, G; Geo W. Baldwin, Q. S. ; 
Ezra G. Pike, Francis D. Bridge, Wm. R. White. 
The first officers continue. The present membership 

Genoa Lodge, No, 288, A. 1 & A M 
its charter Oct. 16, 1858. The chartei members 
were Thurston Carr, W. M : M.l> Reyman, S. W. ', 




\. i; Green, J. W. ; M. Cur, Wm. Peters, P. Carr, 
V i: Carr, J. Chase. The P. W. M.'s are Thurston 
Carr, Thomas I Lawrence, L. P. Wood, A C. 
Senska, Ceo. E. Wood, A. N. Hollembeak, E. S. 
Wilcox, Dr. John McLean. The lodge is in a flour- 
ishing condition. 



KINGSTON TOWNSHIP. 

r(?ST| l; ' I'H the exception of Franklin Township, 
^Ob Kingston has the largest body of timber 
'•■"'^ land in the county. The southern por- 
tion is prairie, and also the northeastern. 
The township is well watered by the Kish- 
waukee River and its tributaries. Kingston 
'-' comprises township 42, range 4 east, and lies 
upon the north border of the county, adjoining 
Boone County, with Genoa Township upon the east, 
Mayfield upon the south, and Franklin upon the 
west. 

flie first settlement in Kingston was made in 
1835. Thomas Robb is thought to have been the 
first to make a claim. Among those who came in 
that year were John Judd, Isaiah Fain In, Lyman 
Judd, Joseph Collier, Nathan Hillings, John Friel, 
Louis Driggs, George H. Hill, James Green, Benja- 
min Schoonover, Harmon and Wm. Miller, George 
Hill and Levi Lee. 

Thomas Robb was from Indiana. He located 
on section 22. Mr. Robb was about 65 years old 
when he came to this county. He died on the 
homestead that he claimed in 1835. 

John Judd, Isaiah Fairclo, Lyman Judd, Nathan 
Hillings, John Friel and Louis Driggs were also 
from Indiana. John Judd lived in the township 
about 12 years and died here; Isaiah Fairclo died 
here also; Lyman Judd moved away and has since 
died; Joseph Collier was one of the first Justices 
of the Peace; was elected while the county was 
attached to La Salle; hediedhere. Nathan Billings 
and John Friel returned to Indiana. Louis Driggs, 
after a few \ ears' resident e, moved to Iowa. 

Harmon and Wm. Miller were from New York. 
Harmon subsequently moved to Prairie du Chien, 
where he sin. e died. William, in 1873, moved into 
De Kalb, where he now resides. 

Levi Lee was from New York. He was a man of 



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good natural and acquired ability, a Methodist 
Episcopal minister, for some years a Justice of the 
Peace, and one of the first County Commissioners, 
Before the war he removed to Elkhorn, Wis. He is 
now dead, 

Other settlers came in soon after, and it was but 
a few years before all the valuable land in the town- 
ship was claimed. 

Zalmon Young and Sarah Brown were united in 
marriage Oct. 5, 1837, by Geo. H. Hill, J. P. The 
license granted to these persons was the second 
obtained in He Kalli County. 

A child was born to Mr. and Mrs. Louis Driggs 
early in 1836. This child was probably the first 
born in the township. Win. W. Hill, son of George 
H. Hill, was born Oct. 23, 1836, and was probably 
the second born. 

The first death was that of the wife of Peyton 
Russell, in 1837. Her body was buried on section 
23, in what is now the Kingston Cemetery. 

The Kingston postoffice was established about 
1838, with Levi Lee as postmaster. In 1841 the 
receipts of the office were $4.31. Jonas Haight suc- 
ceeded Lee and was in turn succeeded by George 
H. Hill, who had charge of the office for many 
years. The following named have since served as. 
postmasters : Charles O'Connor, Dr. James Mc- 
Allister, L. J. Bliss and James Stuart. The office 
was removed to the village of Kingston on the ad- 
vent of the railroad. 

North Kingston postoffice was established about 
1852. Charles W. Branch was postmaster for some 
years. 

Dr. James McAllister was the first physician, 
loc ating here about 1848. 

The first religious services were held in private 
houses in 1836. Revs. Woolsey, Arnold and Lee 
were the first to preach the word in this region of 
the country. A house of worship was some years 
alter erected on the south line of the township, but 
has since been removed. 

The fust school now remembered by some of the 
old settlers was in in a log house on section 22, and 
was held in 1840. Harriet Russell was the first 
teacher It was a subscription school. Public 
schools were introduced some years afterwards. 
Kn mi the report of George I. Talbott, County 
erintendent of Public Schools, for the year end- 



i 






ing June 30, 1884, the following items are gleaned: 
There were 526 persons under 21 years of age, of 
whom 342 were of school age Each of the 10 
districts had a frame school-house, the total value 
being $9,800. School was held in each of the dis- 
tricts, and there was a total enrollment of 311. Dur- 
ing the year 18 teachers were employed, receiving as 
wages an average salary of $29.48 per month, the 
highest receiving $75 and the lowest $25. The tax 
levied for school purposes amounted to $4,575. 

The first store in the township was owned by Levi 
Lee, who, in 1836, commenced the mercantile busi- 
ness at his house. 

George H. Hill had his dwelling-house and its con- 
tents burned in 1836, the first destruction of a 
dwelling by fire in the township. 

In 1053, and also in i860, a fearful tornado swept 
through the township, destroying everything in its 
path. In i860 Isaac McCoy had his house destroyed, 
not a single piece of timber being left to mark its lo- 
cation. 

The first dwelling-house was erected by Lyman 
Stuart, who rented the same for a hotel. 

John Uplinger started a hardware store in the fall 
of 1875. 

In the spring of 1876, Mr. Uplinger erected an- 
other building, which he rented to Dunbar Bros., 
who opened a stock of general merchandise. They 
are still in the trade. 

A. H. Clark commenced in the drug business in 
1S76, moving a building into the village for the pur- 
pose. 

Among others who began business during the first 
two or three years of the village's existence were : 
William Straub, who commenced the hardware busi- 
ness, now continued by Heekman & Cole; Orson 
Rogers, who opened a stock of general merchandise ; 
S. P. Hancock and Mr. Gritzbaugh, in shoe-making; 
I. C. Sherman, blacksmith ; Louis Lyon, harness- 
maker. 

Kingston Township, in 1SS4, had 22,053 acres of 
land, which was assessed at $331,503. The lots "ere 
listed at $23,941 ; personal propel 95; total, 1 

$448,419. The State Board of Equalization red 
this to $395,967. In the list of personal property as- 
sessed may be found the following items: Horses 
875; cattle, 2,394; mules and asses. 20; shee| 



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. 1,978; Menu engines, 4; safes, 4; billiard 
tables, 1 ; carriages and wagons, 1397 ; watches and 
clocks, 214; sewing and knitting machines, 144; 
pianos, 3; organs and melodeons, 37. 

The following named have served the township as 
members of the Board of Supervisors: 



1850 

I . « Bi inch 1851 

William A. Miller 185a 

II. Mill 'S53-57 

1 . 1858 

185U-60 

k man 1861-63 



' 1863 

Charles W. Branch 1864-70 

1 'I iag 1871-73 

Syl\ ester Mead '874-75 

1 nson 1876-77 

II. Clark 1878-81 

II. nrj II. I ittle 1882-84 



Kingston. 

This village is located on the line of the C, M. & 
St. P. Railroad, in this township. It is a pleas, mi 
little village; was platted in May, 1876, by Lyman 
and James Stuart. In November, 1875, the first 
house was erected bj James Stuart, who opened up 
k of groceries. 

The village comprises a part of School District, 
No. 6. A school-house which stood about a half 
mile east of the village, was used until r.881, when 
the present two-story frame building; was erected, at 
a cost of $3,304. J. G. Lucas was the first principal 
in the new house and yet occupies the position. Mrs. 
II. Hatch was his assistant in 1881: Maggie Lucas 
in the spring and Grace Harris in the fall of 1882; 
Allie Cole in 18S3 and 1S84-5. 

There is one church edifice in the village, the 
property of the Methodist Episcopals. The building 
was erected in i860, on the south line of the town- 
ship and moved here in 1S76. Rev. J. B. G. Shad- 
ford is the present pastor. 

The Masons have a lodge, and the G. A. R. a post 
in this place. 

Kishwaukee Lodge, No. 402, A. F. & A. M., was 
organized Oct. 5, 1864, about three-fourths of a mile 
west of the present village. In 1S77 the place of 
meeting was removed here. The officers for 1885 
were: J. H. Fellows, \V. M. ; A. N. Wyllys, S. W.; 
A. H. Clark, J. W.; Sylvester Mead, Ticas.; J. H. G 
Lucas, Sec. The pn >< ni membership is 35. 

Gilbert Barnes Post, No. 395, G. A. R., was or- 
ganized Jan. 19, 1SS4, with 12 charter members. 
For the first yearmeetings were held every two weeks, 



but now are held once a month. The present officers 
are: J. W. Foster, Com.; S. S. Russell, S. V. ('.; 
I Mackey, J. V. C; S. D. Whitney, Q.; B. P. 
Penney, Chap.; II. M. Bacon, Surg.; O. H. Taplin, 

O. ('..; A. J. Miller, S. ; A. H. Clark, Adj. The 
post is in good working condition, with a membership 
of 20. 

The first grain-buyer was Lyman Stuart, in 1876. 
He ei cted a warehouse that year. J. II. Uplinger 
erected a warehouse in 1877 and also engaged in the 
trade. 

Among the present industries, the creamery of 
Julius Chapman should be mentioned. It stands 
one-half mile east of the village, and does a good 
business. He has also a steam grist-mill, with 
four run of buhrs. James Stuart has a good steam 
saw-mill, erected in 1876. A planing-mill and a feed 
mill have since been added. 

The business of the plai e is now represented as 
follows : 

General nun hantS -Dunbar Bros., O. Rogers. 

Groceries — J. Russell & Co., James Stuart & Co. 

Hardware — Heckman & Cole, J. H. Uplinger. 

Shoe-shop — C. A. Arison. 

Millinery — Mrs. Jennings, Mis. Thurston. 

Restaurant — Isaac McCollum. 

Meat market — C. Uplinger. 

Stoi k-buyers — Mead and Witt Bros. 

Drugs— A. H. Clark. 



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i- western Railroad enters the township on sec- 
I tion 24, and running almost due west enters 
Count) from section 19. There is no natural 
timber in the township, and it was not therefore set- 
tled until a late day, the first settlement being made 
in 185 1 by K/.ekiel Whitehead. But little of the land 
had been taken up at the time, but was soon after- 
wards entered b\ \ aiious persons more for specula- 
tive purposes than with a design of making for 






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MALTA TOWNSHIP. 

, ALTA Township is bounded on the north 
by South Grove, on the east by De Kalb, 
^ on the south by Milan and on the west 












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themselves homes upon its bioad but beautiful 
prairies. 

Previous to 1856 the township had been a part of 
De Kalb. At this time there was a sufficient popu- 
lation to entitle it to a separate government, and the 
Hoard of Supervisors accordingly organized it under 
the name of Milton. When organized it embraced 
the north half of the present township of Milan. 
Subsequently its name was changed to Etna, and 
soon after to Malta, the name of the village that had 
sprung up on the line of the railroad. 

Since its first settlement the town has increased 
materially in wealth and general prosperity, and is 
now considered one of the best in the county. 

During the war of the Rebellion it sent out 94 
of the best men to help sustain the general Govern- 
ment. 

The schools in the township are in good condition. 
From the County Superintendent's report for the 
year ending June 30, 1884, the following facts are 
gleaned: There were in the township eight school 
districts, eacli having a good frame school-house, 
the total value of which was estimated at $10,700. 
One of the districts had a graded school, the remain- 
der being ungraded. There were 496 persons under 
21, of whom 364 were over six. Of this number 
303 were enrolled in the public schools. During the 
year 15 teachers had been employed, receiving an 
average of $34.43 per month, — the highest being 
$66.67 and the lowest $25. The tax levy for school 
purposes was $33.88. 

Malta Township reported a total of 21,967 acres 
of improved land in 1884, on which the local asses- 
sor placed a valuation of $309,410. On lots there 
was an assessment of $39,143 ; on personal property, 
$77,318. Among the items of personal property 
listed were the following: Horses, 763; cattle, 
2,1 19; mules and asses, 12 ; sheep, 44S; hogs, 2,390; 
carriages and wagons, 276; watches and clocks, 261 ; 
sewing and knitting machines, 114; pianos, 11; 
melodeons and organs, 38. 

The following named have served the township as 
members of the Board of 



SUPERVISORS 



K. Whitehead 185b 

I . ( . Wetmore "857-8 

II . Madden 1855-61 

M. C. Dedrick 1862-5 

<;. W. Smiley 1866 

Daniel I' Pease 1867 

William II Woolston 1868 

. W Townsend i86g 




Charles W. rlaish 1870-: 

w. II W oolston 1872 

Martin C. Dedrick. iS 71 

George W. Smiley 1874 

Martin C. Dedrick 1875-6 

George W, Smiley. 1877-8 

Martin C. Uedrick 1879-84 




Village of Malta. 

HE village of Malta was surveyed and plat- 
ted by Horace W. Fay, County Surveyor, 
in August, 1856. The land was then owned 
by Charles C. Sheppard and T. C. Wetmore. 
It was located on the northwest quarter of sec- 
tion 23, township 40 north, range 3 east. There 
have since been two additions made and recorded. 

The first house was erei ted in the fall of 1856 by 
J. M. Orput. It was a story and a half frame and 
used by him as a dwelling house and for mercantile 
purposes. In this house Mr. Orput opened a stock 
of staple and fancy groceries, and therefore has the 
honor of being the first merchant in the place. He 
also dealt in lumber, coal and grain, buying the first 
grain shipped from this station. In the spring of 
1857 Mr. Orput formed a partnership with John Ai- 
wood, and under the firm name of Orput & Atwood 
the business was continued, dry-goods being added 
to the grocery stock. In the fall of 1857 Dwight 
Booth purchased the stock. 

Shortly after Mr. Orput began business, Shedd & 
Fuller erected a warehouse and began purchasing 
grain. A portion of this warehouse was subsequently 
converted into a hotel and was the first in the village. 
Frank Graves was the first landlord. 

The present Orient House was erected in the fall 
of 1858 by Daniel Sprague, but opened by D. E. 
Fennell. It was the first house erected exclusively 
for hotel purposes, and has been used constantly as 
such to the present time. 

The first hardware store was started by J. R. 
Evans in 183S. 

Henry Madden was the first druggist. 



He com- 
menced business in 1857. 

The first blacksmith was John Schultz, in 1857. 

The first wagon-maker was Walter Tuiett. 

The first furniture dealer was William LeBrant. 

The first shoemaker was John Swanson, in 1S5S. 

The first harness-maker was J. O. Westgate. 

The postoffice was established here in the winter 
of 1856-7. W. 1''. Shedd was the first postmaster 
He was succeeded by Mr. Wicks, acd he, in tin 
Henry Madden, Alfred Ball, V II Brundage, and A. 
S. Kinsloe, the incumbent. A money order depart- 
ment was connected with the office in July, 1S72. 
David Campbell drew the first order, in favor of 






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DE KALB COUNTY. 






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i Ihase, Hanford >\ Co., of Chi( ago, for the sum of $5. 
The average amount drawn per ye.u has been about 
> 1 0,000. 

In 1 857 a school-house was erected in the village. 
It [was a frame structure, about 24 x 40, and was 
used until [873, when the present two-story frame 
building was erected, at a cost of $6,000. This build- 
is four rooms, and four teachers are regularly 
employed. In the spring of 1S.S5 the corps of teachers 
was as follows : D. G. Hays, principal; Bertha Bei- 
tel, Edna Mettlar, Josic Morse. 

The religious well being of the people is cared lot 
by the Baptists, Congreg.ilionalists and Methodist 
Episcopals, each of which have church edifices. 

The secret and benevolent societies in 1885 were 
the Masons, Odd-Fellows and ('». A. R. 

Malta Lodge, No. 320, A. F. & A. M., was organ- 
ized in 1859. A dispensation was granted June 9, 
under which the lodge acted until October 5, when 
the charts was granted by the Grand Lodge. Its 
charter members were T. C. Wetmore, John E. At- 
wood, Jacob M. Moon, John B. Orput, Edmund 
Badger, T. H. Hecox, J. H. Clark, J. A. Patterson. 
lt> first officers were Titus C. Wetmore, W. M.; John 
E. Atwood, S. W.; J. M. Moon, J. W.; J. R. Evans, 
S. 1).; T. II. Hecox, J. D.; C. B. Safford, Secretary; 
A. Wetmore, Treasurer ; J. A. Patterson, Tyler. The 
officer-, were installed by S. O. Vaughan, of DeKalb. 
The present membership, in January, 1885, is 19, 
with the following named officers : Caleb Peters, W. 
M R. M. llevenor, S. W.; George Spickerman, J. 
W.; David Claxton, Treasurer ; J. C. Pierce, Secre- 
tary ; Horace Claxton, S. D.; C. W. Haish, J. D.; J. 
P. Newhall, C. F. Meyers, Stewards ; James Homan, 
Tyler. 'The P. M. W.'s are T. C. Wetmore, J. R. 
Evans, J. M. Moon, S. C. Hapgood, John Sargent, 
R. M. Hevenor and S. S. Coe. 

Malta Lodge, No. 606, I. O. O. F. wis instituted 
February 18, 1876, with the following named charter 
members : J. V. Willett, D. S. Holderness, J. V. Cor- 
nish, P. Barnes, R. Pendergrass, J. Conlin. The 
lodge has been quite successful, and numbers 38 
members, with a well-furnished lodge room. It has 
lost by death four of its members during the nine 
fj years of its existence — J. Lamb, A. McCrea, I. H. 

s*^ Claxton ami John Fanson. Its preNcnt officers are 
M. Quincer, N. G.; IP Hoyt, V. G; R. Pender- 

^ grass. Sec; I V. Willett, Trea.. The P. N. G's are 









5. 



) 










J. V. Wilhtt, R. Pendergrass, A. McCrea, J. V. Cor- 
nish, Henry Shaver, William II Haish, T. Barnes, R. 
Fox, A. S. Kinsloe, William M. Kcmpson, V. Rist, 
M. I,. Dedrick and William Spickerman. 

Edward Bridge Post, No. 124,0. A. R., was organ- 
ized March 16, 1882. Its first officers and charter 
ers were J. C. Pierce, Com.; R. M. llevenor, 
S. V. C; R. Fox, J. V. C; A. S. Kinsloe, Adjt.; A 
\ in Patten, Q. M.; T. S. Warren, (). I).; B. Cart- 
wright, Chap.; A. A. Spickerman, Surg.; S. 1'. Sher- 
wood, O. G; S. Palquest, S.; W. II. Cheatham, 1). 
A. Smith, A. Allenburg. 'The Post has now a mem- 
bership of 33, and meets the third Monday in each 
month in Haish's Hall. Its present officers are A. 
S. Kinsloe, Com.; A. Van Patten, S. V. C; W. II. 
Scofield, J. V. C; R. M. llevenor, Adjt.; J. C. 
Pierce, Q. M.; B. F. Hurt, O. D.; S. Sherwood, O. 
G; S. Lloyd, Chap.; A. A. Spickerman, Surg.; J. 
Tomassen, Q. S.; C. Tomassen, S. M.; S. Palquest, 
Sent The only P. Com. is S. C. Pierce. 

One of the first industries of the place was the 
grist-mill erected by Clement i\: Dodge in 1S57. It 
was a two-story frame structure, about 40 x 60 feet, 
with two run of buhrs. The owners ran it until 
about 1859, when they leased it to Booth & Sprague, 
who ran it for a time, at a loss, and then sub-let it to 
Caleb Peters. In 1861, while being run by the lat- 
ter, it was totally destroyed by fire. Clement & 
Dodge sued Mr. Sprague for the value of the mill, 
and for several years the case was before the courts 
of the State. Judgment was finally rendered against 
Sprague in the Circuit Court; the case was appealed 
and the verdict sustained by the Supreme Court. It 
is said to have cost Mr. Sprague about $18,000. 

In 1867 a second mill was erected by Caleb Peters, 
assisted to some extent by the citizens of Malta. It 
was also a two-story frame, a little smaller than the 
first, but with two run of buhrs. It is yet running, 
ami is the property of C. W. Haish. 

Malta was incorporated by special charter in 1869,. 
its first election being held April 5, resulting in the 
election of G W. Smiley, President of the Board of 
Trustees; C. Anderson, J. V. Willett, James Welch, 
S. T. Wright, Trustees; C. W. Haish, Treasurer; S. 
E. Powers, Clerk; J. C. Westgate, Police Justice; 
U 1 1. Scofield, Constable. The trustees and clerks 
since that date have been as follows 

1870 — G W. Smiley, President; A. S. Kinsloe, J. 



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DE KALB COUNTY. 



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>f M. Orput, W. D. Cook, S. T. Wright, Trustees; J. 
W. McClure, Clerk. 

1871— G. W. Smiley, President ; R. F. Lintleman, 
A S. Kinsloe, D. F. Tease, J. M. Orput, Trustees ; 
4; J. W. McClure, Clerk. 

1872 — G. A. Ingersoll, President; J. C. Pierce, A. 
McCrea, Win. I.e Brant, A. S. Kinsloe, Trustees; J. 
W. McClure, Clerk. 

1S73 — D. F. Peas, President; P. Deane, Wm. 
I.e Brant, J. S. Endstrom, Phineas Barnes, Trustees; 
f Millard Spoor, Clerk. 

1874— A. McCrea, President; G. VV. Smiley, S. T. 
Wright, A. Ball, R. Pendergrass, Trustees ; John 
Murphy, Clerk. 

1S75 — A. McCrea, President; G. A. Ingersoll, R. 
Pendergrass, S. T. Wright, A. Ball, Trustees; W. H. 
( lory, Clerk. 

1876— A. Ball, President; E. A. Watkins, S T. 
Wright, R. F. Lintleman, J. C. Pierce, Trustees; A. 
S. Kinsloe, Clerk. 

1877— A. Ball, President; J. C. Pierce, R. F. Lin- 
tleinan, H. Claxton, S. T. Wright, Trustees; A. S. 
Kinsloe, Clerk. 

r878— A. Ball, President; C. F. Pease, C. A. Tin- 
=t dall, R. M. Hevenor, Caleb Peters, Trustees; M. 
' Fitzgerald, Clerk. 

1879— J. V. Willett, President; J. C. Pierce, W. 
F. Phelps, P. Barnes, H. Claxton, Trustees ; J. M. 
Smith, Clerk. 

1880— C. W. Haish. President; J. C. Pierce, W. 
F. Phelps, S. T. Wright, R. F. Lintleman, Trustees; 
M. J. Cunningham, Clerk. 

1881 — J. C. Pierce, President; R. F. Lintleman, 
W. F. Phelps, B. B. Smiley, J. M. Orput, Trustees; 
M. Fitzgerald, Clerk. 

1882— J. C. Pierce, President; J. V. Willett, S. T. 
Wright, W. F. Phelps, J. M. Orput, Trustees; B. B. 
Smiley, Clerk. 

1883— C. W. Haish, President; A. S. Kinsloe, A. 
F. Engstrom, A. Van Patten, Caleb Peters, Trustees; 
M. Fitzgerald, Clerk. 

1884 — G. W. Smiley, President; A. S. Kinsloe, A. 
Van Patten, David Claxton, J. V. Willett, Trustees; 
M. Fitzgerald, Clerk. 

On the 17th of March, 1884, the question was sub- 
mitted to a vote as to whether the town should in- 
corporate as a village under the general act. There 
were 31 votes cast for incorporation, and 53 against. 



827 

The issue in all charter elections has usually been 
that of license or no license. About one year in five 
the anti-license people have a majority. 
SUPERVISORS. 



u Smile] 

G \ 1 M .1 1 ill 1872 

I '.mi I' Peas 1873 

A McCrea i 

Alfred II. ill i 



I ,. ,,l, V Will. 11 
I I, lr le W II 1, I, 
foscph ' P 

« 1 i 



1 



.1870 
.1880 
.1881-2 
1883 



W Smiley 1884 



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MAYFIELD TOWNSHIP. 

AYFIELD Township was one of the 
first settled in the county. The valuable 
timber lands that lie along the Kish- 
waukee River, which courses through the 
V eastern part, attracted the attention of the pio- 
neers of De Kalb County, and it was but a short 
time before every rod was claimed. May field is 
bounded on the east by Sycamore Township, on the 
north by Kingston, on the south by De Kalb and on 
the west by South Grove. As stated, along the Kish- 
waukee River are valuable timber lands, but west of 
this is a beautiful prairie, which is now dotted over 
with fine farm houses, and which has been placed 
under an excellent state of cultivation. 

In the early day deer, wolves and game of all kinds 
abounded. Prairie chickens were in great numbers. 
Mrs. E. D. Walrod states that she has slipped up and 
caught them unawares, they being quite tame. 

Who has the honor to be the first to locate in the 
township is unknown, but it is supposed that John 
Tower preceded all others. Among those who came 
in during the first two or three years — from 1835 to 
1838 — were John Thorn, Morris and Erasmus D. 
Walrod, James and Samuel Gilbert, Ira Douglas, 
John Nichols, Lyman Judd, John Tifft, Robert Gra- 
ham, James McCollum and Henry Madden. The 
latter was the first Representative in the Legislature, 
being elected while the county was part of La Salle, 
even before Kane was organized. Dr. Madden, as 
he was always called, was a well known man in the 
early history of the county, and is deserving of more 
than a passing notice. He was a man of more than 
ordinary ability, and was held in high esteem by the 
pioneers. In the county-seat contests he favored 
Brush Point, near where lie was located, and in sec air- 
ing the appointment of commissioners to locate the 

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DE KALB 



COUNTY. 












county seat, he selected, it is said, those whom he 
thought he could influence favorable to Brush Point. 
Dr. Madden died at Malta, in ihis county. 

Morris Walrod was Sheriff of the county several 
terms. I le is now dead. 

Erasmus D. Walrod is an old and highly respected 
citizen of Sycamore, al present owning .1 farm ad- 
joining the city on the west. He served as Deputy 
Sheriff for eight years. 

John Tifft was a native of New Hampshire. He 
,1 on section 1, where he remained many years. 
He is now .1 resident of Sycamore. 

fames McCollum was an eastern man, but came 
here from Indiana in 1855, locating on section 15. 
Alwut 1843 he soldoutand removed to Round Prai- 
rie, Boone County, where he has since died. 

Robert Graham was a native of Kentucky. He 
made claim to a tract of land in the northeast part 
of the township and died there about 1S50. A son 
yet resides on the old homestead. 

Lyman Judd settled on section 1. He was a na- 
tive of York Slate, hut came from Indiana in June, 
[835. About 1858 he moved to Minnesota and set- 
tled in Rii e County, where he has since died. 

Ira Douglas ".is also a native of New York. He 
came to the county in [835 and stopped about one 






year at I'm Paw Grove, ami then came to May field 
where he now lives. 

Mui h trouble was had with claim jumpers by the 
early settlers, and it was some years after the land 
came into market before all claims were settled. 

The first religious services in the township were 
conducted by the Methodists, and for some time ser- 
vices were held a', the house of Ira Douglas. Being 
convenient to Sycamore and De Kalb, the citizens of 
the township generally worship in those places. 

The first school is said by some to have been held 
in 1839, the teacher being Fanny Clark. Others 
(lain) Lucy Stewart was the first teacher, the school 
beingheld in a log 1 nun belonging to David Hodge 
on se< tit iii 1 1. This was also in 1S39. 

The County Superintendent of Public Schools in 
his report for the year ending June 30, 1884, gives 
the following items in relation to educational matters 
in the township : Number of persons under 21 years 
of age, 365; number of school age, 270; enrollment, 
238. There were nine districts, each having .1 
v frame school-house. 

Mayfield sent 103 men to the front during the 



rebellion, of whom the following named gave their 
lives to the country : Marvin Smith died at Smith- 
land, Mo., I' C. 31, 1S61; W. 11. Decker, at Farm- 
ington, May 16, 1X02 ; d G. Farwell, at Shiloh, 
April 6, 1S62: Turner Wing, at Mayfield, May. 
1862; Joseph Piper, at Ouincy, 111., April 23, 1862; 
Elias Goble, at Gallatin, Tenn., Dec. 21, [S62; 
William Kerr, on steamer City ol Memphis, Jan. 5, 
1S63; J. Patterson, at Camp Sherman, Miss., Aug. 
25, 1863; Samuel Piper, at Young's Point, La., 
April 1, 1X63; J. P. Young, at Camp Nelson, March' 
5, 1864; Alonzo Houghton, in rebel prison, Cahaba 
All., September, 1864; William Stevenson, at Kene- 
sau Mountain, Ga., June 27,1864; Edward ilowe, 
at Chattanooga, Tenn., Aug. 15, 1864. 

Mayfield Township, in [884, had of improved 
land 22*270 acres, valued by the local assessor at 
$316,570. The personal property listed the same 
year amounted to $89,094; a total of $405,664. This 
was reduced by the State Board of Equalization to 
$361,319, on which the assessment was made. 'The 
personal property included at that time the following 
items: Horses, 781; cattle, 2,348; mules and asses, 
4; sheep, 152; hogs, 2,049; steam engines, 2; safes, 
1 ; carriages and wagons, 274; watches and clocks, 
[89; sewing and knitting machines, 115; pianos, 6 ; 
organs and melodeons, 35. 

SUPERVISORS. 




Mulford Nickcrson 1850 

Willis 1 "ii c8 5 i 

I antes Sivwright 1852 

1 ' ■■ 1853-54 

I .in. . Parker 1855 

1 Iniiv ^1 adden 1856 

w . \ . '-. 1857-58 

A . 11. Crippen 1 

! 1861-62 



I . Wynkoop 1863-64 

1 urtis Smith .1865-72 

Edward P. Safford 1873-76 

Nelson Sivwright 1877-70 

Edward P. S.cfford 1880 

\. in Sivwright 1881 

Edward I' Safford 1882 

Henry <). Whittcmore .. .1883-84 



MILAN TOWNSHIP. 



*-# 



-S— 




ILAN is an exclusively prairie township, 
there being no natural grove within its 
borders. It is bounded on the south by 
*\ Shabbona Township, on the east by Afton, 
on the north by Malta, and on the west by Lee 
County. 'The townshipwas organized in 1857, 
and was taken off of Malta and Shabbona. It being 
so far from timber, the land was not taken up until 
epiite late. 'The township comprises township 39 
north, range 3 east, and was organized in 1857, 


















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DE KALB COUNTY. 









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previous to which time the southern half had been 
attached toShabbona and the northern half to Malta,. 

Lewis McEwen, now of the city of l'e Kalb, was 
the first white man to locate in the township. In 
1852 he made claim to a tract of land, built a cabin 
and was for a ti.no, like Robinson Crusoe, " monarch 
of all he surveyed." Benjamin Banfield and Reuben 
Dodd soon after moved into the township and Mr. 
McEwen then had company. In 1852, when he 
Incited here, not an acre of the land had been 
entered from the Government, but much of it was 
taken up the following year. Gurdon Hewitt en- 
tered nine sections in one day, with land warrants, 
worth eighty cents per acre. 

In the winter of 1S53-4 more than 100 deer were 
seen from McEwen's cabin door, and wolves were 
extremely troublesome. The deer disappeared with 
the advent of the locomotive. 

After the first settlement was made it was but a 
few years before every acre of land was taken up or 
pun based from speculators by actual settlers, and to- 
day the township of Milan is one of the most pros- 
perous in the county. In the southern portion of 
the township a large colony from Norway located. 

In the summer of 1S68 a large two-story building 
was erected in the center of the township for school 
and town purposes. The lower part was used for 
school purposes, while the upper served as a tower 
hall and place of public worship. 

In 1S60 the population of Milan was but 262, yet 
it furnished 38 men for the suppression of the 
rebellion. 

The school section was sold in 1865 and produced 
a township school fund of over $S,ooo. The first 
school-house was built in the center of the township 
in 1855. 

From the report of the County Superintendent for 
the year ending June 30, 1 884, the following items 
are gleaned as to the schools of this township: 
Number of persons under 2r years of age, 450; num- 
ber between the ages of 6 and 21, 330; number en- 
rolled, 263; number of districts, 9. In each district 
was a frame school-house, the total value being esti- 
mated at $6,000. There was a tax levied of $1,944 
for school purposes. During the year 18 teachers 
were employed, receiving an average salary of $31.46, 
the highest being $42.50, and the lowest $25. 

Milan Township has 22,295 acr es of improved 



land, according to the assessment of 1884. This was 
valued by the local assessor at $309,410. Of per- 
sonal property there was assessed $52,715. Total, 
$362,125. This was reduced by the State Board of 
equalization to $315,361. Among the items of per- 
sonal property assessed there were the following: 
Horses, 670; cattle i,S8o; mules and asses, 4; 
sheep, 131 ; hogs, 2,208; melodeons and organs, 35; 
carriages and wagons, 203; watches and clocks, 123; 
sewing and knitting machines, 86. 

The following have served the township as mem- 
bers of the Board of Supervisors : Lewis McEwen, 
1857-60; John Banfield, 1S61 ; Lewis McEwen, 
1862-8; A. L. Wells, 1869-72; Edwin R. Colby, 
1873-84. 

PAW PAW TOWNSHIP. 

IFPtyS AW PAW Township lies in the southwest 
tj§||i corner of the county. It is bounded on the 



I I i-9 east by Victor Township, on the north by 

(:kj Shabbona Township, on the west by Lee 

J /l^ County and on the south by La Salle County. 

It comprises 36 sections of land known as 

Congressional township 37 north, range 3 east of the 

third principal meridian. 

Paw Paw Township is a fine body of land, princi- 
pally rolling prairie. There are within its borders 
three groves, — Paw Paw, Ross and Coon Grove, — 
the first named extending into Lee County. The 
township is well watered by the Big Indian ('reek 
and its numerous tributaries. 

The natural advantages of timber and water at- 
tracted settlers here at an early day. David A. 
To»vne was doubtless the first, locating here in the 
spring of 1835, and erecting his log cabin on the 
southwest quarter of section 19, on what is now 
known as the Pierpont Edwards place. Mr. Towne 
broke a feu acres and made his home here till the 
following year, when he transferred his 1 laim to his 
brother, Russell Towne, and removed to the adjoining 
township on the west, now Wyoming, Lee County, 
where he resided the remainder of his life. 

The next to locate here was tin 1 Harris and But- 
terlield party, who came from Cayuga Co.. M. Y\, in 
July, 1835. The party was composed of Rev. Benoni 



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Harris, a Methodist Episcopal minister, and family; 
Benjamin Harris, son of Benoni, and family; Ed 
ward Butterfield and family; John Plass and family; 
and I. D. McDowell and Joseph Harris, two single 

men. 

Benoni and Benjamin Harris, with their families, 
settled on the northwest quarter of section 14. Rev. 
Benoni Harris was the pioneer preacher of this re- 
gion, and labored faithfullj in his holy calling, both 
mission and circuit preacher. His wife, Thank- 
ful Harris, w is the first to die in the new settlement. 
I In death occurred in the spring of 1836. She was 
buried in the grove on the west side of the road on 
section 19. The venerable pastor died in 1845 and 
was buried beside her. Benjamin Harris moved to 
lnwa in 1854, entered the army ill the late war, and 
died some J ears later. 

Edward Butterfield made his first claim on the 
west side of the county line, but the following year 
he moved into Taw Paw Township, making his claim 
on the west side of section 19. He continued to re- 
side in Paw Paw until 1852, when he removed to 
[owa He returned in 1864 and died two years 
later. Solomon V. Butterfield, his son, is the only 
representative of the first colony now residing in the 
township, and from whom the historian obtained 
much valuable information. 

[osepll Harris moved to Kansas in an earlj day. 

John Plass remained in the township only one 
year, and removed to Wyoming Township, Lee 
Count) . 

S. I) McDowell, who came here a single man, 
married Delilah Harris, July 4, 1836. Miss Harris 
was the youngest daughter of Rev. Benoni Harris. 
This was the first marriage in the township. Their 
daughter, Mary E., born in the summer of 1837, is 
believed to have been the fust white child born in 
the township. The honor is also claimed for Caro- 
line Towne, daughter of David A. Towne, who is 
said to have been bom in the spring of that year. 
Mr. Mi Dowell and familj continued residents of the 
township for several years, and then moved West. 

Willi. mi Rogers, Asaliel Baldwin, Joseph Koss, 
Russell Towne, J. Alcott, Job Morgan ami Mr. Ban- 
nig, in are numbered among the pioneers of 1836. 

Asaliel Baldwin kept the stage house and was the 
first Postmaster al Paw Paw Grove He remained 
I iai 1 few years and then removed towards the set- 

an 



William Rogers located at what is now East Paw 
Paw, where he kept a tavern until 1842, when he 
sold to Jacob Wirick. He built the first house on 
the site of the village. Of this man, Boies thus 
iks: 
" Bill Rogers was a marked character. He was 
bold as a lion, tall and straight as an Indian. He 
sometimes acted as detective of criminals, and some- 
times, it is said, in the character of principal. An 
evening story is told of his arrest of a huge, power- 
ful negro, who had hitherto defied all efforts to cap- 
ture him. Rogers met him on the prairie when both 
were unarmed, and, after alight lasting overan hour, 
succeeded in pinioning his arms, handing him over 
to the officers, and securing the large reward offered 
for his capture. Rogers was the contractor to remove 
the Indians from this country to their new homes 
west ol the Mississippi. Five or six years ago (Botes 
wrote in iS68| an early citizen of this county, cross- 
ing the plains to California, was astonished to meet 
him fai beyond civilization, dressed in Indian cos- 
tume, and mounted on a wild mustang, with long 
hair and beard as white as snow, still hale and hearty, 
and still a pioneer." 

Joseph Ross was from the South. He located at 
the grove which bears his name — Ross' drove. 

Russell Towne settled on section 19, and spent the 
remainder of his life in this township. 

Mr. Bannigan was an Irishman, and located in a 
grove to which he gave his name, but has lung been 
known as Coon's grove. 

But few settlements were made in the township 
until 1841, when settlers began to come in quite rap- 
idly. Among those who came between 1841 and 
1846 were Matthew Nisbitt, Jacob Wirick, Moses. 
Marcus A. and Eli Bartlett, Alonzo M. Da Port, Den- 
nis Connell, Thomas, William, James and Robert 
Harper, James McFarland, Vincent Breese, Robert 
I lamp to 11 and A. W. Rake. 

Some'ofthe earliest settlers at Paw Paw were no 
credit to the community, and from suspicious circum- 
stances surrounding them were supposed to be mem- 
bers of the horse-thieving and counterfeiting frater- 
nity. But they were not allowed to remain long, the 
better elements buying and forcing them out. 

Rev. Benoni Harris was, without doubt, the fust 
to preach the gospel of Christ in this region of 1 oun- 
try. He was an old man when he came t" the 
county, but lived some years to do good as he had 



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opportunity. He died at the grove, at the age of 84. 
Meetings were held at private houses until the erec- 
tion of school-house*, when services were held therein. 
Servii es were held at the house of Man us Bartlett 
m the summer of 18451 '^ cv Wm. Atkinson, a young 
Congregational minister, officiating. He traveled a 
circuit of forty miles on foot for several months. 

A society of United Presbyterians was organized 
at Ross' Grove in [854, Rev. Mr. Freetly, Pastor. 
The first church in the township was built by this 
»oi iety, assisted 1 > > the Presbytery, and by liberal do- 
nations from New York State and from neighboring 
people. The idea of building a church at that time 
is said to have originated with Daniel McFarland, a 
visitor from the East. He proposed the building, 
and offered to give $ too inward it, which he subse- 
quently did. Among those who took an active part 
in building were the Harper Brothers, Matthew Nis- 
bitt, Moses Bartlett James McFarland, Alexander 
Lyons. John Dennis and O. D. Miller. The church, 
a large wooden structure, was erected in 1 86 1, and 
dedicated in the spring of 1 S 6 ^ , Rev. Samuel F. 
Thompson officiating. The membership numbered 
about 45. The church is located on section 11, and 
has for some years not been used. 

A union church was built in [867 at Fast Paw 
Paw, and dedicated in February, (868. It is still in 
use. 

A church was built by the Congregationalists on 
section 22, and is still in use. 

The first school in the township was held at the 
house of Benjamin Harris iu t lie summer of 1836, 
Rev. Benoni Harris being the teacher. It was a pri- 
vate school. The first school-house was erected in 
the north end of Ross' Grove in [846, and the first 
term of school began December 1, Thomas Burns be- 
ing the teacher. The house was of logs, split and 
set upon end, chinked and plastered with mud. The 
first frame school-house was built on the present site 
of the house in District No. 2, and erected in 1850. 

A joint Stock-company was organized at Fast Paw 
Paw for the purpose of building and conducting a 
seminary at that point. The building was completed 
and opened in 1855, with Elder Jessup as principal. 
The venture did not prove a success, and the build- 
ing was sold to the school district for a public school, 
with the understanding that the higher branches 
should be taught. This not proving satisfactory 






f 






either to the district or people, a company was 
formed, another building erei ted, and the Fast Paw 
Paw Classical Seminary began operations, with I). I >. 
McGibbony as principal. The building bumfngdown 
I (ecember, 1870, the district turned over to the 1 om 
pany the building first erected. Mr. Frazer suc- 
ceeded Mr. McGibbony, and iu turn was succeeded 
by J. H. Beitel, the prim ipal now in charge. The 
s. In i.)l has always maintained a high reputation, but, 
owing to many villages springing up within a radius 
of a few miles, it has not met with the financial suc- 
cess it deserves. The present Trustees are Robert 
Hampton, C. H. Card, Henry Dickinson, Henry 
Boardman, O. D. Edwards, William Patrick, J. B. 
Hyde, Robert Boston and William Weddell. The 
institution is now known as the Tea* hers' Institute 
and Classical Seminary. 

George I. Talbot, County Superintendent, in his 
annual report for the year ending June 30, 1884, 
gives the following interesting facts in relation t' 1 the 
public schools: There were ten school districts, 
three of which had school less than no days during 
the year. In each of the districts was a frame school- 
house, the total value of all being $4,800. There 
were 340 persons under 2t years of age, of whom 2 \\ 
were between the ages of 6 and 21. Of this number 
182 were enrolled in the schools. Twenty-two teach- 
ers had been employed, receiving a salary on an 
average of $29.30 per month, the highest being $40 
and the lowest $20. The tax levy was $2,220. 

A postoffice was established at Ross Grove at hi 
early day. In 1849 Wheeler Hedges was Postmas- 
ter. His receipts for the year were $1.09. It is not 
probable the office was established before 1848. \. 
cording to John Wentworth, Moei Bartlett was Post 
master in 185 1, George V. Miner in 1853, Charles 
Davis in 1855. During that year H. H. Clark was 
appointed and removed to its present site at the c io-s 
roads. Matthew Nisbit succeeded Clark, and the 
office was then successively held by J- L. Holme-. 
John Freetly and Charles Davis. Others held it tor 
short intervals until iS^, when the incumbent, \ 
1 teniming. was appointed. 

A postoffice was established under the name of 
Paw Paw Grove in 1837, with Asahel Baldwin as 
Postmaster. Mr. Baldwin wis succeeded the fol- 
lowing year by William Rogers, who held it until 



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In 1842 1 In. nn W I was appointed and held it foi 

several years, being succeeded b) \ B. Breese. Sm 
ceeding him, in turn, the office was held by Walter 
Hyde, George Brownlow, II. \ Van Riper and 
'inn l obdell, the lattei being appointed in 1884. 
rhe receipts of the offi e in [837 were $2.87. 

The village of East Paw Paw is situated on the 

west line ol the county on 7, on the old Chi- 

1 ago and Galena stage road ["he village lies partly 
m De K.illi and parti) in Lee County, and contains 
general store and postoffii e, 1 onducted by Ben- 
jamin Lobdell, a wagon and carriagi shop by II. S. 
Dickinson, and a hotel and blacksmith-shop. It 
boasts of the edm itional establishment already men- 
tioned— the Teachers' Institute and Classical Sem- 
inary. It also has two 1 hurches, a union and 
Methodist Episcopal. 

The first house was built at this point by William 
Rogers, in [837, and used as a public house. He 
sold out to Mr. Jacob Wirii k in [842. The latter 
enlarged the building and named it the Paw Paw 
House. He conducted it successfully as a public 
house for mam years. 

The first men hants here were the Howard Broth- 
ers. J. L. Ad. mis, .1 Mi Warren, and the sons of 
Jacob Wirick were among the early traders. 

Before the building of the railroad south of tin- 
grove. East Paw Paw became quite a flourishing vil- 
lage, .md was considered one of the best trading 
1 k lints lor miles around. At one time there were two 
general merchandise stores, .1 drug store, and other 
places of business here. 

The " Chi 1 tgo road " (so called) which 1 losses the 
township from east to west, entering on the east near 
the northeast (orner of section [2, takes a general 
W( terl) course, ,ind leaves the township near the 
southwest ( orner of section 7. 

This road is historic for the reason that it was the 
great thoroughfare in early days tor travel and freight- 
ing between Chicago and Galena and the country 
west to the Mississippi. Over this road in the pion- 
eer days rolled the heavy leather-spring Concord 
ies, loaded inside and out with eager land-seek- 
ers and speculators, while the heavy freight wagons 
plodded their slow way, following ea< h other in quick 
succession. Over this road, the farmers of those 
days, whose homes lay westward of this township, 
hauled their surplus produce to Chicago. 



The Paw Paw Mutual Eire In^ Co. was or- 
ganized Sept. 6, and began business Sept. 9, [881. 
The lust officers were: Simeon E. Hyde, Pres.; 
Grifleth, Sec'y; R. V. Hampton, Treas. The 
company has written about $100,000 worth of busi- 
ness. The business is limited to Paw I'aw Town- 
ship. Losses are paid within 60 days by assess- 
ments on the members. 

.The assessed valuation of lands and pel 
propert) in this township for [884, is as follows 
binds. $337,707<! personal property, $101,533. 
. $439,240. The State Board of Equalization, 
that it might conform to the low assessments made 
in other counties, red 11 (I'd the total to $391,975. 
Among the articles ed were horses, 1,015; 

ne.it cattle, 3,208; mules and asses, 28; sheep, 
965, hogs, 3,865 ; melodeons and oigaiis. 15 ; pianos, 

a ; 1 .linages and wagons, 334; watches and clocks, 
■ 16 The total number of acres of improved I md 
1 • j 1,032, the largest number of any township in the 
county. 

1 11 i:\ Isiiks. 



it Edwards...., 1850-1 
William Sh c p] ird 11 

1 

'I'.'ii! 

ri H ampion 

\ Doli 

1 1 ampton 1 

V II. Powers 1867-9 



1 1870-2 

Robert Hampton 
Cornelius W. Qui Ih 
II 11 1 \ M Boai hii.,11 1 

1 W . Quilhol 

M. Board in hi . . 1S78-S1 
1 . w Quilhol 1883 

Robi 11 I lamp 




PIERCE TOWNSHIP. 

^FgjS^ONGRESSIONAL. township 39 north, 
range 5 east, is known as the cavil town 
ship of Pierce, so named in honor ol 
Franklin Pierce, who at the time of its 
<iii/.ation was just inaugurated as Presi- 
dent of the United States. It is bound on 
the east b) Kane County, on the north by Cortland 
Township, on the south by Squaw Grove, and on 
the west by Alton. The headwaters of the Big 
Rock Creek aie in this township. It is a prairie 
country, the northern half being undulating, while 
the southern half is rather flat. It has been an 
excellent wheat country in the past, and in 1870 
it produced more of that cereal than any other 
township in the. county. 

Elder Nathan Wilcox has the honor of being the 
fust to locate in what is now the township of Pierce. 



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He located in the north part of the township in i S47. 
During that year John Lasher, a native of Pennsyl- 
vania, and Jacob F. Plapp, a native of Germany, 

came and selected their future homes. Lasher 
selected the southeast quarter of section 24. He 
built a substantial frame house, lived there until 
1855, when he sold out and removed to Iowa. lie- 
now lives in Dubuque. Plapp selected the north- 
east quarter of section 24. but did not permanent!} 
settle until about two years later. He died on the 
homestead in January, 1885. 

In 1.X4X Michael Welsh, a native of Ireland, came 
and entered land on section II, improved a farm 
and there lived and died. 

Jacob Lintner came from Lake Co. ,111., and located 
on section 25. He was born in Dauphin Co., Penn. 
in 1799- His wife was Frances Shaflfner, also of 
the same county and State. In 1S2S they settled 
in Richland Co., Ohio, where they remained until 
1844, when they settled in Lake Co., 111. Mr. Lint- 
ner died on the homestead in iS^o. His widow 
successfully managed the farm until her death, 
Much 23,1883. They had eight children, only 
one of whom is now a resident of the township — Mrs. 
Frederick Hoffman. 

There were a number of arrivals in 1S49, among 
whom were Henry Ramer, Christian Meyer, (leorge 
Eberly, David Gerlach, Bernard Milnamow, Thomas 
Gormley, Malachi Henaughan, John Allen and 
Josiah Jacob. Ramer was from Pennsylvania. He 
settled on section 27, and there died. Meyer also 
settled on sei lion 27. -He now resides in Sandwich. 
Eberly was also from Pennsylvania. He located on 
section 26. He died here. His son, George, lives 
on the same section. Gerlach chose for his home a 
portion of section 24. He is now dead, but has two 
sons living in the township, Samuel on the home- 
stead and Anderson on section 14. Henaughan 
located on sec lion 19. He is now dead. Two mid-, 
survive him, who yet reside in the township. Milna- 
mow, Allen and Gormley all yet reside in the town- 
ship. All are Irishmen. 

Among other pioneers of the township were Levi 
and Moses Hill, Thomas Hal lor an, P. Home, I'. 
Dunn, L. Hennegan, John Ferrick, the Butlers and 

I hllons. 

Pier* e Township was first included in Somonauk 
precinct, subsequently in Orange precinct, then in 




Richland. 

to Squaw 

Township. 

township. 



Until [853 the north half was attached 

Crove, and the south half to Cortland 
In that year it was organized as a civil 



SUPERVISORS. 



tt. S. Champlin 1853-4 

' ■ II umiston '8s5-y 

B. VI ilnemow i860 

S. I knh.ii 

I Gormle J 

V 1'. 1 ittrcll 

<;. W. Slatci .... 

< Mil ton 1867-8 



P. W Gallagher . .1869 

I .! W .1 I, .187O-I 

IS72-3 

H 1 874-8 

I I ' Gormle) 1879-81 

1 hai i' VII 1882-3 

V. ' .. Smith 1884 



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The first school in the township was taught by 
William J. Bates, in 1S50, on section .X. The school- 
house was made of split poles. Mr. Pates t. 
21 terms in that district. In relation to the present 
status of the public si hools of the tow nship, the fol- 
lowing items are gleaned from the report of the 
County Suprintcndcnt of Public Schools for the year 
ending June 30, 1SS4 : There were 416 persons in 
the township under 21 years of age, of whom 296 
were over six. Of this number 272 were enrolled in 
the public schools. There were eight districts, each 
having a frame school-house, the total value of 
which was estimated at $6,250. Each district had 
school over 110 days during the year, in which 24 
teachers were employed, receiving an average- 
monthly salary of $34.43, the highest being $45 and 
the lowest $25. The tax levy was §2,220. 

Elder Wilcox was probably the first to preach 
Christ and Him crucified in the township. There 
are in 1885 two Church organizations — the Evangeli- 
cal Association and the Luthei 

The first meetings of those holding the views of 
the Evangelical Association were held at the house 
of John Lasher about 1849, near the county line. 
The people of Kane and De Kalb Counties met to- 
gether to worship in private houses on both sides of 
the line for some years. Revs. Hall, Rockuts and 
Weldv were the firsl preachers. John Slump was the 
first class-leader and Jacob Lintnei 
the first members were David Gerlach and wife ; 
Benjamin Moss and wife; John Shoop and wife: 
George Eberly and wife; Jacob Lintner and wife; 
John Kuter and wile; J. F. Plapp and wife ; John 
Bartmeis and wife; John Schwitzer and wife; Val- 
entine Hummel and wife; Christopher Hummel and 
wife; John Lesher and Peter Hummel. A 
a church building was erected on the southwest quar- 
tet of section 24. It i- a frame -tun tine, and still 









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in use. It was dedicated b) Bishop Esher, of Chi- 
owns .1 parsonage conveniently 
located near the church. There are now 150 mem- 
bers connected with the society. Peter Hummel, 
Jacob Runes and < (scar Ramer are the class-leaders; 
Andrew Gerlach, Thomas Shoop, Fred. Lent/, and 
George Schule, stewards; Petei Hummel, Fred. 
Lentz, George Ramer, George Schule and J. Kuter, 
trustees. Rei I tcob R. Schultz is the present pas- 
tor. Services are held in German and English. A 
Sabbath-school is connected with the Church, with 
I tcob Weber superintendent. 

The first meetings of the Lutheran Church were 
held at the school-house in District No 2, in 1870, 
and were conducted l>y Rev. John Andreas, from 
Somonauk. \.a organization was effected embracing 
the families ol Henry Rath, Petei Conse, Charles 
I rellenbach, Joseph 1 tellenbach, Demst, George Motz, 
Frank Redeleperger, August Conse, Henry Schmidt, 
Heniy Anspach, Hartman Schule and William 
Nehring. The so< tetj met for worship in the school- 
house until 1872, when a neat frame church build- 
ing was erected on the northeast quarter of section 
33, whii h, together with the furniture, cost $2,400. 
There arc now ju families .belonging to the society. 

Pierceville postoRice was established in 1854, with 
Moms Hill as postmaster. His commission was 
dated February 21, [854. The office was at his 
house, which was on the route from Sycamore to 
Cortland. Mail was received from each direction 
twice a week. In 1857 Mr. Hill resigned, after 
whi( h time, until 1879, various persons held the office, 
until 1879, when Mr. Hill* was reappointed. He 
served until 1 883, when ( reorge S< hule w as appointed, 
and is the im umbent. Mail is received three times 
each week from Hinckley. 

The fust birth in the township was that of a child 
of John Lesher, in 1849. The second birfh was that 
ol Mary Jane Meyer, daughter of Christian Meyer, 
born October 6, 1850. She is now the wife of Val- 
entine 1 luminel. 

The first death was that of Jacob Limner. He 
was first buried on his farm, but his remains were 
subsequent!) removed and interred in the cemeterj 
of the Evangelic al Assoc iation 

One hundred men were furnished b) the township 
• I; liellion. 

PieiCC roifl ■'■.'-> 1 had 22,351 acres of im- 



proved land, valued at $.'91,915, as reported by the 
local assessor. The personal property, according 
to the same authority, was valued at $56,756. This 
total of $348,67 1 was redlli ed by the State Hoard of 
Equalization to $315,293. Among the items of pi 
sonal property as,rssed this year were the following ; 
Horses, 624; cattle, 2,351; mules and asses, 24: 
sheep, 53; hogs, 2,092 ; carriages and wagons, 160; 

watc hes and clo.ks, 125; sewmg and knitting ma- 
chines, 102; piano,. (1 ; inelodeons and organs, 26. 



3HABBONA TOWNSHIP. 

II M'd'a INA township is named in honor o 
m. the celebrated Indian chief, Shabbona. who 

long made his home at the beautiful grove 




long made his home at the beautiful grove 
which also bears his name. It is a (\nv body 
of land, comprising township 38, range 3 east, 
big Indian ('reek enters the township on sec- 
tion 31, runs in a northeasterly direction through sec- 
tions 32, 29, 28, 22, 21, then taking a southeasterly 
direction, passes through sections 23,26 and 36, into 
Paw Paw Township. The Rishwaukee River heads 
in the northern part of the township. 

The Chicago & Iowa Railroad runs through the 
central and northwestern part of the township. 

The first settlers were Edmond Towne and David 
Smith, who arrived here in December, 1835.* The 
former was 'a man of family, while the latter was a 
youth of 14, and a step-son of Mr. Towne. They 
raised a log house on the southwest epiarter of sec- 
tion 25, on the first day of January, 1836. The next 
settler was Ira Parks, who located at the west end of 
the grove. lb- was from Ohio, and resided here till 
1875, when he removed to Earlville, w here he still 
resides. Next came Nathan Olmslead, followed a 
hule later by his brothers William and Lewis. They 
were from Chemung Co., N. Y., and made their set- 
tlement on sections 25 and 36. The two latter are 
still residents of the township. Coleman Olmsted 
and family came along about a year later and lo- 

David S h asserts 1 liai Ik' ca mc in D 1 ( ind that the 

F which in. nt 1 s made was erected Jan ■ . 1 We think he 

is in error, a he acknowledges that a settlement wa m t made at Paw 
I and the earliest date - laimed for the latter is the summei 

of 1835 rhe date claimed hy Mr. Smith is c er] 

knowledged faci in relation to the v. crimes settlements made in the 
county, .ecu! *c hie h haveal 



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cated on section 25. He subsequently removed to 
Missouri, but returned 10 De Ralb County and died 
at the residence of his son, 1). I). Olmsted, in Clin- 
ton Township a few years ago. Among other early 
settlers were William, Lyman and Jeff. Sturtevant 
and Datins Horton. 

During the next few years 1 [uite a number of set- 
tlers came in and a village was started on the smith 
MiK of the grove on section 26, known as Shabbona 
('■rove. John Olmstead opened the first store and 
Mi. Adams the set ond. The latter soon after sold 
out to Warren & Marks — S. 1!. Warren and Win. 
Marks. A postoffice Was established here about 1S4S, 
Mr. Marks being the first postmaster. Mr Marks, 
is said to have been one of the twelve apostle-, ol 
Joseph Smith, the Mormon prophet. The office is 
still continued. 

Mr. Curtis opened the first drug store at the 
Grove, and was also for a time postmaster. He was 
convicted of robbing the mail and sent to the State 
/\ prison, where he died. 

The first white child born in the township was 
Charles C. Johnson, son of C. P. Johnson, Sept. 1 1, 
[838. 

David Smith, although but a boy, made a claim on 
section 24 the year he came to the township. 

The first farm house was built by Win. Olmstead 
in 1S42. 

The first religious services were held at the house 
of Nathan Olmstead in 1848 [1838] b\ Rev. Burton 
Carpenter, .1 Baptist minister. The first Methodist 
services were at the house of Coleman Olmsted in 
tin- fall of 1841. Meetings were held in the house 
in the winter, and in the barn in summer, of that 
year, Rev. Mr. Morris officiating. The Methodists 
erected the first house of worship in rS64 ; the first 
services held therein were the funeral services of Mr. 
M. V. Allen, Sept. 21, 1864. A union church was 
built about the same time, but the Methodist Episco- 
pal church was the first dedicated. Both churches 
were in the village of Shabbona drove-. 

The first Congregational Church of Shabbona (the 
old town) was organized Sept. 10, 1S54. Among 
those in the organization were Wm. J. Noble and 
wife, John Campbell and Thomas Battes. Meetings 
were held in Center School house, District No. ;. 
Rev. Stephen batten was the first pastor. The or- 
ganization continued about ten years. 



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The first school in the township was in the winter 
of 1S42 3, at the house of Mi. Win. C. Olmstead 
Win. Curtis was tlu' teacher. He received $12.50 
per mouth and boarded himself. The school was on 
the subscription plan, and the Olmstead families fur- 
nished the greater number of scholars. The first 
school-house was built on the west side of Indian 
Creek, on the north side of the road. It was used for 
religious purposes as well until the church buildings 
were erected. The house was of logs and erected in 
the fall of 1843. Eliza Horton was the first tea< her 
in this house. A new school-house was built on the 
west side of the creek in 1846. It was a frame build- 
ing, situated a quarter of a mile west ol where the 
M. E. church was subsequently built. There are 
now in this township 664 persons under 21 years of 
age, of whom 452 are between the ages of 6 and _■ 1 . 
There are ten school districts, with one graded and 
nine ungraded schools. During the year ending 
June 30, 18S4, there were 393 pupils enrolled in the 
schools. There were 22 teachers employed. The 
highest monthly wages paid any ten her was §65, 
and the lowest $20. The estimated value of school 
property is $9,000. The tax levy for the support of 
schools was $(-,25 >. There are ten frame school- 
houses in the township. 

The first cemetery was opened near the center of 
section 25. Mrs. Lyman was the first interred. She 
died in 184001' 1841. A dozen bodies were proba- 
bly buried here. The ground was soon abandoned. 

The first regular cemetery was established on the 
farm of David Smith on section 27. 

The first decoration of soldiers' graves was con- 
ducted by Rev. Fletcher Pomeroy, in June. 1877. 

In its best days Shabbona Grove contained three 
general stores, a tin shop, a boot and shoe shop, two 
wagon and blacksmith shops, a tailor shop, two ho- 
tels and two churches A large business was trans- 
acted. 

The last Indian payment in De Kalb County, and 
doubtless in the State, was made in 1835, on sec 
tion ^5. 

The early settlers of Shabbona. like the pioneers 
of other sections, believed w hisky to be indispensable 
in house or barn raisings. When Edmond Towne's 
house was raised, a 111 sk of whisky was found secreted 
near by, supposed to have been the propert) ol the 
Indians. It was confiscated and added zest to the 






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Z>i5 A' A LB COUNTY 



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on For the next few years it was the 1 ustom 
1 supply at such gatherings. This 
practice was continued until the raisin- ol Coleman 
Olmstead's barn (the first frame barn in the town- 
ship), in the spring ol (842 Mi Olmstead refused 
i.. furnish whisky, at which innovation there was .1 
bitter protest. He substituted a warn r, with 

good coffee, which was voted satisfactory From 
that time a warm meal, with coffee, took the place ol 
n hisky at such gatherings. 

In the winter of 1847 8, Shabbona, the Indian 
chief, in compan) with Wyman Gates, went to M 1 h 
ington and there sold to the latter all of his reserva- 
tion except 60 acres, which lie reserved for a home. 
1 [e re< eived about ^3,000 for the same, but lost ii all 
on his return. In the spring of 1848 he went to 
K insas and spenl some time then- and in Arkansas, 
hut not being satisfied he returned to his old home 
at the grove, in 1851,011!) to find it in the possession 
..1 \ 1. Kettle, who purchased the same ol G 
who in some way had a claim on it. Shabbona 
camped with his famil) on one 01 Vanderventer's 
lots, but was soon driven He went to Kan- 

kakee, but subsequently located on a tracl of jo 

neai Morris, Grundy County, which was pur- 
chased for him with monej 1 lised foi the purpose al 
( Ittawa. See biograph) of Shabbona on page 534. 

The so-called English settlement, in the western 
part of Shabbona Township, was begun in the fall of 
1851. Five young Englishmen— Thomas Wright, 
Septimus Storey, William Cutis, George Gloss up and 
me together and were the pio- 
neers of the settlement, taking this land from the 
Government. The first house was built l>y Mr. 
Glossup, on the southeast quartei of section t8. 

Here the whole part) kept "bachelor's hall" and 

the pl.ue was headquarters for numerous English im- 
migrants till the) could construct homes,for them- 
selves. Among the earl) members of the settlement 
were Robert Mullins, Reuben Challand, Thomas 
Dalton and Fames Hutton. Many of these early 
settlers and their descendants are still residents of 
the township. Th< I iiiill Methodist Epis- 

copal church, in [869, on the southeast quarti 
section 18. A school-house was built in 1857 in 
what is now District No. 6, in which Mrs Withei 
spoon taught the first school. The first religious 
meetings 111 the settlement were in the school-house 





in iSiio, Rev. Mr. Ambrose officiating. Rev. Mi. 
Stoddard ».h subsequent!) the local pastor. A 
established al an early day, on station 
[8, one acre in extent. The ground, excepting lots 
sold, is the property ol Mr. Storey. 

Shabbona Township report-, -'2,157 aires of im- 
proved lands, the assessed value of which is given 
at $318,629. The assessed value of town lots was 
1 -■ ; ..1 personal property, $124,721. Total, 
,192. The State Board of Equalization reduced 
the total to $435,392. Among the items of pei 
propert) 1 n ;sed were, horses, 634; cattle, 2,783; 
mules and asses. 22; sheep, 635 ; hogs, 2,800; me- 
lodeons and organs, 11: goods and merchandise, 
$[3,765 ; pianos, S : carriages and wagons, 237; 
wat< he and 1 loi ks, 90; credits, 83 s . 503. 

The Inst town meeting was held al the house of 
William Marks, \pnl 2, 1S50, at which meeting Mr. 
Maiks was Chairman, and Richard Holmes, Clerk, 
There were 36 votes cast at the election which fol- 
lowed. The following named were elected: Rich- 
ard Holmes, Supervisor; '/.. W. Lanqiort, Clerk; 
h.i Park, Assessor; Harve) E. Allen, Collector; 
William White, Overseer of the Poor; William Marks, 

Justice of the Peace; II. E. Allen and Is.i.m I 
Mi ) »e, i lonstables, 



u ,11, tm Mark! 

Isaac J. Com , 

! 
II E Viler 
U I > Stei 1 ns 
0. Norton 
P \ Quilhol 
Frederick Ball 



I ' I ' 1872 

I 5 Wlin, 

: 

Quilhol 
1 '> lilhol 



Village of Shabbona. 






I, vi\ I ; I > pn-tl lei \ illage "I it i/e c til be found 1 11 

Lj'aflv this legion ol ntr\ than thai "I Shah- 

W% bona. It was surveyed and platted in 
•A^yS 1S72, on land belonging to Francis E. Him k- 
r, ley, John Pale n, Catherine Palen, John Ray, 
Elizabeth Kay, Charles Stevens and Cynthia T. 
Stevens. It is located on sec lion 15, township of 
Shabbona. 

A village had been platted at the junction of the 
C. & I. and c B & Q. Ra aboul one-half 

mile west, to wlin h was given the name oi * lornton. 
A temporary depot had been constructed, John Ra) 



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and William Husk had begun the sale of merchan- 
dise .mil other line- of business had either Ween 
started or were in contemplation. The she was 
favorable, and only one thing was required to make 
it the regular station of the railroad— a donation of 
some of the land to interested railroad men. This 
some of the proprietors refused to do; therefore a 
removal was determined Upon and Cornton was 
doomed. 

The first building erected in the village of Shab- 
bona was by W. II. Kay, the present editor of the 
Express, in the fall of 1872. Previous to this, how- 
ever, a building had been moved in from the country, 
by James Nit tali, the one used by Mi. Alexander 
as a s'ore building. William Husk then moved his 
store building from Comton and opened the fust 
mercantile establishment in the new village. He is 
still in business. Mr. Husk's family was the first to 
make this their home, moving in before Mr. Ray had 
( ompleted his building. 

J. M. Bean & Co. began business shortly after 
Mr. Husk and were the second to represent the mer- 
cantile interests of the place. A few months later 
1 ' ' 

•!<£> A. S. Jackson moved in from Shabbona drove and 
= commenced business here. 

In the spring of 1S73, S. M. French opened an 
exclusive grocery store and was the first representa- 
tive of that class. 

In the fall of the same year M. V. Allen com- 
menced his drug business which he still continues. 
He was the pioneer in that line of trade. 

Frederick Stein removed to the village from Corn- 
ton late in the tall of 1S72 and was the fust shoe- 
maker. He now resides at Lee. Aaron Vanness 
opened a second shop the following spring. 

Isaac Ackerblade was the pioneer blacksmith, 
erecting and operating a shop shortly after the vil- 
lage was located. I'm Branscomb, a wagon-maker, in 
the spring of 1S73, commenced business in his line, 
running in connection a blacksmith shop, with C. H. 
Carroll employed to work in that department. 
Stephen Branscomb was next in order. 

\V. F. Heeg, in the winter of 1S72-3, opened a 
stock of furniture. He is yet in the trade. 

The first exclusive hardware store was started in 
1873 by Crapser, Coleman & Co. J. M. Bean & 
^^ Co. had carried a good line of such goods, 

Dean & Spears started the first meat-market in 
\^ the winter of 1872-3. 






^ 



s. <;. Gilbert was the pioneer in the restaurant 
business, 1 ommeni tng Jan. 1 , 1 876, 

The fust grain-buyers were Smith & Pollack, who 
commenced business in Cornton and who removed 
here in the spring ol 1873 ami erected an eli 
tor. Samuel Bouslough came about the same time. 

I le had also been in business in 1 Orn 

Smith & Pollack were the first stoi , be- 

ginning business as soon aftei the location of the 
village as arrangements could be made for handling 
stock. 

John Ray -old the first lumber in Cornton, but 
gave way to Smith & Pollack, who had the fust yard 
in Shabbona. 

Other brant lies of business followed from time to 
time, the village in. reased in number of inhabit 
and in wealth until it presents its present neat and 
attractive appearance. 

Malm a postoffice was established about 1855. 
The first postmaster is said to have been Ira Fisher, 
the office being at Mr. fisher's house, situated near 
the geographical center of the township. Mi. M ir- 
yott sun ceded Mr. Fisher after several years. Will- 
iam Husk succeeded Mr. Fisher after several years. 
William Husk succeeded Maryott in 1X71 and the 
office was removed to Cornton. The name was 
changed to Shabbona, but subsequent 1\ 
back to Cornton and then again changed to Shab- 
bona. William Husk is still postmaster. 

The educational interests of the village are well 
attended to. In 1876 the present school building 
was erected and occupied Nov. '1, with S. If Eialloi k, 
principal, and Miss Viola Thomas, assistant. F01 
the school year of [877 8, F. I.. Ruggles was em- 
ployed .1. principal, with Miss Thomas, assistant. 
In 1878-9, Mr. Ruggles was continued as principal, 
with Miss Loraney Smith, assistant. In 1X79-80, 
I,. M. Whitney was principal and Jessie ('. Morse, 
assistant. I n [880-1, George I. Talbot, the present 
County Superintendent of Schools, was prim ip d. with 
Miss Morse, assistant. The two were continued the 
following year. The school-house becoming too 
small to accommodate the increased number ol 
pupils in the district, an addition was built. For 
the yeai 1882—3, Mr. Talbot was again chosen as 
principal, with Miss Morse teacher in the inter- 
mediate and Mis- Mary Streeter in the primary de- 
partment. In January, 1883, Mr. Talbot resigned, 
having been elected County Superintendent. G. \ 






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Maxwell was elected to fill the vacancj and served 
out the year. In 1883 1, Mr, Maxwell was con- 
tinued as principal, with Miss Ella Quinn in the 
intermediate m\<\ Miss Emma (Thailand in the 
primary department. On the -•-<!. >i February, 1884, 
Mi>s Quinn resigned and Miss Morse was eng 
■•' nil out the unexpired term. In 1884 5, Mr. 
Maxwell was again principal, with Miss (Thailand 
in the intermediate and Mis. Mary Andrews in the 
primary department. In January, 1885, there were 
1 .- 1 pupils enrolled. 

Tin' cemetry near the village, known as Ray's 

Cemetery, was platted by John Ray in 1874. It is 

1 In- northwest corner of section 15. All unsold 

lots aic yel the private property of Mr Kay. There 

are about live ai res included in the plat. 

RELIGIOUS. 

The Baptist Church ol Shabbona was organized 
Jul) -•''. 1874. The constituent members were Rev. 
William F. Stable. Barbara Stable, John Ray, Eliza- 
beth Ray, Frederick Stein, Catherine Stein, Conrad 
Heeg, Henrietta Mil:, ('ail Burger, Emily Burger, 
Emma Burger, Christian Heeg, Elizabeth Buck. The 
first trustees were John Kay, J. W. Stevens, Isaac 
Davis, Charles Stevens .mil William Husk. These 
trustees were made a building committee. Steps 
were taken at once for the erection ol' a house of 
worship, which was completed and dedicated Nov. 
28, 1 S- 1, Rev. John Young preaching the sermon on 
the occasion. The Church was recognized on this 
oc casion. The e ost of the building was £4,500. Its 
seating capacity is 250. Revs. I). B. Gunn and L. 
II. Holt were the first ministers employed by the 
Church. The first regular pastor was Rev. E. L. 
Clouse, who was installed March 7,1875. He served 
until Dec. 1, 1878, and was succeeded by Rev. D. 
W. Hicks, who served ovei lour years. The church 
was then supplied by students from Morgan Park 
Theological Seminary, until Nov. 1. r 884, when Rev. 
A. M. Hunt assumed the pastorate. The present 
membership of the Church is 45. fts officers are 
|ohn Ray, W. Dunham, Deacons; Cyrenius Bailey, 
Clerk; John Ray, Treasurer; John Kay, Cyrenius 
Bailey, Christian Heeg, William II. Ray, C. H. Huli- 
bell, Trustees. 

A meeting for the purpose of considering the pro- 

izing a < longregational 01 Presb) terian 

Church in Shabbona, was held March 26, 1S76. It 



was then determined to organize a Congregational 
Church. Rev. J. E. Roy, of Chicago, was invited to 
attend a meeting i"i t hat pi n pose. A' 1 ording'.y, on 
the 3d of April, 1876, he 1 ame and prea< bed, morn- 
ing and evening, in the Baptist Church. The fol- 
lowing named then agreed to become members of the 
nization : Mrs. J. |.. Greenfield, Marietta Alex- 
ander, Lillian Greenfield, Charles Stevens and wile 
Thomas Padgetl and wife, Robert Langford and 
wife, Isaac Davis and wife, William Deacon and wife, 

S; ul Bouslough and wife, Gertrude G. Bous- 

lough, Mary C. Bouslough, James Shanks, Hattie 
Stevens. Cora Stevens, Alexander McKinnie and 
wife. \ council was held for perfecting the organ- 
ization and reorganizing it as a Congregational body 
April (>, 1876. Rev. J. E. Roy acted as Moderator, and 
Rev. N. A. Prentiss delivered a discourse. The fol- 
low ing officers « ere elected . < lharles Stevens, tsaa« 
Davis, Deacons ; William Deacon, Treasurer; Rob- 
ert Langford, James Shanks, J. I,. Greenfield, Trus- 
tees. The society in 1879 erected a neat church 
edifice which was dedicated Nov. 6, 1879. 

SOCIETIES. 

Shabbona Lodge, No. 374, A. I''. & A. M., was 
chartered by the Grand Lodge Oct. 21, 1862. The 
first meeting was held under dispensation May 13, 
1862, with M. V. Allen, W. M.; G. \l Vlexander, S. 
W.; I'' reel Ball, J. W.; William Marks, jr.. Tn 
Thomas S. Terry, Sec.; A. S. Jackson, S. D.; I.. 
Marks, J. D.; I. lv Morse, Tyler; H. F.. Allen, I. J 
Parks, Stewards. Three petitioners were received — 
Julius Horton, Nelson Hotchkiss, T. ( '. Forbes. The 
first meeting under the charter was held Oct. 21, 
[862. The old officers were continued by order of 
the ('.rand Lodge until the annual election for offi- 
cers. M. V. Allen, W. M., having entered the army, 
G. M. Alexander was called to the chair and served 
out the unexpired term. The first annual election 
was held Dec. 16, 1862. and the following named 
officers were installed Dec. 30, rSr>2: G. M. Alex- 
ander, W. M.; Fred Ball, S. W.; 11. E. Allen, J. W.; 
K. J. Park, Treas; William Marks, So ,; J. Horton, 
s. D; H. Clapsaddle, J. D.; T. W. Forbes, Tyler; 
Nelson Hotchkiss, I. F. Morse, Stewards. The char- 
ter members were Martin V. Allen, C.iles M. Alex- 
ander, Fred Hall, William Marks, jr., Thomas S. 
Terry, Aaron S. Jackson, Llewellyn Marks, jr.; Harvey 
E. Allen, Rodney J. Park, Isaac F. Morse and some 






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others. The charter located the lodge at Shabbona 
Grove. A dispensation for its removal to Shabbona 
Station was granted November 3, 1874, and its 
removal was accomplished soon after. A hall for 
lodge purposes had been erected by the lodge and 
individual members. This was burned March 23, 
1877. There was no insurance. Another building 
wa at on< e ere< ted. The lodge room is large, well- 
furnished and with suitable ante-rooms. The first 
meeting in the new hall was held Aug. 7, 1877. The 
present officers are M. V. Allen, W. ML; William 
Husk, S. \\\; F. A. Frost, J. W.; P. V. Quithot, 
Treas.; J. W. Middleton, Sec; J. M. Baird, S. 1).; 
Charles Hutchins, J. D.; T. \V. Stimpson, Tyler. 

T. S. Teny Post, No. 463, G. A. R., was organ- 
ized June 14, T8S4. The following named were the 
first officers: A. L. Wells, C; M. V. Allen, S. V. C; 
Robert Boston, J. V. C.; William Deacon, Adj.; John 
McCorraick, Q. M.; D. W. Wesson, Surg.; Albion 
Tan a. Chap; T. B. Lucas, O. D.; Sidney Norton, 
0. G.; I. Hardy, Serg. Maj.; F. A. Frost, Q. M. S. 
The present officers are the same, with the excep- 
tion of that of F. M. Hinds, J. V. C, and F. O. 
Stevens, O. G. The post has a membership of 33 
ami meets on the first and third Saturday evening of 
each month. 

In 1866 a lodge of I. O. O. F. was organized at 
Shabbona Grove, under the name of Fertile Lodge. 
It gained a membership of 30 in four years, but, on 
account of a want of harmony among its members, 
surrendered its charter. John Belden was the first 
N. ('.. and 1. F. Morse the last. 



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Village of Lee. 

EE, a pleasant little village, lies upon the 

line between the counties of Lee and 

De Kalb. It lies mostly in Lee County, 

a portion equal to about 30 acres being in 

ibona Township, De Kalb County. It was 

commenced in 1S7 1, Christopher Jorgens open- 

1 bigness house. C. Christopher andOle 

J. Jorg< ns, proprietors of the grain elevator, were 

grain, coal and lumber dealers. Their office was 

situated just west of the railroad track, a little north 




of where the depot now stands, in Shabbona Town- 
ship. They opened the first general store at the same 
time. This was before there was any plat of the 
village. A Mr. White started the second store on 
the Lee side of the county line. Hugh Boyle owned 
the plat on the east and John Kennedy on the west. 

K. O. Ostewig, Jans Johnson, Lars L. Reisetter 
followed in the mercantile trade; the first two 
erected their buildings in Lee County. 

Ed. Bacon opened the first hotel, on the De Kalb 
County side. During the years 1872 and 1873 the 
village built up rapidly. At the present time it has 
a population of 500, does a large business and com- 
pares favorably with any station on the line north of 
Aurora. There are two churches — Catholic and 
Methodist Episcopal. There are also two elevators, 
one a horse-power, the other steam, both in Shab- 
bona Township. The steam elevator is owned and 
operated by Christopher & Jorgens, and has a ( apac- 
ity of 1 8, 000 bushels. The other elevator has a 
capacity of 8,000 bushels. A lumber and coal yard 
completes the business on the De Kalb side of the 
line. 



SOUTH GROVE TOWNSHIP. 

^OUTH GROVE has the well deserved 
' reputation of being one of the finest town- 



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ships in the county, li comprises town- 
ship 41, range 3, and is bounded on the north 
by Franklin, on the east by Mayficld. on the 
south by Malta, and on the west b\ Ogle 
County. It is watered by Owen's Creek, and has 
about 400 acres of natural timber, a portion of which 
has long since been known as South Grove. The 
other and smaller portion is known as Orput's Grove. 
With the exception of this timber, the township is 
exclusively prairie, the land being highly productive. 
It is said that the highest point of land between 
Chicago and the Mississippi Riveris in the southern 
portion of this township. 

The first settler here was William Driscoll, who, 
with his family, located on the east side of the grove, 
in 1838. He was followed by his father and 
brothers. The grove tor a time was known as 
Driscoll's Grove. 

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Solomon Wells was the next to locate here. He 
purchased of Driscoll the south end of the grove. 

In 1840 came the Orput family, which settled 
near the smaller grove, to which was given his 
name. The Beetnan and Hatch families arrived 
during the same year. 

In [841 James Byers, Benjamin Worden and Mr. 
Tindall came in. 

Jonathan Adee and Matthew Thompson came in 
1843. They were from New York, as were also 
Byers and Worden. 

In 1844 John S. Brown purchased the Beeman 
place on the northwest side of the grove. 

Among the others who came in soon after were 
I L;n, Safford, \V. H. Stebbins, Mr. Deyo, the 
Rickards, Beckers, Masons and Curriers. Many of 
the families of the early settlers yet remain in the 
tow nship. 

Solomon Wells was from Ohio. He was regarded 
as a good fellow, but with little enterprise. In 1843 
he removed to Wisconsin. 

Dexter Beeman was also from Ohio. For some 
years he ran a tavern at the grove, but finally sold 
out, moved to Oregon, Ogle Co., where he was liv- 
ing at last accounts. 

The Hatches were from Ohio, and moved to 
Wisconsin about the same time with Solomon Wells. 

Jesse Tindall was a native of New Jersey, but 
came to the county from Michigan in January, 1S42. 
He became a prosperous farmer, served as a mem- 
ber of the Board of Supervisors, and had many 
friends. He removed to Sycamore, where he died. 

William I'. Deyo came from Michigan, though not 
a native of thai State. After some years, in which 
he had his tips and downs, he returned to Michigan. 

James Byers was from New York, though of Scot- 
tish birth, coming to America from his native land 
in 1818. He was universalis esteemed by all who 
knew him. His wife died on the old homestead, but 
he died at Polo. 

John Orput was from Ohio. After remaining 
her.e for some years, he sold out and moved to R01 k- 
ford, where he has since died. 

Benjamin Worden was from New York. Few 
men in the north part of the county were better 
known. He was a jolly, free-hearted man, a man 
everybody liked. In the summer of 1884 he died, 
on the old homestead. 

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Jonathan Adee was also from New York. He 
died on the old homestead. 

In 1840 or 1 8 ) 1 , George Crull and Lucy Wells 
were united in marriage — doubtless the first in South 
Grove. 

The first religious services that were continued 
from time to time were held by Rev. Isaac Norton, a 
Free-Will Baptist. For the sum of $35 Mr. Norton 
agreed to hold services twice a month for one year, 
commencing in the fall of 1842. It must not be 
considered by those favorable to high-priced minis- 
try, that because the pay was poor the preach- 
ing must be of the same quality, for Mr. Norton had 
the reputation of being a very fair preacher. He 
subsequently organized a congregation which con- 
tinued in existence some years, but finally disbanded, 
man) of its members moving to other parts. 

Levi Lee, a local preacher, was the first of the 
Methodist Episcopal faith to preach in South G 
Rev. M. Sherman was of like faith and was 1 um- 
bered among the early preachers. A class was 
organized at an early day, which still meets at the 
school-house in the grove. 

The Advent is ts also organized a church and 
Sabbath-school in 1867, meeting for worship in the 
school-house in district No. 2. 

A great camp-meeting was held at the grove in 
i860, at which leading ministers from abroad ad- 
dressed vast audiences, and much interest was 
awakened. 

The first religious revival was held by Rev. Mr. 
Norton, the outgrowth of which was the organization 
of the Free-Will Baptist Church. 

A local writer thus speaks of educational matters : 
"The first school in South Grove was taught by 
James Byers, Sr., who furnished a school-house for 

his twenty-five pupils — the second 1 nin his double 

log cabin — and boarded himself, for $1 o per month. 
The young men and women about the grove will 
never forget that school — how the kind, genial voice 
of the teacher, softening down its rugged Scotch, 
cheered them over the frightful Alps of ' a, b, ab, and 
' two times one are two '—how the eyes were always 
blind to any fun, and* the laugh was ever as long and 
loud as that of the merriest urchin. No wo 
those boys and girls — a portion of them — ' played the 
mischief ' with some of the teachers who succeeded 
this model one. The first school-house was erected 






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in the grove. It was of logs, but nicely built, and 
considered quite a capacious one, though it was, after 
a time, pretty well filled with its sixty scholars. It 
was 20 x 22 feet, and well lighted, having a window 
five or six panes in width and two in height at ea< h 
end of the building. H. C. Beard and T. K. Waite 
were among the successful teachers in the log school- 
house. The second school-house was built on a fine 
site donated to the district by James Byers, Sr., in 
1854, and in 1868 another — a very pleasant and 
commodious one — the former having been destroyed 
by fire — was erected in the same place." 

In relation to the present status of the public 
schools in South Grove, the following items are 
gleaned from the report of the County Superintendent 
of Schools for the year ending June 30, 1884 : There 
were in the township six districts, each having a 
frame school-house, the total value being estimated 
al s 1,900. School was held in each district more 
than 1 10 days during the year. There were 326 
persons under 21 years of age, of whom 258 were 
over six years. Of this number 205 were enrolled 
in the public schools. Twelve teachers had been 
employed, the highest wages paid any being $50 per 
month, while the lowest was $30, an average of $34.05. 
The tax levy was $2,639. 

Before the construction of railroads, when all travel 
was by team, thetavern or wayside inn was numbered 
among the institutions of the day. South Grove was 
on the Oregon and St. Charles State Road, and here 
at an early day Mr. Beeman and Mr. Adee each ran 
a tavern for some years. A York shilling — twelve- 
and-a-half cents — was the customary price for a 
meal or a night's lodging. 

In 18S5 there were three postoffices in the town- 
ship — South Grove, Deerfield Prairie and Dustin. 

South Grove postoffice was established in 1841, 
with Timothy Wells as postmaster. He was suc- 
ceeded, in turn, by James Byers, Henry Sarford, E. 
Currier, Jonathan Adee and Mrs. E. A. Palmer, the 
latter being the incumbent. 

Deerfield Prairie postoffice was established in 
1858, P. Waterman being the first postmaster. He 
was succeeded by Mr. Wiltse. . James Richards is 
the present postmaster. 

Dustin postoffice, named in honor of Gen. Dustin, 
was established in 1868, with Henry Cristman as 
postmaster. 

South Grove reported to the assessor in 1884, of 

^^ — =^<m 




improved land, 21,853 acres, on which the assessor 
placed a total valuation of $317,480. Of personal 
property was reported $76,709; a total of $394,189. 
This was reduced by the State Board of Equalization 
to $349,743- Among the items assessed as personal 
property were the following: Mmses, 798; cattle, 
2,897; mules and asses, 15; sheep, 1,572; hogs, 
3,220; carriages and wagons, 238; watches and 
clocks, 141; sewing and knitting machines, 81; 
pianos, 6; melodeons and organs, 31. 

The township has been served by the following 
named as members of the Board of Supervisors: 



841 



John S. Brown I 

Willi. 1111 M . livers '851-52 

I • e I indall 1853-54 

JohnS. Brown '855-56 

J. :s Byers, Jr 1857-58 

I S . Brown 1859 

W. T. Adee 1860-61 

William M. Byers 1862-63 



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G. A. Gilli 1864-65 

Jr 1S66-67 

A. I III nil m 1868-71 

W. M. Byers '872-75 

James Gibson 1876 

Henry Cristman 1877-78 

! 1879-84 



' ■ ;■'•:'..' '■■: 



SQUAW GROVE TOWNSHIP. 






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^QUAW GROVE Township comprises Con- 
fC gressional township 38 N., range 5 E., and 
™ is bounded on the east by Kane County, 

IV, on the north by the township of Pierce, on 
the south by Somonauk, and on the west by 
Clinton. Little Rock Creek enters the town- 
ship on section 6, and, running in a southeasterly di- 
rection, passes out from section 36. Squaw Grove in 
the central, and another 'grove in the southwestern 
part, furnish the timber. 

Tradition has it tiiat in the summer of 1834 a party 
passed through the grove. Here they found a 1 
number of squaws with their pappooses, but no 
braves. The grove not being known by any name, 
one of the party asked the question, " What shall 
we call it?" " We will call it Squaw Grove; what 
could be more appropriate ? They have entire pos- 
session." " So be it," laughingly responded the other; 
" but what shall we call that little grove just east of 
it?" "Oh, we will call that Pappoose Grove." 

One of this party is said to have been a Mr. Hol- 
lenbeck, who made claim to a portion of the grove 
on the north, afterwards known as the Tanner farm. 
Returning to La Salle County, from which he came, 
Mr. Hollenbeck gave sucli a glowing description of 
the country that William Sebree, an old Virginian, 
with a large family, concluded to at once locate 

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Ik- is said 1 1 ► have arrived in September, 
[834, and was probabl) the first white man to per- 
manently locate in l>c Kalb County. On his arrival 

les, which he 1 
ered with lurk taken from th n wigwams oi 

the I ndians, and there his fai until he 

could erect a small log house. The winter following 
was quite severe, ami the old gentleman had his ears 
and nose fro/en while cutting prairie hay. 

\ man named Robson lived in a log 1 

.11 1 he 1 1 if Somonauk Creek, a few miles south, 

but al I the place at the approach of winter, 

leaving Sebree and his familj the onl) white inhabi- 
tants in this sectii itry. 

During the year 1 8^5 several families located in 
the township, among whom were those oi William 
Leggett, M. P. Cleveland. W itson V Pomerby, John 
Eastabrooks, Samuel Miller, John Boardman and 
Ja< 1 b Lee. 

William Leggett made claim to a tract of land on 
the south side of the -rove. He was from Indian.! 
Mr. Leggett sold to Mr. Ward and returned to In- 

M. P. Cleveland located at Pappoose Grove. He- 
was from New York. After remaining here a few 
years, he sold out, moved West and has since died. 

Watson Y. Pomeroy was a brother-in-law of Cleve- 
land, and was also from New York. 

John Eastabrooks was a native of Pennsylvani 
He located on the north side of Squaw drove, where 
he remained till his death in 1850. He w.i om 

panied here by his son Decatur and his daughter 
Mary. His wife and the remainder of his family 
came the following year. Decatui Eastabrooks 
moved .to Carroll County many y< 11 where he- 

yet resides When Mr. Eastabrooks came to the 
county he brought with him two large, pi >werful dogs. 
When the men were away from the house, the dogs 
woidd allow no om illy an Indian, to come 

near, unless 1 ailed off by Miss Eastabrooks. 

Samuel Miller was from Floyd Co., I ml I le re- 
mained here till his death. 

In 1836 several others came into the township, 

I iniothy L. Pomeroy and W. V 

Fay. Mr. 1 ise < rrove. I le 

quentl) became a Methodist preacher and yet 

hes the gospel .ere in the State. Mr, 

Fa) located on section 29, in the Somonauk timber. 

5^< £^-l^|][] 




But few of the settlers of 1 S ^5 are now In 
Among the number are Mrs. Ra< hel 1 W. 

i ■. 1 5ai 1 J sebree, W. M C. B Lee, 

Mrs. Mary E. Millard and Decatur Eastabrooks. OI 
the number Mrs. Lee, George W. and C. B. Lee, 
Mis. Sebree and W. M. Sebree yet reside in the town- 
ihip. I'M. be others, but these are the only 

ones remembered by 1 W. Lee. 

E W. \Cll iid and Mary E. Eastabrooks were 
united in marriage in November, 1836. This was 
irsl in the township. Esquire Root performed 
the ceremony. 

The first birth was that of Martha J me, daughter 
of William Sebree. She was born Oct. 14, 1835. 
She grew to womanhood in Squaw drove and sub- 
utly married Amos Jackson. She now lives al 
Janesville, Minn. John Miller has been thought to 
be the first, but it appears his birth did not occur for 
some months afterwards. 

The first death in the township is claimed by 
e W. Lee to be that of a Mr. Boardman, from 
whom Jacob Lee obtained his claim. The date must 
have been in the summer or fall of 1835. The first 
death of which the early settlers yet living have any 
distinct recollection was the death of Julia, daughter 
of E, W and Mary E. Willard. Her death occurred 
in 1S41. Mrs. Robert Sebree was the next to die in 
this township. 

The first physician to permanently locate in the 
township was Dr. Winslow, who located about two 
miles from the present village of Hinckley. 

The first school has been a matter of dispute. It 
is asserted by some that Jane Sanford taught a term 

liool in the summer of 1840, and that M. P. 
Cleveland succeeded her in the winter following. 
Both terms were held in the house of Jacob Lee. 
Others say Mr. Cleveland taught the first, and was 

:eded by Miss Sanford. All agree that the first 
was in 1S40, and was taught by one or the other. A 
log school-house was shortly afterwards built at the 

, Mr. Albce, now living at Hinckley, making the 
window frames for the same. Among the early teach- 
ers m the township were John Clark, Henry ('lark, 
Mr. Church and James Furman. The first school 
anvil by Mr. Cleveland. At present 
the township has eight school districts, each being 
supplied with a frame school-house, the total value 
of which is pla $5>3°o. From the County Su- 



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perintendent's report for the year ending June 30, 
. it is learned that there were 548 persons under 
2i yea e, of whom 375 were between 6 and 21, 

with an enrollment in the public schools of 326. 
There were 5 males and 16 female teachers em- 
ployed, the highest monthly wages received by any 
being $60 and the lowest $25. 

Squaw Grove Township, in 1884, had 22,245 acres 
of improved land, valued at $324,350 The town 
lots amounted to $50,680; personal property, $oS,- 
629. A total of $473,659- The State Board of 
ilization reduced this amount to $418,115. 
Among the items of personal property were the fol- 
lowing: Horses, 641 ; cattle, 1,776; mules and asses, 
19; sheep, 'i;- 1 ; hogs, 2,440; steam engines, 4; 
safes, 5; billiard tables, 1; carriages and wagons, 
223 ; sewing and knitting machines, 1 5S ; pianos, 8; 
melodeons and organs, 59. 

SUPERVISORS. 



A. L. Heminway 1850-2 

W. C. I ippan 1S53-6 

Philo Slater 1S57-8 

in 1859 

1860-1 

1862-3 

D. I W inslow 1S64 



III. Taylor 1865-8 

J. I . Beitel 1869 

fames I . ' llann 1870-4 

John M. C urry 1875-6 

I ' a, mil . 1877-81 

1 \. Hall 1882-4 



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Hinckley. 



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^ElNCKLEY is finely located on section 15, 
|j Squaw Grove Township. It was surveyed 
and plaited by Francis E. Hinckley, from 
whom it derives its name. While having but 
it 400 inhabitants, it is one of the neatest 
towns of its size in the State. The dwelling- 
houses of those residing here are generally large 
bwo-storj buildings, the yards well kept and all pre- 
senting an attractive appearance. As a business 
point it is good, having a fine farming country around, 
which is tributary to it. 

When it was determined by Mr. Hinckley to lo- 
the railroad station here, Merrill & Wagner, who 
were in business at the grove, at once began their 
preparations for removal. They commenced early 
in the spring of 1872 the erection of the large, fine, 
two-story building now occupied by Mr. Merrill, and 
jSi on its completion removed here their stock of goods, 
and thus became the first merchants in the village. 
The partnership was some years afterward dissolved, 

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Mr. Merrill becoming sole proprietor. He carries a 
stock of general merchandise second to none in the 
county, and enjoys an immense li 

While the store building was being erected, Mr. 
Merrill was also engaged in putting up the dwelling- 
house in which he yet resides, and into which he 
moved in the spring of 1872. This was the first 
dwelling-house built upon the villi-, plat, though 
two others have been there since an early day. 

Schilling & Evans and Case & Vawter can al ;o - 
numbered among the pioneer merchants of the vil- 
lage. 

The first druggist was L. H. Wikoff. 

J. D. Curry was the first grain-buyer. He built 
an elevator and commenced buying in the spring of 
1873. He was succeeded by 11. M. Maltby & Co., 
who continued until the fall of [883, when S. H. Sid- 
well, who owned a half interest in the elevator, be- 
came the sole dealer. 

G. W. Severance and Theodore Klein were the 
first stock-buyers. They are yet in the business. 

Samuel Miller was the first liveryman in the vil- 
lage. He began business in 1875. 

The first hotel was opened by C. S. Palmer in 
1873, in a building opposite Merrill & Wagner's 
store. The business was continued here for about 
seven years. The second house was that now known 
as the Adams House, built by Hayden Spencer, in 
1875. It has been known as the Pennsylvania and 
the Hinckley House. B. H. Adams became the pro- 
prietor in April, 1883. He changed its name to the 
Adams House. It is a two-story frame building, 
with 12 sleeping rooms, with parlor, office, dining- 
room and kitchen. 

The first meat-market was opened by C. \V. West, 
in 1S73. 

The first exclusive hardware store was kept by 
Evans & Evans. 

The first harness-shop was owned by A. G. Wal- 
lace. 

The first shoe-shop was opened by C. H. Beecher, 
in 1872. 

The village of Hinckley comprises a part of Dis- 
trict No. 1. The school-house was erected here in 
1873. There were then two rooms, two departments 
being represented. In 1S83 an addition was made 
to the school building and the school divided into 
three departments — primary, intermediate and higher. 
The teachers for the year 1S84 -5 were Fred A. Lat- 



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tin, Principal; Mis> Carrie C. Potter and Miss 
Emma Jones. There were in January, 18S5. an en- 
rollment of 136 pupils. The school property is 
valued at {2,800. 

Thi ice was located here in 1 s 7 2 . This 

office was I at the grove ami was 

known as the Squaw Grove William C. 

Tappan was the first Postmaster, the office being es- 
hed in 1852. His first yi eipts were 

In 1855 his receipts had increased to $23.52. 
The mail route was from Ottawa t<> Belvidere. Mr. 
Tappan v eded bj Henry Putnam, who in 

turn was succeeded by Mr. Johnson, E. Spencer and 
Frank E. Merrill. The latter was appointed in 1867 
and held the office for 17 years, resigning in April, 
[884, when I'. S. Palmer was appointed. A money- 
order department was created tor the office in 1878, 
the first order being secured by A. F. Prince, in favor 
"!' George J. Prim e, for $10.75, July 7, 1878. 

The village of Hinckley was surveyed and platted 
in March, 1S73. It was incorporated under the 
general act in 1 S 7 7 . The first trustees were John 
A. Coster, A. E. Sweet, A. G. White, N. Naldenhouse, 
Peter Coster. Clerk, 1''. L. Winslow. Since that 
date the following named have served : 

1S7S — J. J. Davis, C. S. Palmer, N. Naldenhouse, 
J. 11. Bauder, A. E. Sweet, Ira Hamlin, trustees; F. 
I,. Winslow, ( leik. 

1879— T. E. Merrill, C. A. Reed, P. S. Winslow, 
Ira Hamlin, A. G. White, C. S. Palmer, trustees; F. 
I,. Winslow, 1 lerk. 

1880— M. N. Toml.lin. S. Miller, F. Young, J. A. 
I.e Brant, W. H. Mead. A. Cheney, trustees; Lee 
E. Tomblin, clerk. 

. -W II. Mead, M. N. Tomblin, H. M. 
Maltbie, C. S. Palmer, Philo Slater, trustees; H. W. 
i 1 lerk. 

1882— Philo Slater. H. M. Maltbie, C. S. Palmer, 
August West, Cyrus Slater, F. L. Winslow, trustees; 
II. W. Pay. elerk. 

1883— W. M. Sebree.O. T. P. Steinmetz, J. A. 
I.e Brant, A. J. Miller, V. I„ Winslow, C. 'P. Slater, 
trustees; II. W. Fay, clerk. 

1884— Philo Slater, Charles S. Palmer, Wells A. 
'» v Fay, J. A. Le Brant, O. T. P. Steinmetz, W M 
V Sebree, trustees , H. W. Fay, clerk. 

The religious well-being of the village is repre- 



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sented by organizations of Baptists and Methodist 
I piscopals. 

The benevolent societies are represented by lodges 
of M asons and Odd Fellow s, 

[ngersoll Lodge, No. 301, A. F. & A. M. was 
1 bartered by the Grand Lodge Oct. 5, 1859. its 
meetings being held in the village of Cortland. Its 
charter members were Charles S. Ingersoll, W. M., 
in whose honor the lodge was named ; John B. 
Fletcher, S. W; Nathan A. Cottrell, J. W. ; L. F. 
Dow, Jonathan Mattison, Richard A. Smith, Richard 
J. Webb, Onesimus Hitchcock. The name of the 
lodge was subsequently changed to Cortland 1. 
In 1875 ' l w:,s voted to remove to Hinckley, the 
majority of its membership living in or near that vil- 
lage. On its removal its name was changed to 
Hincklej Lodge, No. 301, A. F. & A. M. At this 
place it lias flourished, its membership embracing 
some of the best men in the village. Its present 
membership is 26. Since its removal the following 
named have filled the chair as presiding officers of 
the lodge: Archibald Cone, C. H. Hitchcock, F. E. 
Merrill, George E. Hobbs, J. W. Le Brant, the latter 
being elected January, 1885. In addition to J. W. 
Le Brant, W. M., the following named constitute the 
officers for 1885: A. Grass, S. W.; C. E. Long, J. 
W. ; David A. Hobbs, Treas. ; A. F. French, Se< . ; 
J. A. Le Brant, S. D. ; H. C. Baie, J. D. 

Beacon Hill Lodge, No. 6S0, I. O. O. F., was or- 
ganized July 21, 1880, with George E. Hobbs, N. G.; 
J. A. Le Brant, V. G. ; A. W. Le Brant, Sec. ; A. 
( Mass, Treas. ; J. T. Kerr, Warden ; William Richard- 
son and Christian Keamerle. The following named 
have served as N. G. : J. A. Le Brant, A. Grass, 
John T. Kerr, William Frazier, William Lock wood 
and B. C. Allbee. The following named were in 
office January, 1885 : B. G Allbee, N. G. ; H. H. 
Hopkins, V. G. ; P. F. Albee, Sec. ; J. W. Le Brant, 
Treas.; John Clark, Warden. The lodge has a 
membership of 28, and financially and otherwise is a 
strong body. 

The following named firms were doing business 
here in the spring of 1SS5 : 

General merchants — F. E 
Coster, O. T. P. Steinmetz. 

Furniture — Simon Kuter. 

Hardware — W. H. Menk. 

Drugs — T. R. Davis & Co. 

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Groceries and restaurant — L. E. Ziegler. 

Jewelry — E. C. Long. 

Butcher shops — G. Snyder and Fred Jurries. 

Agricultural implements — P. S. Winslow, C. H. 
Taylor. 

Millinery — Mrs. R. B. Curry. 

Dressmaking — Van Nostrand & James, Mrs. A. F. 
Prince, Rose Bloodgood and Em. Holdenhous. 

Barber — Dan Green. 

Shoe-shop — Adam Grass, Chas. Becker. 

Coal dealers — J. K. Kuter. 

Oil Blacking Manufactory — Grass & Smith, pro- 
prietors. 

Lumber — M. J. Pogue & Sons. 

Grain — G. H. Sidvvell, Chicago, proprietor; H. M. 
Maltbie,- buyer. 

Harness-shop — J. H. Le Brant. 

Bankers — H. D. Wagner & Co. 

Livery — William Misner. 

Tobacco, cigars and candy — A. Elsaman. 

Blacksmiths — Jno. Metz, William Wilkening, A. 
Cash. 

Road cart factory — J. B. Allbee, proprietor. 

Wagon shop — Sam. Wheeler. 

Cooper shop — T. W. Eddy. 

Silver Spring Creamery — Gurler Bros. & Co., 
proprietors ; H. H. Hopkins, resident manager. 

Hay Press— E. S. Ashley. 

Carpenters — Frank Loveland, R. B. Curry, William 
Garrett, Holley Goodell, Jesse Flanders, John Powers, 
Jake Biehl. 

Masons — Henry Binder, Leopold Bender. 

Dray — Sam. Flanders, Chas. Hinamire. 

Physicians — C. H. Hitchcock, Merritt F. Potter. 

Lawyer — Jno. Hopkins. 

Bakery — Jos. Eagle. 

Hotel — Adam House, B. H. Adams, proprietor. 

Skating rink — P. S. Winslow, proprietor. 

Photographer — Edwin Luce. 

Painters — Ernest Schramm, Chas. Adam. 

Auctioneer — \V. H. Rickert. 

Milk wagons — J. B. Myers, J. M. Curry. 

Stock shippers — Theo. Klein, Christ. Baie. 

Tile factories — P. H. Nichols, Jno. Kerr. 

Justices of the Peace — J. M. Curry, D. L. Sackett, 
Adam Crass. 

Newspaper and printing office — The Review; H. 
W. Fay, editor and proprietor. 





SOMONAUK TOWNSHIP. 

HIS township lies irTthe southeast corner 
of the county, with Kendall County on the 
east, La Salle on the south, Squaw Grove 
Township on the north, and Victor on the 
west. It has a good supply of timber along 
the banks of Somanauk Creek, with which it is 
well watered. The Chicago, Burlington & Quincy 
Railroad passes through the southern portion of the 
township, through the city of Sandwich and village 
of Somonauk. 

The first permanent settler of the township was 
Reuben Root, who first located on section 35, the 
place now owned by David V. Kinney. He sold this 
claim to Mr. Davis in the summer of 1855, and 
moved a little farther north, occupying a house 
which some years after became the property of Mr. 
Beveridge, and which it is said was erected some 
time in 1834, and occupied in the winter of 1834-5, 
by a Mr. Robinson. The exact date of Mr. Root's 
settlement is not known, but supposed to be in 
February, 1835. He was living on the Davis place 
when William Poplin arrived in March, 1835. 
Reuben Root was a native of New York. For some 
years he kept a tavern and was the first postm tster 
of Somonauk. Selling his claim here, he moved 
west and has since died. 

Willliam Poplin was doubtless the second to locate 
on Somonauk Creek, in this township. He arrived 
here, as stated, in March, 1835, made a claim, erect- 
ed his cabin, and made other improvements the 
same year. His selection was a wise one, and with 
his "good wife" he yet resides upon the old home- 
stead, where they have spent a full 50 years. 

Among others who made settlements along the 
creek in 1835, were William and Joseph Sly, Simon 
Price, Amos Harmon, William Davis, Simon Price, 
Thomas and William Brook. 

The Sly brothers were natives oi Ireland. Joseph 
remained in the township during the remainder of 
his life and was a well respected citizen. His ! 
for some years was used for religious purposes, bj 
representatives of any denomination who were will- 
ing to preach the gospel to the few then living here. 
William Sly moved into La Salle, where he died. 

Simon Price was from Pennsylvania, but, it is said, 
lived so near the Virginia line that he imbibed strong 



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pro-slavery sentiments. He moved to Iowa, where 
he has since died. 

Thomas and William Brook were likewise from 
sylvanta. Thomas died here. William Brook 
is yet living in Sandwich. 

The fust marriage in the township was that of 
Isaai Potter and El II of 1S36. 

The ceremonj was performed bj Eldei B. Mack. 

The first birth was that of Harriet Poplin, daugh- 
ter of William Poplin, born Jan. 25, [836. She is 
new the wife of Herbert C. Cotton. The second 
birth was that of Mary A. Davis, horn June 2. 1836. 
George W. Davis and a son of Burrage Hough were 
probably the two first males horn in the township. 

The first death was that of Fannie Hannon, who 
died Sept. 1 1, 1836. 

The first ground broke was by Amos Hannon in 
the spring of 1835. All the settlers of 1 S35 broke 
ground that year, but Simon Price and William and 
Joseph Sly are the onlj ones remembered that at- 
tempted to raise a crop. 

The first religious services were probably at the 
house of Simon Price, in the winter of 1835-6, by 
Rev. William Royal, a Methodist Episcopal divine. 
Mrs. Joseph S!v disputed this fa< 1, claiming that a 
' Congregational minister, whose name was forgotten, 
preceded Mr. Royal a short time. None of the early 
settlers now living remember the man or the occasion 
of his preaching. Mrs. Royal earl)' in 1836 organ- 
ized a class, with the following named among the 
number: Mrs. William Davis, Mrs. Thomas Brook, 
Mrs. Simon Price, Mrs. Joseph Sly, and Miss Lorena 
Dennis, no« Mrs. Jacob M. Hall. The first quarterly 
meeting was held soon after. Elder P>. Mack ofrit lat- 
ing. This meeting was held at the house of Thomas 
P. rook. 

In the winter of 1836-7, at the house of Thomas 
Brook, the first si hool was taught b\ Lucius Frisbee. 
He had about one dozen scholars. The first school- 
house was of logs and was ere( ted in 1S37 on section 
22. Charles 1. the first school in 

this house the following winter. The educational 
interests ol the township have kept pace with the 
• '• increase in population and wealth. 

§ There are eight si hool districts in the township, 
with twelve school-houses, the total value of which 
is estimated at $17,250. Prom the C iperin- 

7» tendent's report for the year ending June 30, 1884, 



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the following facts have been gleaned: There were 
1,649 persons under 21 years of age, of whom 
were above the age of six years. There were five 
gradi vcii ungraded schools, employin 

male and iS female teachers. The highest salary 
paid an} teacher per month was $111. n, and the 

1 $20. The tax levy was $9,155. 
I iilil Somonauk postoffjee was established, the 
settlers along Somonauk ("reek obtained their in 
Holderman's Grove, about 12 miles southeast. A 
number of families clubbed together and arranged to 
take turns in going once each week for the mail. In 
order to make each realize the necessity of goil 
the office when his turn came, it was agreed thai 
should one fail to go, that his mail would net be 
brought by any of the others until his turn should 
1 come around and lie attended to the matter. 
A postoffice under the name of Somonauk was es- 
tablished near what is now known as Freeland 
Comers, m 1837, with Reuben Root as postmaster. 
Mr. Root served one or two years and was succeeded 
by John Eastabrooks. The receipts of the office in 
1S37 were $15.34. In 1S39, when Mr. Eastabrooks 
was postmaster, the re< cipts had increased to $22.52. 
David Merritt succeeded Mr. Eastabrooks and was 
in turn succeeded by Alex. R. Patten, Lyman Bacon, 
Charles Bradbury, Joseph Hamlin, and William 
Robertson, the incumbent. In 1854 a postoffic e 
established at the village of Somonauk, called Somo- 
nauk Station. Mail designed for Somonauk would 
go to the station, and that for the station would fre- 
quently be sent to Somonauk postoffice; so a request 
was made to the postoffice department to change the 
name of the latter office. The name of Freeland 
was suggested and adopted, the name by which the 

is now- known. It is supposed that the name 
was suggested from the fact that the neighborhood 
was 1 1 of liberty-loving people, those who 

Strongly believed in a free land. 

William II Beavers started a store at the 
now known .1 - 1 Iceland Corners, about 1 
He was succeeded by David Merritt, who su 
quently sold to Patten & Beveridge. The latter sold 
out to the former, who, in 1S5 ;, removed the store to 
Sandwich. 

Mi Hamlin was the first blacksmith at thi 
ne is. 

John Lane and Peter F. Hummel kept 1 






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here as early as 1841. Reuben Root was engaged in 
the same business at a still earlier date. 

The Beyeridge neighborhood, in this township, 
was composed almost exclusively of anti-slavery 
people. The house of George Beveridge was sup- 
posed to be a depot of the Underground Railroad, 
and the charge was never denied by any of the 
family. A local writer, in speaking of this fact, said: 
" In 1852, a gentlemanly stranger begged shelter for 
the night at this house (George Beveridge's). Some- 
thing led the family to suspect that he was a detect- 
ive, searching for evidence of their connection with 
the crime of aiding slaves to their freedom. Finally, 
seeking an opportunity of privacy, he asked directly 
of the venerable mother if she had not at times 
secreted fugitive negroes. ' Yes,' said she, ' and in 
spite of your oppressive laws, I will do it again 
whenever I have an opportunity.' Instead of im- 
mediately arresting her, as she had expected, the 
stranger laughed. He was an eminent physician of 
Quincy, engaged in establishing stations on the Un- 
derground Railroad, and during many subsequent 
years there was a frequent stoppage of trains at this 
station, and much time and money was spent in for- 
warding the flying negroes on to the stewards at 
Piano, and to other places of refuge." 

The United Presbyterians began holding meetings 
in the vicinity of the "corners" as early as 1841, 
but an organization was not effected until March 
18, 1846. It is now one of the strongest country 
Churches in the State, with a house of worship that 
cost $12,000. No more devoted Christians than 
those worshiping here can anywhere be found. 

Somonauk Township, in r8S4, had 19,642 acres 
of improved land, a less number than any other in 
the county, but at a higher valuation, amounting to 
$16.15 an acre, or a total of $317,255. The town 
lots were assessed at $290,225 ; personal property, 
$245,495. A total of $866,665. This was reduced 
by the State Board of Equalization to $762,292. 
Among the items of personal property reported were 
the following: Horses, 875; cattle, 2,27 1 ; mules 
and asses, 52; sheep, 247; hogs, 3,126; steam 
engines, 3; safes, 23; billiard tables, 5: carriages 
and wagons, 462; watches and clocks, 375: sew- 
ing and knitting machines, 390 ; pianos, 66; melo- 
deons and organs, 88. With the exception of Syca- 
more, Somonauk lias more pianos than any township 
in the county. 

-2*^ @jA4HIII 



! k VISORS. 



The members of the Board of Supervisors from 
this township have been as follows: 



I n 1850-3 

I : iam I 'atten I 8s4~s 

I! . Fur man ... 1856-7 

I Ham Patten 1858 

I rath .tin 1 8s9 

lliam Patten i860 

Winne - ■ - 1861 

II Im man 1862 

W. Lewis 1863 

Patten 1864 

wick 1865 

I Simmon 1866-7 

h ard 1 1 1 ixey (a Vt) . . .1872 



Andrew 1 1873 

w. w .1874 

Thomas I . W [874-5 

! 1875 

vicl 1876-7 

John C] 1876 

Charles Merwin (ass't . . . .1877-8 
Washington I-- Simmons- 1878-82 
Charles 1 1879-80 

Carter E. Wright (ass't) -.1881-2 

John N* . Culver 1883-4 

Peter C. McCleIlan(ass't). 1883-4 



-0—3- 






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Village of Somonauk. 

s-B§r|gEFORE the completion of the railroad to 
S:Efi2P tn ' s P°' nt i trie railroad company deter- 
(IpF^ mined to locate here a station, believing it 
would be acceptable to the people in the 
neighborhood and an accommodation to the 
farmers living near. The road was com- 
pleted in the fall of 1853, but for some cause the 
village was not platted till in June, 1855, though 
many lots had previously been sold and > luite a 
thriving village had sprung up. The original plat 
was upon sections 32 and ^, township 37 north, 
range 5 east, and embraced property belonging to 
Alverus Gage, Lyman Bacon, Franklin Dale, 
Thomas Brown and James H. Beveridge, Mr. G 
owning the greater portion of it. Several additions 
have since been made. 

In the fall of 1853, before the railroad had been 
completed here, and while the employees engaged in 
its construction were yet in the vicinity of the old 
red school-house, on the site of the present city of 
Sandwich, Franklin Dale went to Mr. (".age and 
proposed purchasing some ground of him on which to 
erect a store building. Desiring the land in the 
vicinity of the depot, Mr. Gage prevailed on the 
engineer engaged in the survey to come down and 
rnate V\ here the depot building should be erected. 
Mr. Dale then made his selection and at once 
commenced the erection of his building. Gustave 
Hess commenced to erect a building for a store and 
dwelling about the same time, but Mr. Dale had his 
completed first; and, occupying it with a stockof gen- 
eral merchandise, became the pioneer merchant of the 

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place. Mi Hess was not far behind him in open- 
ing out his goods. 

Mr. Tolman came soon after ami started the first 
lumber yard in the place. 

While these business enterprises were being set on 
il road company was engaged in the erec- 
tion of the depot buildings, completing them in the 
winter of [853 4. 

Lyman Bacon about the same time purchased 10 
acres of land from Mi Gage with a view of building 
a hotel. For some cause he failed in his pur] 
lun cic. ted 1 building which he used as a dwelling 
and as 1 shoe shop, being the pioneer shoemaker of 
the vi 1 

In the fall of 1853 David Hunt laid the found- 
ation for the present hotel building, and in the spring 
completed and occupied it as a hotel, being the first 
in the place. 

The first blacksmith was Noah Kelley, in 1855. 
ig the same year, Mr. Guyer started the first 
harness-shop. 

Somonauk Hank was established in February, 
1880. It is a private institution, with John Clark as 
president and H. Wright, cashier. T. J. W right and 
C. V. Stevens are also associated in its management 
and business. A satisfactory business has been 
done by the bank since its organization. 

Some months after the railroad was completed, 
Buck Brani h postofnee, Ick ated about one mile north, 
was removed here and its name changed to Somo- 
nauk Station, the latter word being added from the 
fact that there was a postofnee called Somonauk in 
the township. Confusion arising in forwarding and 
receiving mail, Somonauk postoffice was subsequently 
changed to Freeland, and in due time the word 
"Station" was dropped from this office. Lyman 
in was the first , .1 served until 1861, 

when I r >it Curtis was appointed, and for 24 years 
has handled the mail at this place. 

The village of Somonauk was organized Jan. 4, 
1859, by incorporate . it under the " Town Corpora- 
tion A. t." At the election to vote on such incor- 
|x>ration, 49 votes were cast for and 10 against the 
same. The first tru | were Lyman Bacon, 

E. W. Lewis, E. Hoxey, William Heun and D. F. 
Andrus. Lyman B chosen President and 

1). F. Andrus, Clerk. 

By spei ial act of the Legislature, approved Feb. 




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r6, [865, said corporation was changed from a vil- 
lage to a town, and incorporated as "The Town of 
Somoi 

On the r 8th day of July, 1872, the question of or- 
ganizing as a village under the general law of the 
State was submitted to a vote of its 1 itizens and 
adopted. The first board of trustees under the new 
organization was constituted as follows: J. Poor, 
President; II. Potter, T. B. Blanchard, F. Schort, J. 
I!. Brigham, W. W. Hathorn, Clerk. 

The following named have served the village as 
members of the Hoard of Supervisors: John M. 
Goodell, 1867; William Heun, 1868; Edward W. 
Lewis, 1869; N. L. Watson, 1870-1; Jeremiah Poor, 
1872; John Clark, 1873. 

The l"ir>t school in the village was in the winter of 
1 855—6, and held over the hardware store, by D. F. 
Andrus. The present school-house was erected in 
1856 and occupied in the winter of 1856-7. Addi- 
tions have since been made to the building to meet 
the wants of increasing population. No thorough 
grading of the schools was made until 1880, when P. 
K. Cross was elected principal. Two classes have 
since been graduated, diplomas being given to the 
graduates. Mr. Cross continued as principal until 
1884, when Miss Leah Delagneau was appointed. 
Four rooms are occupied, Miss Delagneau having 
charge of one, with Miss Lizzie Benedict, Anna R. 
Hunt and Ella Howe, respectively, in each of the 
others. The graduates are as follows : 

In June, 1883 — Emma M. Ames, Julia B. O'Brien, 
Simon D. Hess, S. May Thomas, Anna R. Hunt, 
Anna M. I loffman, Maggie McNamara, Otis D. Wood- 
ward. 

In June, 18S4 — Jennie M. Dubrock, Franklin 
Hess, William J. Dubrock, Clara M. Lowman, Jen- 
nie J. Hathorn, Lillian M. Rose, Clara E. Wright. 

RELIGIOUS. 

The religious welfare of the people is attended to 
by the following denominations, each having houses 
of worship — Protestant Meth >dist, baptist, Lutheran, 
Presbyterian. Catholic and Methodist Episcopal. 

The Baptist Church was organized May 19, 1857, 
a preliminary meeting being held Jan. 10, 1857. The 
constituent members of the Church were William 
1, Perry G. Jones, Frances A. Jones, John 
Shailer, Elizabeth Sh tiler, Ashbel Stockham, Be- 
linda Stockham, Enoch Stockham, J. N. Braddock, 



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William Bond, Frances Bond, Rider B. Hicks, Mrs. 

B. Brayton, Belinda B. Farley, Mary P. Bucking- 
ham, Martha S. Russell. A house of worship was 
erected in 1858, at a cost of $3,000, with a seating 
capacity of 300. The following named have served 
the Church as pastors : Revs. I). Shailer, D. N. Kin- 
nie, L. L. Gage, Thomas Reese, J. L. Benedict, G. 

C. Vanasdel, William Wilkins, \V. H. Cord, John 
Shepherd, J. C. Johnston. The Church has about 
75 members. 

The Catholic Congregation was organized in the 
year 1865. Previous to that time the number of 
Catholic families was comparatively small and their 
spiritual wants were supplied at certain times during 
the year by the resident priests of Naperville, Men- 
dota and Ottawa, who held religious services either 
in a private house or in the hotel of the village, where 
the Catholics would assemble to comply with their 
duty and have their children baptized and the other 
sacraments of the Church administered. 

In the year 1863 a hall was purchased for their 
house of worship, but as the number of Catholics 
began to increase rapidly, it was soon found to be 
incompetent to meet their requirements, and the 
building of a new frame structure for a church was 
commenced in 1866. This church was 40 x 80 feet 
in dimensions, with a steeple roo feet high, contain- 
ing a bell, weighing 800 pounds. This church cost 
about $4,000. From this time religious services 
were held every two weeks, the church being in 
charge of Rev. D. Nieder Korn, S. J. Still the 
Catholic people were not permitted to enjoy the 
comfort of their new church very long, the building 
being totally destroyed by fire in May, 1868. It was 
on a Sunday. A funeral service had just been held, 
and when the people returned from the cemetery 
they saw at a distance how dense clouds of smoke 
were issuing from the roof, and in less than 15 
minutes from the time that smoke was seen the 
whole building was enveloped in flames and totally 
destroyed. How the fire originated is a mystery, 
even to this day. 

After this Rev. J. Dale, a Belgian by birth, visited 
the Catholics of Somonauk and held services for 
them. He resided at Leland and remained nine 
months. The congregation lost no time to replace 
the old building by even a finer and costlier edifice, 
built of brick, 40 x 80 feet in dimensions. 

Just at the time when the walls and roof of the 



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new church were finished, the Rt. Rev. J. Duggan, 
Bishop of Chicago, gave the congregation a new 
pastor of its own, in the very young priest, Rev. C. 
J. Huth, who had just been ordained two weeks 
previous. He was the first residenrpriest of Somon- 
auk. He took charge Feb. 14, 1869. 

He succeeded in completing a very fine church 
and purchasing a parochial residence. The congrega- 
tion grew larger from year to year under his admin- 
istration and numbers now 1,000 souls. Father 
Huth attended, besides Somonauk, the churches of 
Leland and Bristol, and visited occasionally the 
Catholics of Shabbona Grove. 

He purchased for the church three beautiful altars 
with statues, one grand pulpit, costing $325 ; one 
beautiful and large pipe organ,' costing $1,100 ; a 
bell and tower, costing $850. 

Father Huth was pastor of Somonauk 15 years 
and three months, and left the place May 1, 1884, 
having built up one of the finest parishes in this 
part of the country. He joined in marriage 200 
couples, baptized about 800 infants, and buried 200 
dead. 

Father Huth's successor, the present incumbent, 
Rev. L. A. R. Erhard, is a gentleman of recognized 
ability, filled with zeal for the Church. He has im- 
proved the church property and succeeded in win- 
ning the good will of his people and of the public. 

SOCIETIES. 

South Somonauk Lodge, No. 181, I. O. O. F., was 
organized July 25, 1855, with T. R. Mack, W. B. 
Hough, Isaac Hatch, Edward Thomas and John M. 
Goodell as charter members. The early records 
and charter of this lodge were destroyed. In 1875 it 
began working as a German lodge, continuing as such 
till the present time. It has a membership of 20. 
The officers in the spring of 18S5 were Jacob Spa< h, 
N. G. ; Ernest Steuping, V. G. ; A. Rumple, Set . : \. 
Meyers, Treas. ; John Betz, Deputy and Representa- 
tive to Grand Lodge. 

Somonauk Encampment, No. 62, I. O. O. F.. 
chartered Oct. 9, 1866, with George Shafman, 
Robert Fish, Moses West, Fred. Schwanz, S. J. 
Girodat, A. J. Wright and Geo. W. Wolverton as 
charter members. The Encampment is in a pR>^- 
perous condition, with a membership of 44. Its 
present officers are E. Suppes, C. P. ; E. Graf, H. P. 
J. F. Poplin, S. W. : S. E. Beelman, J. W. ; G. W. 















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Beelman, ('..; Henrj Banzet, - . G W. Beelman, 

ii\ and Representative to Grand Encam] nt. 

Rising Sun Lodge, No. 634, I. 0. t >. F., was 
organized Oct. 10, [877, with the following officers : 
S. E Beelman, N. ('..: I J. Murphy, V. G. ; A. E. 
Auk.. - ' Rohrer, Treas. There has been an 
enrollment of 55, with the present membership of 

48. The present 1 I 1 Poplin, N. G. ; A 
Wingart, V. G. ; G. W. Beeln ; John Law- 
man, P S. ; C. Suppes, Treas. 

I tome I od »e, No 13 1, Rebek ih I tegree, [. O. O. 
F., was instituted Wan 1 1 , I • >' (; W. Beel- 

man, with 27 chartei members. 

The sisters in the Ordei have taken hold with a 
will, and Home Lodge has been prosperous from the 
start. Ii nn« lias a membership of 41, with the fol- 
lowing named officers: G. W. Beelman, N. G.; MUs 
Amelia Suppes, V. <;.; Miss Carrie M. Beelman, 
John Lawman, P. S.; Mrs. Bertha Faltz, Treas. 

Somonauk Lodge, No. 646, A. F. & A. M., wa 
■ bartered by the Grand Lodge in October, 1870. 
Previous to receiving the charter lit .- lodge worked 
under dispensation from March, 1870. Death has 
taken two members— R. II. Thomas, N. Mollier. 
The lodge has had a prosperous existence, having 
enrolled 82 members, with a present membership of 

49. The P. M.'sof the lodge are W'm. M. Potter, 
Geo. S. Robbins, J. S. Poplin, H. W. Burchira. The 
present officers are P. H. Evans. W. M.; S. Town- 
send, S. W.; H. F. Hess, J. W.; C. Banzet Sec; 
I). E. Wright, Treas! 

Somonauk Lodge, No. 33, A. O. U. W., was organ- 
ized December 14, 1876. Its first officers and mem- 
bers were Mr. Griffith, P. M. W.; 1-'. J. Girodat, M. 
\V.; I. Mooring, Foreman: T. Boos, Recorder ; T. G. 
Hanson, Fin.; P. II. Thomas, Receiver. The lodge 
has a present membership of 32. It has lost one by 

death — P. 1 1. Thomas. Its present officers are J :s 

elly, M. W.; G. W. Newton, Foreman; Joe. 
Holl week, Overseer; S. Townsend, Recorder; F. J. 
Girodat, Financier and Receiver; S. Townsend, Rep- 
itative to Grand 1 ■ 11 

The Illinois Catholic Order of Foresters, a benevo- 
lent society, has also been inaugurated May 26th, 
i.xx.i. The court was organized by the High Chief 
R ; St. John the Baptist Court, No. 17. 

s*s&*: — ^±zm 



SYCAMORE TOWNSHIP. 







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HIS is an excellent township, being well 
supplied with timber and prairie, and 
watered bj the Kishwaukee River. The 
tmore Bi inch of the Chicago & Northwest- 
ern is the only railroad within its borders. The 
country is quite fiat — even along the river I 
there are no steep bluffs. The soil is a rich 
loam, and highly productive. Lands here are valued 
from $50 to $75 per acre, according to improvement. 

Lysander Darling, and Dr. Norbo, a No 
for whom Norwegian Grove is named, were doubtless 
the first settlers here, although Mr. Chartr 
Frenchman, came about the same time. This 
in the spring or summer of 1835. Peter Lamois also 
1 here the same year, and it is claimed for him 
that he broke the first ground and raised the first 
crop. These pioneers were followed by Elilui Wright, 
J. C. Kellogg, E. F. White and Zachariah v 
who came in 1836. 

During this year the New York Company, com- 
posed of Christian Sharer, Evans Wharry, Clark 
Wright and Mark Daniels, under the firm name of 
C. Sharer & Co., located a large tract of land with 
the intention of locating a town. They laid out a vil- A 
lage plat north of the creek, dammed the Kishwaukee 
River, built a mill and made other preparations for 
effecting a large settlement. Eli G. Jewell opened a 
small store, and George Wilson began to do a little 
lilai ksmith work. Mr. Crawford, some time in 1837, 
opened a cabinet shop a little north of Jewell's store, 
and for a time engaged in the manufacture of tables 
audi hairs, supplying the greater number of the early 
settlers with these useful articles. 

When the New York Company began operations 
times were flush, and everybody had money, such as 
it was. Rut the hard times of 1837 set in, so well 
remembered by old settlers, and, notwithstanding 
they had expended a large sum of money, the 1 om 
pany abandoned its claim, and one more embryo vil- 
lage was numbered with the past. 

The first settlers of the township were from the 
East, mostly from the Green Mountain State, and 
like all New Kn glanders, the first thing to bethought 
of, after becoming settled, was to look after the edu- 
cational interests of the coming generation. There- 
nly in 1837, the few neighbors then here met 

MS^ — ' --c- • /- 












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Z>£ JT,4Zi? COUNTY. 



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together ;md erected a log school-house about four 
miles north of the present city of Sycamore, and in 
the summer of that year Mary Wood taught a term 
of school. She was followed by J. C. Kellogg, who 
taught the winter term. To Miss Wood belongs the 
honor of being the first teacher in the township of 
ii ore. 
The County Superintendent, in his report for the 
year ending June 30, 1884, gives the following in- 
formation in relation to the schools of the township: 
Theie were ten school districts, three graded and 

tnine ungraded schools. The school property was 
valued at $29,384. In the ten districts were five 
brick and seven frame school houses. Of persons 
under 21 years of age there were 1,843, of whom 
1,213 were of school age, 971 being enrolled. The 
average wages paid teachers was $37.37 per month, 
the highest being $140, and the lowest $25. The tax 
levy was $11,275. 

It has been said that the first thing thought of by 
pioneers from the East was the educational interests 
of their children. This should be amended by say- 
ing, after the moral welfare of the community had 
been attended to. After becoming settled Mr. White 
and Mr. Daniels at once began to look for some one 
' to hold religious services. Levi Lee, a minister of 
the Methodist Episcopal Church, was induced to 
make an appointment, and in May, 1836, preached 
the first sermon in the township. A class was soon 
afterwards organized. 

Caroline, daughter of Edward F. and Mary White, 
was born Aug. 1, 1836. She is said to have been the 
first white birth in the township, though some assert 
a child was born to Mr. and Mrs. Elihu Wright, prior 
to this time. The child was born in a wagon. An- 
other early birth was that of Emily Jane Kellogg, 
who was born Jan. 28, 1837. 

The first male child born was James W., son of 
Mr. and Mrs. L. D. Walrod, in 1838. 

The first marriage now remembered was that of 
Daniel W. Lamb and Julia Maxfield, March 16, 1838. 
Eli G. Jewell, J. P., performed the ceremony. 

The second marriage was that of Erastus Barnes 
and Elizabeth Barnes, Sept. 30, 1838, by Eli G. 

Jewell, J. P. 

The third was Decatur Eastabrooks and Mary 
Wood, Jan. 3, 1839. 

The first 4th-of-July celebration in the county, as 







well as the township, was at the house of Ephraim 
Hall, in 1837. Jesse C. Kellogg read the Declara- 
tion of Independence and Levi Lee delivered the 
oration. 

Death came among the little band of pioneers, and 
on the 29th of May, 1837, Lorinda (Wood) French 
breathed her last. She was buried near the family 
residence, but her body has since been removed to 
the Sycamore Cemetery. 

The pioneers of this township experienced much 
difficulty in having their grain ground. The first mill- 
ing remembered by Thomas H. Wood was in the 
fall of 1837. His father, Zachariah Wood, and a few 
others, clubbed together and hired a man named 
Graves to take some wheat to Joliet to be ground. 
After performing his duty, Mr. Graves provided him- 
self with a liquid stronger than water and returned 
to the settlement without wagon or flour, but glori- 
ously drunk. Several men started to Joliet to see 
what had become of the team. It was found some 
miles away in a slough, where it had been left by the 
"inebriated " man. 

From the abstract of assessments in the office of 
the County Clerk, the following facts are gleaned : 
In 1884 there were in this township 21,130 acres of 
improved land, valued at $338,595, an average of 
$16.02 an acre. With the exception of Somonauk, 
the average value was above that of any other town- 
ship. The town lots were valued at $366,861 ; per- 
sonal property, $347,109. A total amount of $1,052,- 
565, which was reduced by the State Board of Equal- 
ization to $919,285. Among the items of personal 
property assessed that year were the following: 
Horses, 1,037; cattle, 2,702; mules and asses, 2; 
sheep, 969; hogs, 2,028; steam engines, 12; safes, 
30; billiard tables, 10; carriages and wagons, 616; 
watches and clocks, 822, sewing and knitting ma- 
chines, 478 ; pianos, 86; melodeons and organs, 127. 
De Kalb Township alone exceeded Sycamore in the 
number of horses. In carriages and wagons, watches 
and clocks, sewing and knitting machines, and in 
pianos, Sycamore leads every other township in the 
county. 

On the organization of the township James Har- 
rington was elected to serve as a member of the 
Board of Supervisors. He was succeeded in 1856 
by E. L. Mayo, who served one year, when D. B. 
James was elected. He was succeeded by James 









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Harrington in 1859, who served three years. Ros- 
well Dow was iir-4 elected in 1862, and was twice 
re-elected. Samuel Alden was hi or in 1865. 

He served two years, when Henrj Wood was elected, 
and served one year. N. L. Cottrell was the mem- 
ber for 1S68, Henry Wood in 1869, and John G. 
Smith in 1870-1; E. B. Shurtleff, 1872-3; Na- 
than Lattin, 1 S74-7 ; Marshall Stark, 1878-80; 
William W. Marsh, assistant, 1881 : Henry C. Whit- 
temore, r882 1; Byron F. Wyman, assistant, 1883-4. 



VICTOR TOWNSHIP. 

'HIS township lies upon the south line of the 
county, being bounded on the south by La 
Salle Coiinty, on the east by Somonauk 
Township, on the north by Clinton, and on the 
west by l'avv Paw. The land is exclusively 
prairie, rich and productive. 
Among the first settlers were Jeremiah Mulford, 
W. H. Keene, Aruna Beckwith, James Green, New- 
tun Steams, Peleg Sweet, Jerome Baxter, George N. 
Stratton, Simon Suydam, H. C. Heard and W. R. 
Prescott. In 1S47 and 1848 some of the land of this 
township was taken up, and during the next five 
years all was entered. In 1851,011 the completion 
of the C. B. & Q. R. R. south of the township, a 
number of people came in, and soon all of the 
rich prairie was filled with a thrifty and industrious 
people. Many Germans and Irish were among the 
number, and also quite a colony of Norwegians. 

Victor is exclusively an agricultural township, 
having no village within its borders. Its people trade 
in the village of Leland, upon the south, ami Somo- 
nauk, ii|>oii the southeast. Van Buren and Victor 
Center postoffices were established in an early day. 
The first school-house is said to have been built 





in r 850, by Newton Stearns, on section 8. In 1855 
the school sec -tion was sold. From the report of the 
County Superintendent of Schools for the year end- 
ing June 30, 1884, are gleaned the following interest- 
ing facts : There were 3S0 persons under 21 years of 
age, of whom 275 were over six years of age. Each 
of the districts had a frame school-house, the total 
value of which was $3,750. School had been held 
in each district, with a total enrollment of 240. 
Seven male and eight female teachers had been em- 
ployed, the highest monthly wages paid any being 
$50, and the lowest $23. The tax levy was $2,055. 

Boies says: "This township gave 103 soldiers to 
the War of the Rebellion, and taxed itself $10,858 
for war purposes. Those who lost their lives in the 
service were Ferdinand Vanderveer, who died at 
Louisville, Ky., March 30, 1865; E. T. Pierce, at 
Alexandria, Va.. April 23, 1861; C. T. Bond, at 
Pittsburg, Pa., March 17, 1865; C. R. Suydam, at 
Alexandria, Va., Jail. 26, 1862." 

Victor township was organized in 1853. Previously 
it had been, with Clinton and part of Afton, in one 
civil township. 

In 1884 the assessor reported 20,913 acres of im- 
proved land, valued at $295,594; personal property, 
$55,128; total, $35 0,7 2 2. The State Board of Equal- 
ization reduced the total amount to $309,319. Among 
the items of personal property listed were the follow- 
ing: Horses, 678; cattle, 2,151; mules and asses, 
21 ; sheep, 1S6; hogs, 2,864; carriages and wagons, 
158; watches and clocks, 119; sewing and knitting 
machines, 40; melodeons and organs, 28. 

SUPERVISORS. 

The following named have served the township as 
members of the Board of Supervisors : 

Benjamin Darland 1854 WilliamB. Prescott 1867-69 

1855-57 John 1 Beveri . 1870 

N Stratton. ...1858 WilliamB Prescott 1871 

11 1 Beard 1859-61 Hiram Loucks 1872-81 

I s Vanderveer 1862-64 Thomas F.Warren 1881-82 

II 1 Beard 1865-66 Silas D. Wi ion 1883-84 






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HIS is one of the most attractive cities in 
Northern Illinois. With its wide streets, 
** handsome residences and churches, the 
architectural beauty of which is indeed com- 
mendable, it makes a place in which one might 
well desire to live and enjoy the comforts of a 
home. Surrounded by an excellent agricultural 
country, within a short distance of the great metrop- 
* olis of the West, and having a thrifty and enterpris- 
J ing population, what more could there be desired ? 
Almost a half century has passed away since Cap- 
'£ tain Eli Barnes erected the first house upon the site 
y of the present city. The historian cannot describe 
\ n this building as of the usual pattern — " an unpreten- 
tious log-cabin " — for it was not, but a large two- 
story frame building, still in a good state of preserva- 
tion, and which has been used from the beginning to 
the present time for hotel purposes. It stands upon 
the southeast corner of the Court-House square, and 
is truly an old landmark, worthy of veneration. It 
was thought by the people then living in the county 
a great waste of money for the Captain to erect such 
a large building; but it was well for the future of 
Sycamore that it was done, for it doubtless was the 
means of obtaining and retaining the county seat. 

Previous to the erection of this building by Capt. 
Barnes, an attempt had been made by a company 
from New York to locate a village north of the pres- 
ent site. This was in 1836, when wild-cat money 
was in abundance and when towns were springing 
up like mushrooms all over the West. When the 
bubble burst, when it was found that it required a 
pocket full of such money as was then in existence 
to buy a meal of victuals, the New York company not- 
withstanding it had expended a large sum of money 



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in improvements, abandoned its claim, and old Syca- 
more was no more. 

Although Capt. Barnes erected the first house on 
the present site of the city, there was yet another 
here at the time of its erection. A small frame house 
had been moved from the Hamlin farm and was oc- 
cupied by Dr. Bassett, the first physician in the 
place. This house stood until 1855 where D. B. 
James subsequently built a handsome residence, and 
was then burned down, on suspicion that it had been 
used for the sale of liquors. 

The village slowly improved for some years. " In 
1840," says Boies, in his History of De Kalb County, 
" the dreary little village consisted of a dozen houses, 
scattered over considerable land, but without fences, 
and with but one well." 

As times became better, and the county-seat con- 
tests were in a measure settled in favor of Sycamore, 
the growth of the village was more marked. In 
1848 the population was 262; in 1S49 it was 320; 
in 1850 it had further increased to 390; and in 1S51 
it had 435. In 1S55 there were in the place six dry- 
goods stores, two hardware stores, two cabinet-ware 
rooms, one drug store, four grocer) - and provision 
stores, two saloons, three taverns, one banking and 
exchange office, two wagon shops, one livery stable, 
two harness shops, two tin shops, one jewelry store, 
three shoe shops, four blacksmith shops, one shingle 
manufactory, one tailor shop, one meat market, one- 
cooper shop, seven lawyers, four physicians, ten car- 
penters, four painters, three circulating libraries, three- 
churches, and one steam saw-mill. 

From 1S55 to the present time, the growth of 
Sycamore has been a.steady one. There is nothing 






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of the mushroom about the place. In population and 

in wealth its growth has been slow but sure. 

The original plat of Sycamore comprised 24, whole 
and six half blocks. The village was surveyed and 
platted by Capt. Eli l ) Surveyi 

May, 1839, ami immediately placed upon record. 
To the original plat many additions have since been 
, the village of Sy< amore assuming city propor- 
tions. There is one thing the present generation 
have cause to 1 >e thankful lor, and to which just 
e should be awarded the projectors of the town, 
and that is, the wide streets. Few cities can boast of 
such wide and beautiful streets, now adorned with 
beautiful shade trees, which add a charm to this 
lovely place. 

INCORPORATION. 

In 1858, Sycamore was incorporated under the 
general act as a village. In 1859 a special charter 
was secured from the Legislature, the act being ap- 
proved Feb. 21, 1859. The provisions of the spec 
charter was thought to be more acceptable than 
those of the general act, and better adapted to the 
welfare and growth of the village. 

The first election held under the special charter 
was held March 14, 1859, and all other elections 
were ordered held on the second Monday in March 
of each year. At the first election the following 
named were elected members of the Board of Trus- 
tees : Edward 1,. Mayo, H. F. Page, George 
Weeden, W. II i, C. B. Beckwith. Tyler K. 

Waite was elected Justice of the Peace: Daniel 
Pierce, Assessor; H. A. Joslyn, Constable. 

The first meeting of the Hoard was held March 
19. E. L. Mayo was elected President of the B 
and David Farnsworth, Clerk protem. This was all 
the business transacted. On the 4th of April Mr. 
Farnsworth was elected Clerk for the year. 

For ten sears the village government, under its 
spec ial charter, existed, when it was thought advis- 
able, by the people, to 01 inize under a civil govern- 
ment. A special charter was sec ured, approved by 
the Governor Match 4, 1869. The city was divided 
in four wards, and under the charier its first elec tion 
was held March 15, 1869, at which time the follow- 
ing officers were elec ted : Reuben Ellwood, M 
Tyler K. Waite. Justice of the Peace; Udermen — 
1st Ward, C. T. Stuart, C. Boynton; 2d Ward, R. 
L. Divine, J. W. Hunter; 3d Ward, Charles Brown, 




J. H. Rogers; 4th Ward, AlonzO Ellwood, G. S. 

Robinson. These were all representative men in the 

fullest sense. 

The first meeting of the I was held the 

evening of election. W. R. Thomas was el 
Clerk; ('.. S. Robinson, City Attorney; Samuel B. 
Middleton, Marshal. At its second meeting, after 
the appointment of committees, R. J. Holcomb was 
appointed Constable and Collector; S. B. Middleton, 
Fire Warden, R. L. Divine, Treasurer. This com- 
pleted the organization of the new city government. 
At the first election there were 385 votes < 

The affairs of the city have generally been man- 
aged in a satisfactory way, and few cities, for the 
money expended, can exhibit a better record. 

The following is a complete list of city officers from 
its organization: 

MAYORS. 



Reuben Ellwood 1869 

Moses 1 lean 1870 

i I. Smith 1871 

rd A. Smith 1872 

John B. Harki 

elected to fill vacancy... 1873 



I I..] t ness 1873 

Richard 1 . 1 >ivine 1875 

Nathan Lattin 1877 

Nathan Lattin 1879 

Charles T. Stuart 1881 

Chaunccy Kllwood 1883 



CITY CLERKS. 



W. R. Thomas i?6 9 

W. R. I nomas 1870 

I M . t lonrad, 

ted to fill vacancy. ..1870 
Hai roun 1872 

. Harroun... 1873 

Edward Crist 1874 



1875 

Hix, to fill vacancy. .1875 

I I 1876 

II. 1 . Lawrence 1877 

Benjamin Nilson 1876 

min Nikon 1881 

Benjamin Nilson 1883 



CITY TREASURERS. 



Richard I.. I'ivinc 1869 

! Piatt 1870 

\. 1 1 olton 1871 

\ < I olton 1872 

\ . 1 . * olti m 1873 

A.C. Colton. 1874 



I . Stuart 1875 

A. 1 . Coll 1 . ..1876 

ters 1 

George B. Morris 1870 

I . Hyde 

Warren F. Peters 1883 



CITY ATTORNEYS. 



George S. Robinson 1869 • 

S. Kohinson 1870 

I, .In. L. Pratt 1871 

[.Bail 1872 

A. s. Babcock 1873 

John L. Pratt 1874 



-1875 

Charles K. It nut 1876 

I 1 Itcccit 

Frank E. Stevens 

' 18S3 



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/. 1:. -1 
Z. B 

Z. B. Mayo. 



.1870 I Frank W.Smith 

.1874 Aaron * . Men 

.1878 I William Tasker 



ALDERMEN — FIRST WARD. 



Charle ..1869 

1869 

N.s. Dorwin 1870 

f Bailey 1871 

A.c. c , .It, ,,1 1S72 

Frank Smith 1873 

Uonzo Ellwood 1873 

Mil- Dayton 1874 

John s. I'rii.v n 1875 

Miio Dayton 1876 



E. 1'.. Shurtlc rt 1877 

W.Wharry 1877 

1 i 1878 

I K night 

E. KlliLttlt 

A. J. Drive ...1S82 

... 1883 

A. I. Driver 1884 



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ALDERMEN SECOND WARD. 



Elected 

Richard L. Divine 1869 

J. W. Hunter 1869 

Norman C. Warren 1870 

). A. Id en 1870 

1 [oratio H . Mason 1871 

I isi A Men- 1872 

George W". Nesbitt 1872 

John Syme 1873 

A. W, Sawyer 1873 

I nli n Syme 1874 



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£leci ed 

•'875 



Willi. un C. Blacl 1876 

John Shuld 1877 

James S. Waterman 1878 

George K. Hibbard 1879 

John B Whaler 1880 

Knipp 1881 

lulm B. \\ halen 1882 

William M. Byers 1883 

|,.lin B. Whalen 1884 



ALDERMEN — THIRD WARD. 



1. M. Rogers iB6g 

Charles Brown 1869 

e P. Wild 1870 

\ 11 ham Lattin 1870 

Sey urHix 1871 

Daniel Dustin 1872 

W. W. Marsh :.-.i8 7 3 

lames C. Fulkerson 1873 

W. W. Marsh 1874 

J. C. Fulkerson 1875 

M oses Clean 1876 



1 George M.Sivwi ight 1877 

I fanii I Dustin 1877 

W. W. Marsh 1878 

Henry C. Whittemorc 1879 

Harmon Paine 1880 

1 hi 1 -I) Stark 1881 

Mil had Burke 1882 

"John Shuld 1883 

William R. Tifft 1883 

Harmon Paine 1884 



ALDERMEN — FOURTH WARD. 



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Alonzo HI I wood 1869 

George G. Robinson 1869 

Uonzo Ellwood 1870 

fohn B. Harkness 1871 

Frank W. Smith r8 7 2 

William Graham.. 1878 

A. E. Hix 1878 



A. E. Hix 1879 

Willliam Graham 1880 

Chris. 1 Ihlmacher 1881 

William I irahani 1882 

John Black 1883 

Charles E. Hyde 1S83 

A. Stroberg 1884 



SUPERVISORS. 



The following named have served the village and 
city as members of the Board of Supervisors : 



L. Lowell 1866 

C. 1 »■ Boynton 1867-68 

Reuben Ellwood 1869 

■ i Dean 1870 

Richard A. Smith 1871-72 



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E. I.. Mayo 1859 

C. M. Brown i860 

\ I Ihvood 1861 

C.O. Boynton 1862 

A. 1' llwood 1863 

C. Kellum 1864-65 

The city marshal in 1884 was N. R. Harrington. 
Saloon licenses were fixed in that year at $600, and 
druggists' permits at $25 per year. 

COMMERCIAL INTERESTS. 

The first merchants in Sycamore were John C. and 
Charles Waterman, who commenced business in 
1839. Their stock was small, but suitable to the 
wants of the infant settlement. As the county in- 
creased in population and in wealth, other merchants 
began business, the Watermans increased their 
stock, and in due time almost every class of trade 
was represented. 

POSTOFF1CE. 

This office was established in 1837, with Mark 
Daniels as postmaster. For that year the income of 
the office was $16. 88. Mr. Daniels was succeeded by 
John R. Hamlin in 1841. The receipts of the office 
now amounted to $59. Jesse C. Kellogg, well-known 
to all the old settlers, came next. He served four 
years and was succeeded by Z. B. Mayo, the laywer. 



J. C. Waterman was next in order. Then came 
William P. Dutton, who gave way to Mr. Moore. 
Chauncey Ellwood, J. W. Burst, D. B.James and H. 
1. Boies, each had it one term. In 1878 C. F. Mar- 
tin was appointed, and was re-appointed in 1SS2. I le 
makes a very popular and efficient postmaster. His 
assistant, Mr. Joslyn, is also quite popular. The 
duties of the office could not be better attended to 
than by Mr. Martin and Mr. Joslyn. A money order 
department was established in July, 1865. 

HOTELS. 

The first house erected in Sycamore, as stated, 
was for hotel purposes, and yet stands on the south- 
east corner of the public square, and is yet in a good 
state of preservation, and still used as a hotel. That 
house has sheltered some of the greatest men of the 
State, among whom may be mentioned Gov. Ford, T. 
Lyle Dickey, Judge Caton, as well as a host of others. 
If the scenes that have transpired therein, and the 
stories that have been told, could be written up, 
what a volume it would make! 

The Ward House is now the most pretentious 
house in the place. It is a large, three-story brie k, 
with accommodations for 75 guests. H. A. Ward is 
the present proprietor. 

EDUCATIONAL. 

The first school of which there is any record was 
taught in the old court-house, in 1840, by Dr. Bell. 
In the winter of 1841-2, also in the winter of 1842-3, 
Edward L. Mayo, Esq., taught the school in the 
court-house. Mr. Mayo was afterwards a promi- 
nent lawyer at the De Kalb County Bar, also County 
Judge. In the winter of 1843-4, Sheldon Crossett 
taught in the court-house, and also in the summer of 
1S44. In the winter of 1844-5, William J. Hunt 
taught the school in the court-house. In the sum- 
mer of 1845, Miss Charlotte Gates 1 aught a school 
in a building which stood near the present residence 
of Col. A. W. Lloyd, on Main Street. 

In the winter of 1845-6, a Miss Reed taught 
school in the court-house. In the following summer 
Miss Elizabeth Richards, (now Mrs. Henry Wood) 
taught school in a little house on the north road, 
about a mile from the court-house, near the resi- 
dence of John Carnes. 

In the winter of 1846-7, Charles Robinson taught 
the school in Deacon Harry Martin's house on the 
south side of West State Street. In the summer of 



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there was probably no school. In the winter 

of 1847-8, Mr. Roswell Dow taught the school in 
on Martin's house. Joseph Sixbury and Spar- 
in wer< two of the directors; the name 

of the third does not now appear. Mr. Dow asked 
§15 per month to teach the school. The directors, 
thinking this too much, offered him $12, assuring 
him that he would not have over 30 pupils. Mr. 
Dow agreed to teach the school for $12 per month, 
provided^ that he should have pay in proportion for 
all over 30. School opened. The number of scholars 
dily increased until the roll showed 64 names. 

It is not known whether or not there was an) 
school in tin- summer "t 1848. 

In the winter of 1S48-9 there was no public 
school, but Roswell Dow had a select school in the 
court-house, and in the summer of 1849, Miss Eliza- 
beth Richards had a school there, whether public or 
private is a matter of uncertainty. 

In the fall of 1S49 and winter of 1849 and 1850, 
Mr. Dow taught a select school in a building known 
as the Sons of Temperance Hall, which stood where 
the jail now stands. 

In the summer of 1850, Miss Theresa E. Richards 
(now Mrs. R. Dow) taught the school in the Uni- 
versalis! < lunch, where Arthur Stark's residence 
now is. In the winter of 1850-1, J. A. Simmons 
taught the -^ hool in a house standing on the north- 
east comer of Main and Ottawa streets. In the 
summer of 185 1 there was no public school as far as 
is now known. Mr. Dow's si hool continued. 

In the winter of 1881-2, Ezra W. Robinson taught 
the school in the south end of Simon Snyder's black- 
smith shop, situated where Wilkins' Block now 
stands. 

In March, 1853, William S. Harrington taught 
the public school in an old drug store which had 
been occupied by the firm of Halsey & Ambrose. 
The building may have been the old court-house. 
After a few weeks the school became so large that it 
was removed to " Dow's Academy" In May follow- 
ing the direi tors hired Miss Amelia Hudson, sister 
of Rev. C. F. Hudson, to assist Mr. Harrington. A 
re< itation-room was fitted up in the basement of the 
Academy. Thus, the graded school of Sycamore 
took another step forward. The school closed Oct. 
14, 1853. 

In the winter of 1853-4, also in the summer of 



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1854, Miss Hannah Dean taught the school in the 
building now occupied by Ruel Davis as a dwelling- 
house. It is also quite probable that there was 
another district school in the village. 

In 1853 steps were taken for the erection of a 
school-house — the first in the village. A lot was 
purchased on the northeast corner of California and 
Exchange Streets, and in 1854 a house was com- 
pleted. Miss Hannah Dean was the first principal 
in the new house. 

The population of the village increasing, it was 
found necessary in 1859 to erect another building, 
which was accordingly done, at a cost of $6,000. 
This building was of brick and consisted of four 
rooms. 

In the early part of January, 1863, the school- 
house was burned. The directors at once rented 
George's Block for school purposes, and after an in- 
terruption of a few days, the schools opened and 
continued through the school year. 

The building was erected during the following 
summer and fall, at a cost of $15,500. It was con- 
strue led of w'ood. It has eight large school-rooms, 
the requisite cloak-rooms, recitation-rooms, ap- 
paratus-room, Superintendent's office — -used also by 
tin- S< hool Board for holding meetings — a large 
assembly hall, and is a handsome edifice. The 
schools were opened late in the fall of 1863. The 
number of pupils steadily increased from year to 
year. In 1876 the Board rented the basement of the 
Methodist church, and used it as a primary school- 
room. In 1877, a two-room, wooden building in the 
west part of the city was erected, at a cost of about 
$2,000, Messrs. Dunning & Cougle, contractors. The 
building and lot cost $2,500; it stands on the west 
side of Cross Street, and is known as the " West 
School." 

In the summer of 1880 the Board of Education 
pun based a lot on the south side of East Elm street, 
and proceeded to erect thereon a two-room school- 
house. It was completed at a cost of $4,500, Wil- 
lard & McAlpine, contractors. This school is known 
as the " East School." 

During the past three years, the old furniture, 
which was put in when the main building was fur- 
nished in 1863, has been removed, and replaced by 
that which is new and elegant; so that at the present 
time the furniture in all the school buildings is 
substantially new and in excellent condition. 



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In accordance with an act of the Legislature ap- 
proved April 1, 1872, the control of the schools 
was taken from the board of directors and lodged 
in a board of education, consisting of six members, 
who hold office for three years each. 

The following named were the first elected : P. M. 
Alden, George K. Hebbard, R. L. Divine, Calvin 
Shurtleff, Charles Brown and Henry R. Jones. 

The schools of Sycamore have been thoroughly 
graded, and since 1875 classes have been graduated 
each year. Since that time graduates have been sent 
out from the high school, many of whom are now 
occupying prominent positions before the public. 
Since August, 1877, Prof. A. J. Blanchard has 
occupied the office of Superintendent of Schools of 
the city, and to him much of the credit is due for 
their efficiency. The following named comprise the 
list of teachers for 1884-5 : Superintendent, Prof. 
A. J. Blanchard; high school, Agnes I. Love; 8th 
grade, Claire L. Lattin ; 7 th grade, Mary H. Alden ; 
6th grade, Mary A. Shurtleff; 5th grade, Mary F. 
Gilson; 4th grade, Lizzie A. Langhorn; 3d grade, 
Jennie B. Anderson; 2d grade, Amy H. Luther; 1st 
and 2d grade, Estella L. Tifft. In the East Ward 
School are, 3d grade, Ida L. Bannister; 1st and 2d 
grades, Florence Harkness. West Ward School, 3d 
grade, Elizabeth J. Walker; 1st and 2d grades, 
Anna Maxfield. 

The Sycamore Select School was first opened by 
Roswell Dow, in September, 1848, in the old court- 
house. The following year it was held in Temper- 
ance Hall. In 1850 Mr. Dow erected a brick 
building for his school, the first school building 
erected in Sycamore. It was on the comer of Main 
and Ottawa Streets. Roswell Dow was principal of 
the school, with Rev. C. C. Hudson, Pastor of the 
Congregational Church, and Miss Theresa E. Rich- 
ards, who afterward became the wife of the principal. 
This school, while called by Mr. Dow a " select 
school," was usually called " Dow's Academy." 
Philosophy, algebra, geometry, chemistry, astronomy, 
Latin and Greek were taught in this school. The 
school was discontinued in 1853, partly on account 
of the ill health of the principal and on account of 
the establishment of the public-school system. 

RELIGIOUS. 

There is no city of its size in the State of Illinois 
that can boast of more and better church edifices 




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than Sycamore. This may be regarded as an 
evidence that the moral and religious welfare of the 
people are well attended to. The Lord's house 
should at least equal that of His people. 

The Methodist Episcopal Church was organized in 
June, 1836, by Revs. Mr. Royal and Samuel Pills- 
bury. The first services, however, were held in May, 
1836, at the house of Mark Daniels, by Levi Lee. 
These were the first religious services in the town- 
ship. The class organized was also the first in all 
this region of country. The following named com- 
posed the class: Edward F. White, leader; Mary 
White, Mark Daniels, Mrs. Daniels, Peter Walrod 
and Mary Walrod. In September, 1836, the first 
quarterly meeting was held, Rev. S. R. Beggs sup- 
plying the place of the presiding elder. At the an- 
nual conference held in the fall of 1836, Sycamore 
was made to form a part of the St. Charles Circuit, 
which embraced all the country between the Fox 
and Rock Rivers from Somonauk to Rockford. Rev. 
Wm. Gaddis was assigned to this circuit. The class 
in Sycamore, increasing in numbers and strength, 
determined to erect a house of worship; accordingly 
a plain frame edifice was buit in 1874 and dedicated 
to the service of Almighty God. It was 37 x 45 feet. 
Becoming too small, in 1865 a larger and better 
building was erected at a cost of $13,000, which is 
an honor to the Church and to the city. Rev. R. M. 
Hatfield preached the dedicatory sermon. Rev. W. 
D. Atchison is the pastor. The Church is in a flour- 
ising condition, with a membership of 200. In 1874 
a parsonage was built, at a cost of $3,100. Dr. Nit- 
terauer is Superintendent of the Sunday-school. 

The First Congregational Church. — On the 1 ith of 
April, 1840, this Church was organized in the old 
court-house. The council called to assist in the or- 
ganization consisted of Rev. James Mackie, Rev. 
Ebenezer Brown and Rev. N. Clark, with one dele- 
gate from the Church at Byron. Twelve persons en- 
tered into the organization. The congregation met 
for worship in the old court-house and in the private 
dwellings of some of its members until the erection 
of its first church edifice. Rev. William Mackie 
preached occasionally during 1840. In July, '841, 
a Presbyterian minister from New York, Rev. David 
I. Perry, began labor here and continued with the 
Church until August, 1843. There were sixteen ad- 
ded to the Church during his ministry. In the fall of 

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1843 Kc\. E. E. Wells took the careof the Church, 
remaining three years. During his ministry 45 wore 
added to the Church. In the spring of [846 the first 
move was made towards the erection of a house of 
worship. Captain Eli Barnes donated the site on the 
east side of the square. On account of prevailing 
sickness in the community, but tittle was done till 
the following year, when the contract was let to frame 
and enclose the building. Rev. Oliver \V. Norton 
low pastor of the Church, lie remained one 
year, but on account of sickness of the mechanics 
and a lack of funds he did not see the house finished. 
In September, 1848, Rev. C. F. Hudson became pas- 
tor, and nine were added to the Church, during his 
ministry of five years. Rev. I). Core followed him 
in [853 and served until 1S60. The additions in 
this time were 112. Rev. E. J. Allen then served 
three years, and 19 were added. Rev. J. T. Cook 
served two years with 37 additions. Rev. William 
Windsor served six years, with 44 additions. Rev. 
( ). \Y. Faj served three years, with 83 additions. 
Rev. William Gallagher followed for one year, and 
was succeeded by Rev. T. G. Grassie,' and he by 
Dr. Burton. Rev. F. J. Brobst is the present pastor. 
Early in 1884 the erection of a new and handsome 
church edifice was 1 mnmenced on Somonauk Street, 
which when completed will cost about $20,000. The 
officers of the Church in January, 1885, were: Rev. 
Flavius J. Brobst, pastor; Harry Martin, J. H. 
Rogers, Samuel Alden, deacons; Daniel Dustin, 
clerk and treasurer; David A. Syme, superintend- 
ent of Sabbath-school; Elthom Rogers, assistant 
superintendent. The present membership is 178. 
Universalist Church. — Services were held as early 
as 1845, by those holding views of the Universalist 
Church, in the old court-house. The first to preach 
that faith here was probably Rev. Roundsville. The 
first who engaged his services for any slated time was 
Rev. Van Olstine. He was engaged for one-fourth 
his time for one year. Re\. J. M. Day was also one 
of the first to preach this faith. In 1853 Rev. D. 
^\ J. Carney located here and organized the society. 
Among those composing the organization, were the 
following named, with their families : Phineas Josl\ 11, 
John Waterman, George Weeden, Curtis Smith, 
Hosea Willard, H. V Joslyn, II II. Candy, L. F. 
Dow, Kimball Dow and George ('.. Spring. The 
society soon undertook the erection of a chun h build- 
ing, which was completed in 1854, at a cost of 






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$1,600. At the time of building the following named 
were the trustees: Curtis Smith, George G. Spring, 
George Weeden, N. H. Peck and Sylvanus Holcomb. 
In 1S56 a Church organization was formed. The 
church building not being such as was demanded by 
the age, it was disposed of fur a dwelling, and in 1875 
a handsome brick structure was erected, on State 
. .it .ic cist id $13,500. The Church and society 
is now in a flourishing condition, being out of debt 
and with a surplus in the treasury. Among those 
who have labored for the society have been Revs. D. 
J. Carney. R. S. Sanborn, A. J. Fishback, B. N. 
Wiles, S. F. Gibbs, N. S. Sage, H. V. Chase and W. 
S. Ralph. There are about 100 members of the 
Church and society. 

Episcopal Chinch. — In the summer of 1855 Rev. 
Julius Waterbury visited Sycamore and held a week- 
das service in the Congregational Church. The 
prospect for an organization seemed good and, Rl. 
Rev. Henry J. Whitehouse, being notified, he resolved 
on a visit to the place. In August of the same year, 
he came and also held service in the Congregational 
church. In September Rev. Julius Waterbury was 
sent to effect an organization, which was accom- 
plished, and Isaac Johnson, of Cortland, was elected 
senior warden and Mr. Glass, of Cenoa, junior war- 
den. The vestrymen elected were Dr. Page, J. R. 
Hamlin, Ben Page, Joseph Morse, J. C. Waterman 
and J. S. Waterman. Steps were at once taken to 
raise funds for building a church, and nearly $1,000 
was raised in a few hours. J. S. Waterman, donated 
a lot on which to build. The ladies of the parish 
organized a social for active work. In August, 1856, 
the corner-stone of the building was laid, and in 
1857 the building was completed, and July 1 con- 
secrated to the service of Almighty God, by Bishop 
Whitehouse, of Illinois. Its cost was something over 
$2,000. Rev. Julius Waterbury was called to the 
rectorship in September, 1S57, and served until Jan- 
uary, 1858, when he resigned. In March, 1858, 
Rev. Warren Roberts was chosen rector. During 
this year the parish became self-sustaining. The 
congregations had increased in number, a flourishing 
Sunday-school was in existence and a Bible class 
was formed and taught by the rector. In 1S59 the 
communicants had increased from 7 to 30. In Feb- 
ruary, 1863, Mr. Roberts resigned, and during the 
summer following Rev. Mr. Cooper, of Chicago, oc- 
c asionally officiated. Early in the fall of 1864, Rev. 




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Mr. Foster was called to the rectorship. On account 
of ill health, he resigned Faster, 1S65. In June, ot 
this year, the Bishop sent Rev. Mr. Hendley to min- 
ister to the parish. In August following, he was 
called to the rectorship, but only served until March, 
1866, when he resigned. Rev. D. Cushman was at 
once called to fill the vacancy, accepted, and en- 
tered upon his dusties as rector the first Sunday 
in May. During this year the church building was 
improved and enlarged and a new pipe organ pur- 
chased. On Easter Monday, in 1869, Dr. Cushman 
resigned, and only occasional services were held un- 
til October, when Rev. Mr. Hume accepted a call. 
He served but six months. In April, 1S77, Rev. M. 
F. Sounson visited the parish, and in June became 
rector. Some funds were raised for budding a rec- 
tory and J. S. Waterman donated a lot for the pur- 
pose. When built it was pronounced by the Bishop 
the most finished in his diocese. In 1872 the rector 
lost his wife and four children by death. In 1873 
Mr. Sounson resigned, and June 7, 1874, Rev. W. 
E. Toll entered upon his duties as rector, having 
been called to the parish. He served for seven years, 
during which time the present church edifice "was 
erected, at a cost of $17,000, and consecrated by 
Bishop W. E. McLaun in 1879. During the rector- 
ship 52 persons were confirmed and 133 baptized. 
In October, 1881, Rev. William Elmer was called to 
the rectorship, since which time many improvements 
have been made in the interior of the church. On the 
death of J. S. Waterman it was found that sufficient 
property had been left by him on the death of his wife 
to partially endow the parish forever. The Church 
is in a most prosperous condition, with a membership 
of 70 communicants and an organization of 250. 

Baptist Church. — A Baptist Church was organized 
in the township of Franklin in 1852, with the fol- 
lowing named constituent members : A. L. Warner, 
Deacon; Andrew Chapman, Clerk; Adam Miller, 
Jane Miller, Martin Barringer, Mary A. Barringer, 
Caroline Mason, A. L. Warner, Andrew Chapman' 
John Bean, Jane Bean, Susan Reddell, Hiram Hud- 
son. Rev. Adam Miller was ordained pastor. 1111856 
the Church was transferred to Sycamore. Rev. A. C. 
Kingsley was the first pastor. Until the completion 
of their house of worship in 1858-9, services were 
held in the school and court-house. Among those 
who have served the Church as regular pastor or sup- 




ply were, Revs. J. Moxom, W. W. Webb, G. I >. 
Summers, John Young, M. E. Arkills, L. L. Cage, 
Alvah Sabin, S. Cornelius. R. A. Shattuck, G. II. 
Brown, A. C. Keene, F. M. Williams. There are 
now 105 enrolled in list of members. 

The Evangelical Lutheran Salem Church, of Syca- 
more, was organized in 1870 and a house of worship 
erected in 1872, on Charles Street. In 1S73 a par- 
sonage was erected on Somonauk Street. The pas- 
tors have been Rev. A. Huh, who was instrumental in 
the organization of the Church, Revs. N. Nordgren 
and S. G. Larson, the latter the present pastor. There 
are now 323 communicants. 

SECRET AN'! 1 BENE'V OLENT ORG INIZATIONS. 

Masons. — The first lodge of Free and Accepted 
Masons in Sycamore was Blue Lodge No. 134, 
which received its charter Oct. 4, 1853. Its first 
officers were, Robert Dott, W. M.; H. H. Rowe, S. 
W. ; D. B. James, J. W. This lodge now has 112 
members. Its present officers are, W. B. Spain, W. 
M.; J. E. Parker, S. W.; H. T. Lawrence, J. W. 
The Masonic Order here is divided into three bodies : 
First, Blue Lodge, three degrees; second, the Chap- 
ter, four degrees ; third, the Commandery, two orders. 
In the order of St. John is Knights Templars. 

The Commandery was chartered Oct. 24, 1865, 
and its present membership is 123. Its officers are : 
A. W. Sawyer, Em. Com. ; E. C. Lott, Gen. ; G. IS. 
Wiseman, Cap. Gen.; Daniel Dustin, Prelate; M. S. 
Timmerman, S. W. ; W. B. Spain, J. W. ; Charles T. 
Stuart, Treas. ; George B. Morris, Rec. Past Com- 
manders : A. W. Sawyer, Dan '1 Dustin, Frank Smith, 
S. O. Vaughn, G. B. Wiseman. 

Odd Fellows.— The Lodge of I. O. O. F. was first 
organized in 1852. In 1861 so many of its members 
enlisted and entered the army it was obliged to sur- 
render its charter. It was re-organized in 1872 and 
now has 150 members. Since 1852 it has initiated 
307 into its Lodge. The Sycamore Lodge has furn- 
ished one Grand Master of the State, in the person 
of Mr. Alonzo Ell wood, who has also been Grand 
Representative all but two years when the Lodge- 
has been running. The present officers are, A. C. 
Sivwright, N. G.; Philip Webber. V. G. ; A. J. 
Thompson, R. S.; E. M. Phelps, P. S.; John Tucker, 
Treasurer. Its regular meetings are on Tuesdaj 
nights. 

Ellwood Encampment has 52 members, and meets 









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on the first and t li i rtl Wednesdays of each month. 

The Circle, an order distim I from the I. O. O. F., 
composed of its members, has a membership oi 
.(.I and meets on the second and fourth Fridays of 
the month. 

Pottet Post, No. /_>. (7. ./. A'., was chartered July 
i.|, 1874, and the Post mustered Aug. 4. of the same 
year. The following named comprised the first offi- 
cers: J. W. Burst, Com. ; H. W. Atwood, S. V. C. ; 
c. M. Bell, J. V. C .; Jefferson Stark, O. D. The 
Post was mustered and officers installed by Gen. H. 
Hilliard, Department Commander. The Post, in the 
1 1 years of its existence, has had its seasons of pros- 
perity and adversity. When organized, it was re- 
garded as a semi-political organization, and many 
old soldiers therefore held aloof. For some years it 
hovered between life and death, but through the un- 
tiling zeal of Capt. J. W. Burst, it was kept alive, and 
to-da\ it is one of the strongest posts in the State, 
with an active membership of 86. During its ex- 
istence it has mustered 152 persons. In 1881 one 
of its members, Capt. Burst, was elected Department 
Commander of the State, and in 1882 he was In- 
spector General of the United States. The present 
officers are, A. J. Blanc hard, Com.; R. C. Brown, S. 
V. C. ; W. F. Peters, J. V. C. ; Daniel Dustin, Adj.; 
W. U. E. Sivwright, Q.; Dr. O. M. Bryan, Surg. 
The past c ommanders are J. W. Burst, R. A. Smith, 
\V. H. Allen, William Graham, A. J. Driver and A. 
1 Blanchard. The Post was named in honor of Dr. 
Horace S. Potter, surgeon of the 105th regiment, 
killed near New Hope Church, ( ra 

Insurance Lodge, No. 4j, I. O. M. A., was organ- 
ized May 26, 1879, with 27 charter members. The 
present membership of the Lodge is 24. The follow- 
ing are the present officers: C. II. Hoyt, Pres.; J. 
N. Brunson, V. P.; Waller Waterman, Treas. ; H. 
I Lawrence, Sec. Those who have held the posi- 
tion of President are, G. B. Wise, F. W. Lott, II. T. 
Lawrence, L. M. Currier, A. L. Draper and C. II. 
Hoyt. 

Sycamore Camp, No. 4J, Modern Woodmen of 
America, was organized Aug. 6, 1884, with 25 char- 
ter members. The present officers of the Camp are, 
Charles C. Brown, Consul; S. H. Townsend, Ad- 
viser; C. G. Meeker, Banker; Charles C. Pond, 
Clerk. The Camp meets the second and fourth 
Monday evenings each month, in ('.. A R. Hall. 
The present membership is 28. 

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FIRE DEPARTMENT. 

It was not until 1876 that Sycamore had a regu- 
larly organized fire department. The City Council, 
February 17, 1876, passed an ordinance providing 
for the organization of the department, which was to 
consist of one superintendent, one lire marshal, and 
two volunteer companies, each to be composed of 
twenty-two ''able-bodied and respectable residents" 
of the city. Bonds to the amount of $12,400 were 
at once issued, the proceeds of which were applied 
to aid the department. Ground w^as procured, a well 
sunk, mains were laid, and other necessary arrange- 
ments were made. A. W. Sawyer was the first fire 
marshal. 

The City Council has always been liberalin its ap- 
propriations in aid of the department, and the depart- 
ment has sought to be worthy of the confidence placed 
in it. The fire companies have always been com- 
posed of good men, many of them in active business. 
At the present time there are three companies, with 
the following named captains: No. 1, John Schnit ; 
No. 2, Theodore Weitzel : No. 3, Charles Anderson. 
N. R. Harrington is superintendent and P. K. Jones 
marshal. There is now three-fourths of a mile of 
main, with ten hydrants, and the department has 
three hose carriages, 1,500 feet of hose, and all other 
necessary appliances for extinguishing fires. 

Since its organization in 1876 there have been sev- 
eral fires, and a number of alarms responded to by 
the department. Among the fires have been the fol- 
lowing: Levi Hodges' dwelling, partly destroyed; 
Freidman's clothing store, inside and rear end of 
building and stock totally destroyed; S. P. Partridge's 
dwelling, with loss of $3,000 ; Spain's tailor-shop, 
partly destroyed, with loss of stock; Hansgrohn's 
dwelling, with small loss; Shrader's planing-mill, 
total loss; Ellwood's warehouse, with loss on building 
of $4,000 and grain $5,000. Had it not been for the 
efficiency of the department many of these fires would 
have extended, with large loss to the property owners. 

BANKING. 

The first banking business was inaugurated by 
James S. Waterman in 1852. For some years he 
ran the business in connection with his mercantile 
trade, but in 1S57 he turned his attention exclusively 
to banking, continuing the same until 1864. About 
this time steps were taken to open a national bank, 
but were soon abandoned. 



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Edwin T. Hunt and John R. Hamlin commenced 
the banking business about i860 under the firm 
name of Hunt & Hamlin. Early in 1861 Mr. Ham- 
lin retired and James H. Beveridge became a part- 
ner, and the business was continued under the firm 
name of E. T. Hunt & Co. After operating about 
two years the firm organized under the general bank- 
ing law as a bank of issue. James H. Beveridge was 
President; Win. J. Hunt, Vice-President ; Edwin T. 
Hunt, Cashier. The bank suspended business in 
1866. 

Early in 1867 Daniel Pierce, Moses Dean and R. 
L. Divine formed a company under the firm name of 
Pierce, Dean & Co., bought the building aud fixtures 
used by the Bank of Sycamore, and commenced the 
banking business, with Emmett Clements as cashier. 
At the expiration of four years Mr. Divine withdrew, 
and the business was continued by Pierce & Dean 
until March, 1883, when Mr. Dean withdrew, the 
business being transferred to Daniel Pierce & Co. 
The bank has always been regarded as a substantial 
one, each of the partners being wealthy, and person- 
ally responsible for all of the liabilities of the con- 
cern. 

On withdrawing from the firm of Pierce, Dean & 
Co., R. L. Divine immediately formed a partnership 
with C. O. Boynton, and under the firm name of 
Divine & Boynton opened another banking house. 
erecting the building now used by the Sycamore 
National Bank for that purpose. Mr. Boynton some 
time afterwards withdrawing, the business was con- 
tinued by R. L. Divine & Co. till his death in 1S83. 

The Sycamore National Bank was organized in 
1871, its charter bearing date November n of that 
year. The capital stock was $50,000. J. S. Water- 
man was elected President, H. H. Mason Vice-Pres- 
ident and P. M. Alden Cashier. The first Directors 
were J. S. Waterman, H. H. Mason, C. W. Marsh, 
C. H. Cowper and P. M. Alden. Mr. Waterman con- 
tinued to act as President until his death in July, 
1883, when E. F. Dutton was elected, and continues 
to serve as such. Mr. Alden has been the only 
cashier. Its present directors are E. F. Dutton, P. 
M. Alden, I. N. Perry, J. P. Van Voorhis and Albert 
Sawyer. The business was conducted in the Water- 
man Block until January 1, 1884, when the bank was 
removed to its present location, the building formerly 
used by R, L. Divine & Co. The bank has had a 



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very successful career, and, in addition to being a 
safe depository, has been profitable to its stock- 
holders. At present there is $33,000 surplus and 
undivided profits. 



MANUFACTURING INTERESTS. 

Marsh Binder Manufacturing Company. — Syca- 
more has long been noted for its manufactories, and 
among those none have a wider reputation than that 
of the Marsh Binder Manufacturing Company, 
originally the Marsh Harvester Manufacturing Com- 
pany. Aug. 17, 1858, while residing as farmers in 
Shabbona Township, C. W. and W. W. Marsh ob- 
tained a patent for an entirely new method of har- 
vesting by machinery. Their first machine was 
substantially the same as all harvesters made to this 
day. From the time the Marsh Brothers built their 
first machine in 1858 to 187 1, no other harvester was 
put upon the market, but thousands of their ma- 
chines were manufactured and sold by them and 
their associates, beginning in a small way in a little 
shop on their farm, then founding the Piano shops 
and thereafter the extensive shops in Sycamore, 
which latter were established in 1869. It can be 
said without fear of contradiction that C. W. and W. 
W. Marsh were the inventors of harvesters. After 
the success of the harvesters had been secured, in- 
ventors began to turn their attention to the manu- 
facture of self-binders. 

In the year 1870 Charles Whitney and his brother, 
John H, built two original and complete machines 
for cutting and automatically binding grain with wire 
at the Sycamore Marsh Harvester Company's winks. 
These worked very well and were being perfected 
from year to year, but the lingering sickness and 
death finally of John H. Whitney interrupted and 
for a time put a stop to further progress in this 
direction. Meanwhile Charles Whitney had con- 
ceived a plan for a very simple platform binder, and 
in February, 1878, he made arrangements with ('. 
W. and W. W. Marsh for building and perfecting the 
same. Their first machine was used in the harvest 
following. In 1879 considerable further advance 
had been made and several machines were put out 
with general satisfaction. In 1S80 about 40 of them 
were introduced, but all these were wire binders, and 
meantime it had been demonstrated that twine was 
better material and cheaper than wire for the pur- 
pose ; hence it became necessary toUhrow aside the 



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wire-binding machines which had taken several 
of hard study and work, besides a large outlay of 
money to develop and perfect. The new cin 
stances were met prompt!) and vigorousl) and oper- 

upon a new twine hinder were immedi 
begun. It was completed and tested, and from it 
10 moii made in time for the harvest of t88i. From 
the first acre cut, the success of the machine was 
assured. It gave such extraordinary promise that 
when its proprietors proposed to organize a company 
foi its manufacture, $300,000 of capital stock was 
subscribed in a few days. The new company, en- 
titled the Marsh Binder Manufacturing Company, 
a the works of the Sycamore Marsh Harvester 
M inufacturing Company, and immediately began to 
manufai ture the new binder in quantity for the gen- 
eral trade. 

The R. Ellwood Manufacturing Company was or- 
ganized in 1S76, with the Hon. Reuben Ellwood at 
its head at er. The capital stock of 

the company was §25,000, and the business of that 
year was confined to the manufacture of the Ellwood 
Riding Cultivator, of which 600 were made. At the 
(lose of the year [881, owing to the rapidly increas- 
emand for the goods made by this company, the 
capital stock was again increased to §1 1 1,000. 

The buildings are large and handsomely arranged 
to expedite the work, erected with the recent addi- 
tions, at an expense of $40,000, and with facilities of 
turning out 50 complete cultivators every day, in 
addition to the other goods. 

The sales of the riding cultivators, sulky plows, 
harrows and dumping rakes have largely increased, 
and these, together with the line of hardware goods, 
such as barn-door hinges, track stay rollers, barrel 
cases, churns, horse-powers, etc., etc., have estab- 
lished a reputation tor the firm that is a sufficient 
guarantee of the quality of their goods. 

'Jhi- Sycamore Preserve Works is one of the benef- 
icent industrial establishments of the city, giving em- 
ployment during the active season of work to a large 
force of men, women and children. It has been in 
active operation since 1S81, and the results have 
been gratifying to those linanc iallj interested and to 
the people of the p daily. The number of 

put up in 1SS.1 were as follows: 10,- 
000 of 1 om, 7,000 of tomatoes, 1,500 of pumpkins, 
800 of squash, 1 ,000 of peas, 1,000 of beans, and 300 
of apples; making in all something over 500,000 



cans. The establishment is under the active man- 
agement of A. F. Mason, a man of large experience 
and thoroughly competent in every respect. The 
original stockholders were R. Ellwood. J. H. Rogers, 
I 1 \. Synie and William Byers. Mr. Mason has 
now an interest in the works, also George and Will- 
iam Rogers. The company is a strong one financially. 

The Sycamore S l >a/ ) Factory is also one of the lead- 
ing industries of the place. The present proprietor 
is E. B. Shurtleff. A superior quality of laundry soap 
is manufactured. 

The Helmet Paint Manufactory is doing an excel- 
lent business. It has been in operation some years. 

The Tuerk Hydraulic Poiuer Co. commenced busi- 
ness in this city in 1883, removing here from Chi- 
« ago. A joint-stock company was formed, with a cap- 
ital stock of $60,000. The company manufacture 
the Tuerk Water Motor, one of the most useful in- 
ventions of the day. W. W. Marsh is superintend- 
ent of the works. 

Flax Mills — Loomis & Luther are proprietors of 
the flax mills. But little flax now being raised in 
this vicinity, the mill is not run on full time. Reuben 
Ellwood was the pioneer in this branch of business. 
Dr. Bryan and Chauncey Ellwood were also inter- 
ested in the work for a time after the close of the 
war. 

The Sycamore Roller Flour Mills do a fine busi- 
ness. The mill was erected in 1854, by A. S. Cox 
Mr. Towers, and known as the Citizens' Mill. 
It 1 ontained two run of buhrs. In the spring of 1859 
Towers sold his interest to Cox, who subsequently 
sold to John Black and Charles T. Pierce a one-third 
interest each. In 1863 Ralph Wyman bought out 
the interest of Mr. Tierce, and in the same year Wil- 
liam ('. l!la< k bought out Cox. 'The mill, in the 
meantime, had been improved and one run of buhrs 
added. John C. S. and William C. Black were each 
interested in the mill during the succeeding 20 years. 
In 1SS2 John Black bought the interest of William 
C. Black and also that of the Wyman heirs, and is 
now the sole proprietorof the mill. In 1S83 he com- 
menced it> improvement, enlarging it to a dimension 
of 48x52 feet, with engine-room attached. The 
mill now has four run of buhrs, nine sets of rollers, 
and all modern machinery for making first-class flour. 
The capacity is 1 00 barrels per day. Mr. Black has 
also a roller for making buckwheat flour equal to the 
New York make. 




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~li J HE enterprising city of De Kalb furnishes 
an excellent field for the pen of the histo- 
rian. From a mere hamlet early in the 
" fifties," it has grown to a bustling, thriving 
city of about 3,000 inhabitants, and is known 
far and wide as the " Barb City," a name given 
it from the fact that it is the great depot forthe man- 
ufacture of barb wire, which is the leading industry 
of the place. 

In 1S36, Russell Huntley made claim to a large 
tract of land in this vicinity, including a part of the 
site of the city. The selection was made with a view 
of locating here a town, which he had ardent hopes 
would occupy a leading position among the many 
which were springing up in the West. He erected 
upon his claim a large log house, which was used for 
manv years and was known as Huntley's tavern. 
Here the weary traveler found rest and Huntley 
dreamed of the future that was in store for him. 

The tavern was all alone in its glory for many 
years. It was not until [849 that any further sups 
were taken to locate here a village. At that time 
John M. Goodcll and Dr. Ruby started a small store 
on the north side of what is now Main Street, near 
First Street. Their stock was of a miscellaneous 
character, including " wet groceries," for which there 
seemed to be a demand, as a preventive to chills and 
snake bites. In 1850 Ruby sold his interest to his 
partner, and having erected a house upon the oppo- 
site side of the street he opened another store for the 




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sale of groceries and drugs. In 1S5 3 he purchased 
the stock of Mr. Goodell and ran both stores. 

The next addition to the prospective village was 
the erection of a shop and its occupation by P. W. 
T. Vaughan, the " village blacksmith." This was 
in 1850, and the shop was located on the site of the 
Glidden House, northeast corner of Main and Sec- 
ond Streets. 

In r852 Cartwright & Hayden opened a stock of 
general merchandise ; and, now having three stores, 
a tavern and a blacksmith shop, the village of Buena 
Vista, as it was then called, began to put on airs. A 
village was platted about this time, but never put 
upon record. When the survey was made by the 
railroad company in 1851, Dr. Ruby took the census 
of the village and found 29 persons, old and young. 

Before the location here of any mercantile inter- 
ests, a postoffice had been established, with Russell 
Huntley as Postmaster. The office was supposed to 
be at his tavern, but the old settlers say it was kept 
either in his hat or pocket handkerchief, and was 
what might be termed a traveling office, which was 
very convenient to those receiving mail at Buena 
Vista. Russell Huntley continued to act as post- 
master for some years, when Jackson Hiland received 
the appointment and the office was removed to Ruby 
& Hiland's store, where it remained some years. Mr. 
Hiland having disposed of his interest in the store, 
retired from business, leaving the office in charge of 
Dr. Ruby, whom he had made deputy. The doctor 



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being .1 strong Free-soil man, it was displeasing to 
1. who were then in power; therefore 
Mr. Hiland was removed and the commission given 
to J. W. Smull. This was aboul [858. On the ad- 
vent of the Repub tty, Hiram Ellwood was 
d, and held the office some years. His suc- 
or was Matilda sickles, the widow of a soldier in 
the War of the Rebellion. Mrs. Sickles served un- 
til 1873, when Lucien II. Post was appointed. Mr. 
served until 1883, when he resigned and A. S. 
Jackson was appointed. 

In 1850 a small house was erected on what is now 
block 4, of the city in which Jonathan Stone taught 
a term of school in the winter of 1850-1, at a salary 
of$r6 p 1 month, teaching alternately five and six 
days per week. This was the beginning of the 
edu< itional history of De Kalb. The salary of the 
I lised by subscription. 
W'lun the village of I>e Kalb was platted steps 
taken for the erection of a better school 
building. A small tax was levied and the house now 
used by the Congregationalists as a church edifice 
was erected. There was not money enough raised to 
complete the building, so a couple of dances were 
held in the house to secure the remainder of the 
sum required. Thus it was dedicated to the cause 
of education. Timothy J. I. yon was the first teacher 
in this house. The village increasing largely in 
numbers, this building soon became too small to ac- 
riodate the attendance; so in 1856 it was sold to 
'nod and others for the use of the Con- 
11 lety, and a third school building was 
erected near the present Catholic church. It was a 
two-story frame structure, 24x42 feet in size. By 
the end of four years this also became too small to 
accommodate the number desiring admission into the 
school, and it was therefore sold, T. C. Needham 
ming the owner and using it as a dwelling-house. 
In 1S60 the present fine brick school building was 
erei ted on the 1 orner of Third and Prospect Streets. 
In ill.- fall ol thai year it was occupied, the schools 
then being under the supervision of Prof. Crandall. 
quarter of a century this building has been 
used loi til ti ational purposes, and many of the most 
intelligent young men and women in De Kalb re- 
d therein their first lessons of instruction and 
Ued thereat. Not alone are they confined 



to I'- Kalb, but in a number of tin Western States 



and Territories have there gone forth from De Kalb 
public schools those exerting wonderful influence in 
society. 

In 1884 another building was erected on the north 
side of the railroad on Fifth Street. It is a frame 
stun ture and used by the primary and intermedi- 
ate departments. 

The following named have been principal of the 
publii schools from 1862 to the present time: M. 
Andrews, 1862; J. S. M.ibie, 1S63; E. L. Wells, 
1864; T. W. Dodge, Arthur Wells, 1865; C. H. 
Crandall, 1866-9; Ella S. Dunbar, 1870-4; S. G. 
Haley, 1875; T. S. Demson, 1876-7; S. L. 
Graham, 1878-80; J. L. Curts, 1881 to the present 
time. 

PLATTING THE VILLAGE. 

In November, 1853, Daniel W. Lamb, County Sur- 
veyor, at the instance of John M. and Caroline I 
Goodell, Russell, Lewis and Diantha Huntley, plat- 
ted a portion of sections 22 and 23 of the town- 
ship of De Kalb for a village, to which was given the 
name of De Kalb. Since that date various additions 
have been made. 

To secure the location of the railroad, Mr. Huntley 
donated the right of way to the company and also 
land for the depot. He also assigned an interest in 
the town site, to Robinson, Van Nbrtwick and Hol- 
land, who were largely interested in the railroad. 

On the completion of the railroad, the village 
rapidly increased in population, and continued to 
increase until the hard times of 1857-8, which put 
a stop to the improvement of so many towns 
throughout the land. The war following also re- 
traded its growth. 

INCORPORATION. 

In 1856 the village was incorporated under the 
general act, and in 1S61 by a special charier, whit h 
made the President of the Board of Trustees a 
member of the Board of Supervisors. This position 
was filled by W. H. Allen, in 1861-2; Silas Tappan, 
in 1863; Leonard Morse, in 1864; S. O. Vaughan, 
in 1S65; E. B. Gilbert, in 1866; W. H. Allen, in 
1867-S; William H. Miller, in 1869; L. M. Mc- 
Ewen, in 1870; W. H. Record, in 187 1 ; J. S. Rus- 
sell, in 1872; Horace Hunt, in 1873; L. M. Mc- 
Ewen, in 1874-5-6. 

On the 20th day of February, 1S77, an election 






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was held to ascertain the wishes of the legal voters 
in reference to incorporation as a city. A majority 
of the votes being in favor of such organization the 
first election for city officers was held on the third 
Tuesday in April. All officers are elected for a term 
of two years, except the Police Magistrate, who is 
elected for four years. In the list of officers ap- 
pended, one-half the Aldermen were elected for one 
year in order that an equal number should be 
elected annually thereafter. The following comprises 
the list: 

1S77 — Harvey E.Allen, Mayor; Benjamin Muzzy, 
Police Magistrate; S. O. Vaughan, City Clerk ; H. 
W. Whittemore, City Attorney; J. D. Lo't, City 
Treasurer; Aldermen — 1st ward, Hiram Eddy, David 
Barr; 2d ward, P. G. Young, C. Carter; 3d ward, J. 
A. White, J. B. Aurner. 

1878 — Aldermen: 1st ward, E. B. Hulett; 2d 
ward, Levi Wheeler; 3d ward, Martin Dodge. 

1879— A. S. Jackson, Mayor; T. A. Luney, 
Treasurer; L. M. McEwen, Attorney; S. O. Vaughan, 
Clerk. Aldermen — 1st ward, E. L. Mayo; 2d ward, 

C. Carter; 3d ward, J. M. Jenkins. 

1880 — Aldermen: 1st ward, S. A. Tyler; 2d ward, 

D. D. Brown; 3d ward, M. Dodge. 

1881— J. F. Glidden, Mayor; L. M. McEwen, 
Attorney; J. D. Lott, Treasurer; S. O. Vaughan, 
Clerk; N. W. Thompson, Police Magistrate. Alder- 
men — 1st ward, E. B. Baldwin ; 2d ward, C. Carter; 
3d ward, J. Cheasebro. 

1882 — Aldermen, rst ward, S. P. Bradshaw ; 2d 
ward. D. D. Brown ; 3d ward, George Wood. 

1SS3— D. D. Brown, Mayor; L. M. McEwen, 
Attorney ; T. A. Luney, Treasurer ; S. O. Vaughan, 
Clerk. Aldermen — 1st ward, E. B. Baldwin; 2d 
ward, C.Carter; 3d ward, S. M. Stevens. 

1884 — Aldermen — 1st ward, E. L. Mosher ; 2d 
ward, C. A. Read; 3d ward, Horace Hunt. 

The affairs of the city have generally been pru- 
dently and economically managed, comparatively 
little complaint being made. The average appropria- 
tion for the expenses of the city is between $1 1,000 
and $12,000 annually. For 1884-5 it was $r 1,060. 

FIRST AND PRESENT THINGS. 

The first hotel, as already stated, was the one run 
for so many years by Russell Huntley and which 
formed the nucleus of the present village. It was on 
the State roads which ran from St. Charles to Dixon, 



east and west, and from Ottawa to Belvidere, north 
and south. There was considerable travel and 
Huntley's tavern became well-known. The house 
was built of logs, covered with shakes, and was an 
unpretentious structure. A partoftheold Huntley 
tavern now forms a part of the Eagle Hotel on the 
corner of Second and Main Streets. The Eagle has 
continued uninterruptedly for a third of a century, 
and is now run by Hiram Jones. 

The Cential House, now Barb City House, on the 
corner of Main and Fourth Streets, was the se< 
hotel in the village. It is now run by Mr. Rector. 
When first erected it was a small building, and was 
subsequently enlarged to its present size. 

In addition to the Eagle and Central, the city has 
now one other hotel, the Glidden House. 

The Glidden is the most pretentious house in the 
city, and is an ebject of pride among its citizens. It 
was erected in 1876 by J. F. (Hidden. 

Peter Johnson, a tinner, commenced business here 
in 1852. He was the pioneer in this line of trade. 
The business is now represented by J. M. Rodman 
& Bro., John Dunn, William Clifford, Eber Lake. 

John Smith and Peter Wagner commenced the fur- 
niture business in 1855. They were both workmen 
at the cabinet trade. Mr. Wagner still continues the 
business and is the only representative in that line. 

Dr. Ruby started the first grocery store in 1853. 
Many changes have since been made, the trade early 
in 1885 being represented by Olson & Wilder, Horan 
& Henaughan, Calvin Shurtleff, Reed & De Long, 
Roberts & Tyler, John H. Lewis, John Cheasebro, 
Frank Flusch. 

BANKS. 

In 1858 John R. Hamlin and E. T. Hunt com- 
menced the banking business in this place, being the 
pioneers in this line of business. Some time after- 
ward Mr. Hamlin disposed of his interest to Dr. 
Rufus Hopkins, the firm assuming the name of Hop- 
kins, Hunt & Co. By a subsequent change E. P. 
Young became a partner, Mr. Hunt retiring. The 
firm name was R. Hopkins & Co. This partnership 
continued until the death of Dr. Hopkins, in 1874. 
Lott & Baird then commenced a general banking 
business and continued the same until January, 1881, 
when Mr. Baird retired. Mr. Luney then became a 
partner and the firm name of J. D. Lott & Co. was 
adopted. The partnership continued until May, 









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1882, when ii was dissolved and the De Kalb N - 
tional Bank was founded with a paid up capital of 
$50,000. H. P. Taylor was chosen president ; T \ 
Luney, cashier. The firm of Lott & Baird erected 
the present bank building in 1876. The De KLalb 
National Bank is ranked anion- the sound instrtu- 
tions of the county. The officers for 1885 are J. D. 
Lott, Pies.; T. A. Luney, cashier. The din 
were J. 1 >. Lott, 1'. ( i Voung, Jacob Haish, Martin 
Dodge ami J. !■'. Glidden. 

w \ I i k WORKS. 
In 1S74 the city commenced the erection of water 
works, expending in the beginning about $20,000. 
Additions were made from time to time, new wells 
sunk, and other improvements entered into, until the 
expenditure has reached the sum of $45,000. Three 
wells have been -.unk, to the depth of 2,400, 1,000 
and 827 feet respectively. The two latter only are 
now used. A 40-horse power steam engine is used 
for pumping the water. The city has now three 
miles of main, extending through all the busi- 
ness portions of the city and reaching many private 
residences. There are 18 double hydrants. About 
100 subscribers are now served with water, private 
families paying an annual tax of $6, while livery 
stables are required to pay $30. The Glidden House 
pays $50 per year. 

FIRE DEPAR I Ml \ I . 

The lirst steps taken toward the organization of a 
lire department was in 1870, when a hook and lad- 
der company was organized. In 1874 a hose com- 
pany was organized, and in 1884 the second com- 
panv was formed. The department has now two 
hose carts, with 1,000 feet of hose, and is well sup- 
plied with appliances for the extinguishment of fire. 
W. II. Miller is the present fire marshal; James 
Hulser, captain of the hook and ladder company: J. 
K. Waldron, captain of the hose comp 

RELIGIOUS. 

The firsl religious ->crvi( es within the present lim- 
its of the city of De Kalb were probably held at the 
house of Dr. Ruby, in 1850. On the completion of 
the school-house soon afterward, services were held 
therein, and a Sabbath-si hool was established, con- 
ducted by J. Willard Glidden and Dr. Ruby, with 
Mi^s Earl as one of the teachers. There are now 
eight Church organizations in the city. 



Methodist Episcopal Church. — The first meetings 
of those holding the views of the Methodist Episco- 
pal I Ihurch were held in the house of Dr. Basil Ruby 
in the year 1850. The preacher was from Sycamore 
and tame here on the invitation of Dr. Ruby. About 
1852 a 1 lass wis organized in the log house of Rev. 
Brown. Dr. Basil Ruby and wife and George Har- 
rison aid wife were among the number. The min- 
ister led the c lass. Meetings were held once in two 
weeks for a time. In 1.S55 a small frame building 
was erected, but the class increased in numbers and 
in 1856 that church was sold to the Adventists and 
a larger house was built, which was in use until 1879, 
when the present house was built. It is a line brii k 
structure, costing $10,000. There is now a membi 1 
ship of 230. The trustees are: Andrew Hradt, A li- 
ner Wood, Morris Willey, Daniel B. Lattin, Calvin 
Shurtleff, William Barr, C. H. Salisbury, E. O. Wood, 
Thomas Dodge. Stewards— C. Shurtleff, S. W. Pat- 
ten, C. H. Salisbury, M. D. Shipman, J. O. Olsen, J. 

E. Atwood, M. Hoyt. Class-leaders — J. L. Curts, 
C. Shurtleff, Thomas Piper. 

The Congregational Church was organized Dec. 2, 
1854, by Rev. H. N. Norton, with Michael Flynn, 
Hannah Flynn, Joseph Hiland, Hannah Hiland, 
Sarah Hopkins, Almira Simonds, George Flynn and 
Olivia Flynn comprising its original membership. 
The first officers were, Lucius Wood, Deacon and 
Clerk; Sidney H. Wright, Deacon. The present 
church edifice was purchased from the school dis- 
trict in 1S56. Among those who have served the 
Church either as pastor or supply have been 
Revs. R. C. Bristol, F. L. Fuller, J. D. Parker, 
S. P. Putnam, Mr. Buss, L. P. Atwood, John 
Bennett, John Bradshaw, A. P. Peake, S. I. McKee, 

F. D. Rood and J. P. Hutchinson. The latter be- 
gan his pastorate Oct. 19, 1884. The Church has 
now a membership of 72, and is looking forward to 
the time when it shall occupy a new house of wor- 
ship, better adapted to their wants and to the 
flourishing city in which it is located. 

The 'Baptist Church was probably organized in 1S54. 
Unfortunately, the early records are lost, and the fust 
members have either died or removed from the pin e; 
therefore it is difficult to obtain facts. Elders King. 
Este\ and Moxom were among the earliest to minis- 
ter to the spiritual welfare of the Church, though the 
firsl named never served as a regular pastor. In 



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1864 Rev. B. S. Williams was with the Church. He 
was succeeded by Revs. John Couch, Mr. Freeman, 
Mr. Fish, James M. Berry, L. H. Holt, F. W. Foster 
and I [. A. Delano. A house of worship was erected 
by the Church within four or five years after the 
platting of the village, which continued to be used 
till the fall of 1884. As this work goes to press a 
new and handsomer church edifice is being erected. 
Present membership, 78. 

The Advcntist Church was organized in 1S57 at 
the Methodist Church building, by Rev. McCulloch. 
The membership at first was small. Among the 
first members were George Houghton and wife and 
John Bennett. In 1861 they erected the present 
church building. 

The Swedish Evangelical Lutheran Church was 
organized in 1859. The first meetings were held in 
the old school-house in 1S58. Rev. E. Carlson was 
the first preacher and organized the Church. The 
congregation met for worship in the old school-nouse 
and elsewhere until 1861, when a frame church was 
built, at a cost of $1,600. Some years later, a par- 
sonage was built on the lot adjoining the church. 
There are now about 340 communicants. The 
deacons are F. C. Colson, E. Anderson, Peter Lind- 
berg, J. A. Backstrom, A. Anderson and F. Berg- 
quist. The present pastor is Rev. C. J. Malmberg. 

The Episcopal Church was organized in 1875. 
Meetings of this denomination were held at intervals 
from an early day, but no organization was effected 
until the date mentioned, when Rev. W. E. Toll, of 
Sycamore, organized a mission society. Among the 
members joining at that time were Mr. and Mrs. T. 
N. Conant, Mr. and Mrs. Alfred Johnson, Dr. P. I. 
Cromwell, Mrs. J. E. Atwood. Mrs. Helen Winship, 
Mrs. M. A. Davy and Mrs. Rufus Chandler. This 
society was organized and met for worship for a time 
in the Congregational chapel; then erected their 
present church building on Second Street. The 
society is small but flourishing and out of debt. Rev. 
J. H. Edwards is the present pastor; Alfred John- 
son, warden; Dr. P. I. Cromwell, secretary and 
treasurer. 

7 he Swedish Evangelical Mission Church was or- 

lized in 18S3, and a frame building was erected 
' £ the same year as a house of worship. Rev. Christ- 
enson was the first preacher. Rev. Gustavson is 
the present pastor. Charles Aspengren is the oniy 
deacon. 



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SOCIETIES. 

DeKalb Podge, No. 144, A. F. & A. M., was or- 
ganized under dispensation July [3, 1 S54, with T. C. 
Wetmore, W. M.; E. B. Gilbert, S. W.; J. H. Burg- 

hardt, J. W. A charter was granted October 3, 
1854. The officers under dispensation were 
tinned under charter. T. C. Wetmore was the fust 
Master, and W. F. Pierce fills that position at pres- 
ent. The lodge is in a flourishing condition, with a 
membership of 86, meeting the first and third Mon- 
day of each month. J. Dunn is the present Secre- 
tary. 

A dispensation was granted for the organization of 
a Chapter of R. A. M. October 24, 1858, with S. O. 
Vaughan, H. P.; F. J. Helmer, King; J. R. Hamlin, 
Scribe. A charter was granted by the G. R. A. 
Chapter October 3, 1859. The Chapter has flourished 
from the beginning, and now has a membership of 
79. It was honored by the selection of one of its 
members — S. O. Vaughan — in 1880 for the position 
of Grand High Priest of the Grand R. A. C. of Illi- 
nois. E. C. Lott is the present High Priest. The 
regular meetings are on the first and third Fridays of 
each month. J. Dunn is the present Secretary. 

DeKalb Lodge, No. 155, I. O. O. F., was organized 
in 1853. Among the charter members were Clark 
L. Barber, Smith Baldwin, Rufus Hopkins, Gideon 
Wolcot. The present officers are Peter Larson, N. 
G.; Alonzo Cheney, V. G.; Eugene Knappenberger, 
Sec; N. Goodsell, Treas. There are 54 members 
in good standing. The lodge meets every Monday 
evening in their lodge-room in Haish's block. 

Merritt Simonds Post, G. A. R., was organized in 
1883 with 22 charter members. There are now 31 
members, with G. H. Gurler, Com.; D. W. Tyrrell 
S. V. C; M. V. Wilder, J. V. C; B. Snow, Adj. The 
Post meets once in two weeks. 

CEMETERIES. 

The " ( ity of the dead," where the loved ones arc- 
laid away to rest, has always been a place of interest 
to the fair sex. Women were first at the tomb of the 
crucified Savior, and her tears have hallowed the 
ground wherever mankind have been interred. Death 
comes to all, and provisions should be made for the 
disposal of the remains of those who have 

been called away to other worlds. The ladies of De 
Kalb realized this fact, and on the 9th day of Sep- 
tember, 1854, met and organized the De Kalb Cen- 









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ter Sewinj Foi its object the procur- 

ing of mc.ms for the purchase and care of grounds 
for burial purposes. At their firsl meeting they 
elected Mrs. s. c. Nichols, President; Mrs. Susan 
Flynn, Secretary; Mrs. O.C. Flynn, Treasurer; Mrs. 
Cynthia lliatt and Miss Harriet Earl, Directors. 
About four and a h i ground were purchased 

in the southeast part of the city, and provisions made 
for its care. The first interment therein were the re- 
mains of Mr>. Norris Sweet. After the lapse of ten 
years it became evident that more ground must be 
secured, ami being unable to obtain any land ad- 
joining, anotli on was determined on. In 
1865, having accumulated money enough for the 
purpose, five acres of land wen- purchased north of 
the city and platted for a second cemetery. With 
the exception 'of a short period of time, but long 
enough to run the society into debt, the ladies have 
had entire charge of the two cemeteries. Their 
management has been excellent, having, in January, 
1885, as accumulations from the sale of lots and from 
mites contributed from time to time, a surplus of 
over $600, which has been loaned on interest. In 
1881 the society organized, under the State laws, as 
the De Kalb Cemetery Association. Its present offi- 
cers are Mrs. Charles G. Bodman, President; Mrs. 
Burt, Vice-President ; Mis. R. II. Roberts, Secretary ; 
Mrs. H. H. Wagner, Treasurer; Mrs. J. F. Glidden, 
Mrs. D. D. Biown, Mrs. M. A. Randall, Directors. 
For some years after the organization of the society 
it met once in two weeks, engaged in sewing and 

(preparing articles for sale, and held, now and then, 
/ a fair for their disposal. Of late they meet for a so- 
ciable, having a picnic dinner, each member paying a 
fee often cents. Like the one who wept at the feet 
of Jesus, and anointed him with costly ointment, it 
will lie written of these ladies of De Kalb: " They 
have done what they could." 

MANOFAl TORIES. 

/. L. Ellwood &■ Co. — The citizens of De Kalb 
have a just pride in their manufactories, the largest 



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of which is that of I. L. Ellwood & Co., for the manu- 
facture of the Glidden Barb Wire. At the present 
everything seems perfei t about the works, but in the 
beginning the process of manufacture was crude in 
the extreme. The barbs were cut by hand, and first 
a pair of flyers, and afterwards tin parts of an old 
1 offee mill were extemporized as a machine for coil- 












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ing them alwut the wire. When a piece 20 or 30 
feet long had been barbed, a smooth wire was pl.u ed 
beside it and one pair of ends fastened to a tree, and 
the others attached to the axle of a grindstone, 
whit h by turning with a crank gave it the twist. 
About this time, Mr. I. L. Ellwood became associated 
with Mr. Glidden and began the manufacture and 
introduction of the fence. The " factory " was moved 
from the farm over to the village, and here the im- 
provement was made of using horse-power fordoing 
the twisting, the barbs being slipped on to one end 
of the wire and then placed the proper distance apart 
by hand. By this method 100 pounds per day was 
a good average to the workman. 

The first year the sales of barb wire were mi 
and confined to the vicinity of De Kalb, where the 
proprietors would go out themselves and put up 
fence, guaranteeing satisfaction or no pay. 

In 1875 tlie company built the first part of the old 
brick shop, put in a small steam engine, which was 
made to do the twisting, and Mr. Glidden and P. W. 
C. Vaughan obtained a patent for some devices for 
barbing and spooling, that were used for some time 
and proved an efficient aid to the workmen. 

In 1876 the Washburn & Moen Manufacturing 
Company, of Worcester, Mass., noticing an increas- 
ing demand for a size of wire not heretofore calli 
to any great extent, began to investigate the cause of 
it, and subsequently purchased Mr. Glidden's half 
interest in the patents and business, and formed the 
present co-partnership with Mr. Ellwood. The busi- 
ness rapidly increased and soon the old shop became 
too small, so in 1881 new buildings were erected. 
The main building is now 600 feet long by 60 feet in 
width, and two stories high. This building is occu- 
pied by 202 automatic machines for making their 
"Glidden " barb wire. These machines manufacture 
finished fencing at the rate of a car-load an hour, 
wliic h is at the rate of a mile a minute of complete 
fencing. This would aggregate in one year 3,130 
cars of 20,000 pounds each, or 62,600,000 pounds of 
lenc ing, which would extend in a straight line 187,- ' 
800 miles, or enough to encircle the earth seven and 
one half times. The number of men employed by 
this firm varies from 200 to 400, according to their 
necessities and the season. 

Jacob Haish. — The celebrated "S" barb wire is 
manufactured by Jacob Haish, the inventor and 



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patentee. Early in 1874 Mr. Haish began the 
manufacture in a small way, and has increased his 
works from time to time until he has one of the larg- 
est manufactories in the country, with a capacity of 
50 tons or more per day. In 18S1 a building 300 
feet in length and 100 feet in width was erected, to 
which additions have since been made. One hun- 
dred men are now employed. There are 75 machines 
in the building. 

The Superior Barbed- Wire Company was organ- 
ized in 1880. President, Reuben Ellwood; Directors, 
Reuben Ellwood, J. B. Lott, I. L. Ellwood, J. F. 
Glidden, and Hiram Ellwood. The latter was 
elected secretary and general manager. The com- 
pany purchased of I. L. Ellwood the building they 
now occupy. It is a brick building 48 x 144 feet, two 
stories in height, with 35 machines, having a capacity 
of 20 tons of wire per day. Eighty men are employed. 

Cigars. — There are three cigar manufactories — 
those of P. S. Trumbauer, Frederick Bohe and J. 
Crawford. 

Gloves. — John Davy and I. Robinson are manu- 
facturers of gloves. 

Bradt & Shipman are wholesale dealers in gloves. 
The business was established by Mr. Bradt in 1857. 

The Samson Novelty Works, owned by Bradt & 
Shipman is located in the east part of the city. Here 
is manufactured the Samson barn-door hanger and 
the Samson wire-stretcher. They also do a general 
repairing business. Their foundry and machine shop 



is supplied witli the latest improved machinery, and 
they employ none but skilled mechanics. They em- 
ploy about 15 hands. 

The De Kalb Creamery was established in 1882 
by Gurler Brothers — Henry B. and George H. Gurler. 
They erected a frame building 32 X70, two stories in 
height, with boiler room 16 x 24 and an ice-house 20 
X40. The building was furnished with all the ma- 
chinery in use at that time. This building was 
burned Sept. 25, 1884. The present building was 
erected and ready for work the 26th of October fol- 
lowing. The main building is the same size as the 
one burned, while the ice-room and boiler-house are 
larger. In 1883 they sent out teams to gather cream, 
and the products of the factory for that year were 
$52,422. In 1884 the cream gathered was taken to 
their other creameries, and thus the total receipts 
were not so great, but amounted to $49,358. They 
have all machinery, including five centrifugal cream 
separators. The Gurler Brothers rented the South 
Grove Creamery in 1884; the products there amounted 
to $7,178. In 1884 they bought the Malta Creamery. 
The products there, in 1884, amounted to $13,367. 



SUPERVISORS. 



The following named have served the village and 
city as members of the Board of Supervisors : 



W. H. Allen 1861-62 

Silas Tappan 1863 

L. Morse 1864 

S. O. Vaughan 1865 

E. B. Gilbert 1866 

William C . Tappan 1867 



Harvey Thompson, 1868 

William A. Miller 1869 

L. M. McEwen 1870 

Willi. tin H. Record 1871 

J. S. Russell 1872 






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N October, 1853, the Chicago, Burlington & 

Quincy Railroad Company completed its 
ru.ul through this place. At that time 
Almon Gage, Jacob M. Hall, Joseph Weeks, 
Wm. Davis, Harvey Joles and the Grover 
1' were the owners of all the land upon 
which the city is now located. The railroad corn- 
did not design to locate a station at this point, 
having decided upon one at what is now the vil- 
of Somonauk and another at what is now the 
village of l'lano. The citizens of Newark, a village 
King a few miles south, were interested in having one 
here, and, together with the . itizens living in this 
vicinity, appealed to the railroad company to estab- 
lish it. After a few months' delay the company 
Qted to establish a (lag station, stopping the 
; only when signaled. The business herein- 
creasing rapidly, it yielded to the inevitable, and in 
the fall of 1854 erei ted the necessary buildings for 
the transactions of its business, and the future of 
the village which was rapidly springing up was se- 
cured. 

The original survey of the village was made in the 
winter of 1853-4, but for some cause, doubtless for 
the reason the railroad company had not consented 
tn establish .1 regular station, it was not acknowl- 
d until Dec. 5, 1854, and fded Jan. 1, 1855. 
Almon G ige was the owner of the original plat, other 
portions being additii 

Winn the survey was made, with the design of 
platting, a name had not been decided upon for the 
prospective village. It was proposed by some to 
call it Almon, in honor of Almo but that 

gentleman would not consent. The deed given by 
Jacob M. Hal! to the trustees of the Baptist Church 
described the lots as being in block 3 of the village 




of Almon, and was so entered upon record. A post- 
office having been established her< undei the name 
of Sandwich, it was finally determined to give that 
name to the village, and Sandwich it was called. 
The railroad company, however, was probably not 
consulted with reference to the name and called the 
station Newark Station, the village of Newark, as 
alread) stated, being instrumental in securing its lo- 
cation. By this name was it known until 1S56, when 
the railroad company again yielded to the wishes of 
the people and adopted the name of Sandwich. 

During the years from r854 to 1857 there was a 
regular and constant increase in the number of in- 
habitants and in the business of the village. In the 
second issue of the People's Press, under date cf 
Sept. 17, 1857, a correspondent thus speaks of the 
place as it then existed : 

" Sandwich is a stirring business village. Its set- 
tlement and growth were greatly retarded at first by 
designing men, who slandered and misrepresented it 
to the railroad company, so that the cars did not 
stop here for several months after they began to run 
on the track. Nor was it without much delay and 
great difficulty that the company was prevailed 
upon to construct a switch and erect buildings, al- 
though they obtained land for such purpose at the 
time of surveying the road. The c ars began to run 
by Sandwich about the last of October, 1853, but 
did not stop here till the spring of 1854, and then 
the number of cars that could be obtained for 
freight was quite too small, the stopping lingular, 
and the hindrances and annoyances so verj great 
and prolonged as to throw back the settlement and 
improvements of the village at least one year. 

" Besides the railroad buildings, Sandwich has 
three churches — Baptist, Methodist and Congrega- 






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tional. The Presbyterians worship in a large 
school-room, but are preparing to build a church. 
Each of these denominations have a Sunday-school. 
The German Baptists have one service in the Bap- 
tist house every alternate Sabbath. The Seeeders 
occupy the Methodist church the same proportion 
of time. 

"A large and commodious two-story building 
erected for an academy, and occupied as such for 
two years, is now used for a district school, and dur- 
ing a term of 17 weeks, just ended, 153 scholars at- 
tended, under two teachers; besides which there is a 
small private school. 

" The people of Sandwich and vicinity must be a 
reading people, if we judge of them by the amount 
of reading matter received at the postoffke. The 
following facts were taken by the writer of this 
article from the official documents of the office for 
the quarter ending June 30, 1857. More than 
4,500 newspapers, 195 pamphlets and other period- 
icals were received. The postage on letters re- 
ceived amounted to $1 10.67 i postage on letters sent, 
$130. The deputy postmaster assured the writer 
it was not quite an average quarter. 

" The following items will give some idea of the 
business done in the village, and of the progress 
made in improving it. There is one steam grist and 
flouring mill, one iron foundry, machine shop and 
planing mill, two lumber yards, one of which re- 
ceived from April 1, to September 3, 1857, the fol- 
lowing: 570,000 feet of lumber, 100,000 shingles, 
112,000 lath, 1,600 posts. The other yard received 
about 300,000 of all kinds, from July 10 to Sept. 3, 
1857. There are n stores, all doing a good and 
some a heavy business, two blacksmith shops, two 
wagon shops, one livery stable, one bakery, one hotel, 
one jeweler, two cabinet and furniture shops, two 
shoe shops, two merchant tailors, 20 or 30 carpen- 
ters and joiners, most of whom have convenient 
work shops, 16 or more masons, and four painters. 
There are several buildings for storage, one of which 
is large, and provided with apparatus propelled by 
steam for elevating grain, and about 20 others in 
course of erection." 

The village continued to increase in a substantial 
way. In the year 1857, and for the three following 
years, a census was taken. 

In 1857 there were 107 families, with 165 males 



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and 126 females over 21, and 124 males and 137 fe- 
males under 21, a total of 552. 

In 1858 there were 145 families, with 213 males 
and 159 females over 21, and 182 males and 178 
females under 21, a total of 732. 

In 1859 there were 179 families, with 262 males 
and 193 females over 21, and 237 males and 205 
females under 21, a total of 897. 

In i860 there were 203 families, with 282 males 
and 265 females over 21, and 226 males and 242 fe- 
males under 21, a total of 1,015. 

POSTOFFICE. 

Some years prior to the advent of the railroad steps 
were taken to secure the location here of a postoffice. 
A petition was circulated, largely signed, and for- 
warded to Hon. John Wentworth to present to the 
Postoffice Department. In order to secure the active 
co-operation of Mr. Wentworth, it was proposed to 
give the office the name of Sandwich, in honor of his 
native town in New Hampshire. The Department 
acceded to the request, and established the office, 
with Dr. Merriam as postmaster. While he remained 
in the country he managed the office. Dr. Renton, 
his successor in medical practice, was the next post- 
master. He remained here but a short time. When 
he left the Department ordered C. B. Rhodes, of 
Buck Branch postoffice, to take charge of the prop- 
erty of the office. When the railroad was completed, 
and the Carrs had begun business here, Dr. Griswold 
was appointed postmaster. The office was kept for 
a time in the store of J. H. & I,. H. Carr. Dr. Gris- 
wold did not long retain the office, and was succeeded 
by Robert Patten. The office was removed to Pat- 
ten & Culver's store, where it remained for some 
years. George Hollenbach was Mr. Patten's suc- 
cessor, and was, in turn, succeeded by F. W. Part- 
ridge. On the first call for 300,000 men to aid in 
suppressing the Rebellion, Mr. Partridge sent in his 
resignation, and raised a company, of which he was 
made captain, and which became a part of the 13th 
Infantry. Jonathan Able was his successor, and 
served until Grant's fir>t term, when Frank A. Munson 
received the appointment, and served twelve years. 
1 le was succeeded by G. H. Robertson, the present 
postmaster. The office is of the third class, the 
postmas'er receiving a salary of $1,700 per year. 
The receiptsof the office amount to $450 per month. 

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INCORPORATION. 

On tin- 18th of February, i860, an election was 
held for the purpose of voting on the question of in- 
corporation. There were cast at that election for in- 
corporation 83 votes; against incorporation, 63 votes. 
A majority being in favor of incorporation, an election 
was held March 5 for town officers. The following 
were elected: Augustus Adams, Almaron Gage, 
>e W. Culver, W. Walker, Win. G. Morris, Trus- 
tees; s. B. Sunson, Clerk, W. W. Sedgwick, J. P.; 
H. F. Winchester, Assessor; James 15. Burt, Police 
Constable. 

The Board met and elected Augustus Adams Pres- 
ident. From that time until its incorporation as a 
city, annual elections were held. The following 
named comprise a complete list of trustees : 

1S61 — W. G. Morris. J. II. Carr, Almaron Gage, 
James Woodward, G. W. Culver. 

1862— G. W. Culver, W. G. Morris, Almaron 
Gage, Washington Walker, H. A. Adams. 

1873— W. L. Simmons, P. Stone, J. H. Culver, O. 
O. Wormwood, H. L. Winchester. 

1864 — A. Adams, W. L. Simmons, O. S. Hendee, 
Almaron Cage, P. Stone.* 

1865 — J. II. Carr, W. L. Simmons, H. A. Adams, 
James Woodward, E. A. Kennedy. 

1866 — G. W. Culver, Amos Shepard, J. P. Adams, 
M. Carpenter, R. 1). Jackson. 

1867 — Henry F. Winchester, Valentine Vermilye, 
James Lewis, L. S. Humiston, J. H. Culver. 

1868 — M. W. Sedgwick, Elijah Banta, Gus Brecher, 
I. II. Culver, F. S. Mosher. 

1869 — W. W. Sedgwick, Ceorge Kleinsmid, J. H. 
Culver, F. S. Mosher, H. A. Adams. 

1870 — L. R. Hills, Augustus Hammond, John 
Woodward, Francis M. Fox, S. P. Bushnell. 

187 1 — J. P. Adams, W. C. Morris, George Klein- 
smid, John Woodward, A. A. Marcy. 

1872— J. P. Adams, W. G. Morris, A. A. Marcy, 
Geo. Kleinsmid, G. R. Wallace. 

A petition was presented to the Board of Trustees 
on the 7 tli day of October, 1872, praying the Board 
to submit to a vote of the people whether the town 
should be incorporated as a 1 ity under the general 
act of the Legislature. Acting upon the petition, 
the Board submitted the question to a vote on Tues- 
day, November 19,1872; they also submitted to a 

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vote the question of minority representation in the 

Council. At the election there were 287 votes cast 
on incorporation, of which 177 were for and no 
against. For minority representation, 1 ; against, 

The first election for city officers was held in De- 
cember, 1872, and the First meeting of the council 
was held Jan. 2, 1873. The first officers were as fol- 
lows : W. W. Sedgwick, Mayor; H. A. Adams, A. A. 
Marcy, Henry C. and M. R. Jones, John Woodward, 

0. S. Hendee. 

The Mayors and Aldermen are each elected to 
serve two years. The following is the list: 

1873 — Mayor, W. W. Sedgwick; Aldermen — 1st 
ward, II. C. Jones, A. A. Marcy; 2d ward, J. C. 
Taylor, O. S. Hendee; 3d ward, M. R. Jones, R. M. 
Brigham. 

1874 — Aldermen — 1st ward, H. C. Jones; 2d ward, 
J. C. Taylor; 3d ward, Paul W. Wallace. 

1875 — Mayor, R. M. Brigham; Aldermen — 1st 
ward, Enos Doan ; 2d ward, H. Packer; 3d ward, M. 
V. Eames, George Kleinsmid. 

1876 — Aldermen — 1st ward, James H. Culver; 2d 
ward, John Woodward; 3d ward, H. F. Winchester, 
John Armstrong, to fill vacancy. 

1877 — Mayor, J. M. Hummel; Aldermen — 1st 
ward, E. Doan; 2d ward, R. D. Crofoot ; 3d ward, 
F. A. Howe. 

1878 — Aldermen — 1st ward, Thomas Wright; 2d 
ward, Samuel Mitten ; 3d ward, A. B. Palmer. 

1879— Mayor, J. M. Hummel; Aldermen — 1st 
ward, D. K. Crofoot; 2d ward, M. V. Eames; 3d 
ward, J. Ives. 

1880 -Aldermen — 1st ward, Thomas Wright; 2d 
wild, H. A. Adams; 3d ward, P. W. Wallace. 

1881 — Mayor, F. S. Mosher; Aldermen — istward, 
E. I. Barker; 2d ward, Amos Shepard; 3d ward, F'. 
Timberlake. 

1882 — Aldermen — istward, Thomas Wright; 2d 
ward, :i. A, Adams; 3d ward, A. B. Palmer; L. D. 
Woodruff, to fill vacancy. 

1883— Mayor, W. L. Simmons; Aldermen — 1st 
ward, A. L. Gilchrist; 2d ward, J. Ledoyt; 3d ward, 

1, D. Woodruff. 

1884 — The following is a list of all the officers: 
Mayor — W. I,. Simmons; Aldermen — 1st ward, A. L. 
Gilchrist, II. N. Woodward; 2d ward, J. Ledoyt, 




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George Kleinsmid ; 3d ward, L. D. Woodruff. C. A. 
Reed resigned and M. Dickinson elected to fill va- 
cancy; City Clerk, S. P. Sedgwick; City Att'y, W. W. 
Sedgwick; City Treas., \V. C. Phelps; City Marshal, 
J. N. Shafter; City Supt. of Streets, \V. Leacock ; 
Police Magistrate, W. R. Low; Board of Health, N. 
E. Ballon, Theron Potter, Jacob Bnrkhart, Jr. 

The issue presented to the voters has usually been 
that of licensing saloons for the sale of alcoholic 
Hquors. The license party has generally been suc- 
cessful, and there have usually been from two to four 
licensed saloons in the place. For a number of years 
the license fee has been $500 per year. 

In 1878 the city erected a fine building on Rail- 
road Street, to be used for city offices and as an 
opera house. On the evening of Jan. 2, 1879, the 
hall was duly dedicated. 

BUSINESS INTERESTS. 

The pioneer merchants of Sandwich are J. H. & 
L. H. Carr, who commenced business here in the fall 
* of 1853, purchasing from A. Gage an old building 
used by him as a granary and fitting it up for the 
purpose. As stated, the railroad company refused to 
locate a station here, so the Carrs were compelled to 
haul their first stock from Somonauk. The stock 
was of a miscellaneous kind, suitable to the wants of 
a farming community. 

In the summer of 1854 A. R. Patten commenced 
the erection of a store building, in which Patten & 
Culver opened a stock of general merchandise. 

James Clark, on the completion of his building, 
opened a stock of general merchandise. 

Other dealers came in from time to time, and vari- 
ous changes were made. In the spring of 1885 there 
were six firms engaged in the trade of general mer- 
chandise — C. Corlinskey, Goodman & Weir, Pratt 
Bros., Crofoot & Manchester, J. N. Culver, E. I. 
Barker. 

The first grocery store was established in the win- 
ter of 1853-4 by James Kennard. His stock con- 
sisted of "eatables and drinkables," the latter, it is 
said, being the greater part of the stock. Perley 
L. Stone came soon after. In connection with Benjamin 
Latham he continued in the business for some time. 
Burt & Treat commenced in the spring of 1857. 
There are now six firms engaged in this line of trade 
— S. Abbey, Van Fleet & Smith, E. Thompson, N. 
Maginnis, E. F. West, R. G. Kirtland. 

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George W. Culver and Robert Patten were the first 
lumber dealers. They commenced business in the 
summer of 1854. Within the next three years H. 
F. Winchester, White & Potter, and M. B. Castle en- 
gaged in the same line, though not all at one time. 
In the spring of 1057 Alexander White sold out to 
Hoagland & Shepard. The present dealers are E. 
Doan, Castle & Mosher. 

The pioneer tailor was George P. Hay. He came 
from Bristol in the fall of 1854. In the summer of 
1855 he erected a building and opened a regular 
clothing store. Frederick Tummell was the next 
tailor and dealer in ready-made clothing. He 
opened his shop in 1856. D. B. Stewart com- 
menced in the summer, and John W. Dobbin in the 
fall, of 1857. In the spring of 1885 the following 
named firms were in the business : M. Nathan, H. 
Fox & Co., James Warner, C. Blomquist, M. Dick- 
inson. 

S. J. Smith, -in the summer of 1855, erected a build- 
ing, and in November following opened the first drug 
and bookstore. J. H. Miller & Co., A. H. Ramey, 
T. Potter monopolized the trade in the spring of 1 885. 
Mr. Ramey was also a news dealer. E. Ledoyt was 
also in the latter business. 

Alanson Fairbanks, in the fall of 1854, sold his 
farm in Little Rock and established the first livery 
stable in Sandwich. I. M. Arnold, Ed. Bark, S. 
Dickson were in the business in the spring of 1885. 

David Nixon opened the first furniture store in the 
spring of 1856. He soon after received into partner- 
ship Jacob Burkhart, and the firm continued until 
the fall of 1856, when they sold to John W. Dobbin, 
who, in the spring of 1857, sold to Burkhart & Col- 
lett. The former, in connection with his son, yet en- 
gages in the trade. In the spring of 1857 Winans & 
Stratton commenced in the same line of trade. In 
the spring of 1885, in addition to Burkhart & Son, 
the trade was represented by C. F. Walters. 

E. S. Johnson was the first jeweler, beginning busi- 
ness here in the spring of 1857. In 1S85 there were 
in the trade, in addition to Mr. Johnson, 15. Wilsey, 
Charles Tiede. 

In the fall of 1855 Henry Roberts opened the first 
permanent meat-market. There are three shops at 
present — P. W. Wallace, Stockholm & Jones, Aug. 
West. 

Buob & Streich, in the spring of 1857, opened the 






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first lukcry. D. Hughes arid Ed. Young are now en- 
gaged in the businc 

In the spring of [856 Richard Bassetl established 
the first tinshop. (>. I. Ismon & Co. next opened a 
shop in connection with their hardware store, with 
|. \l. Sanders as foreman. R. S. Laird was the third 
tinsmith. 

G. L. Ismon <S: Co. opened the first store for the 
exclusive sale of hardware in the spring of 1856. 
George Kleinsmid and Winchell & Abbott are the 
only dealers at present. 

The first permanent daguerrean aitist in Sand- 
wich was M. F. Howard, in 1S56. Miss A. B. Bas- 
sett was the second, in 1857. The daguerrean 
picture is now a thing of the past. C. E. Orr and 
A. Satterlee are photographers, doing business .here 
at present. 

I. H. & L. H. Carr bought and shipped the first 
grain from this station in the fall of 1853. Robert 
Patten and George W. Culver were also engaged for 
a time in the business. In the spring of 1855 S. 
1 Fuller located here and engaged in the same line. 
1 Follansbee & Wormwood were next, and in the fall 
of 1855 commenced the erection of a warehouse and 
\ elevator, which they completed in the spring of 1856. 
V> M. F. Howard commenced in the winter of 1856-7, 
!* and W. L. Simmons in the summer of 1857. The 
latter is still in the trade, and is the sole representa- 
tive. 

Shortly after J. H. & L. H. Carr started in busi- 
ness, James Clark commenced the erection of a low, 
rambling building, one part of which he used for a 
store and the other for hotel purposes, it being the 
first hotel in the place. He ran it for a time and was 
succeeded by Mr. Van Olinda. It usually went by 
the name of the Donegana House, after the latter 
became the proprietor, and very soon ceased to exist. 

In the fall of 1855 William H. Eddy erected the 
Sandwich House, and on New Year's eve of that 
year it was formally opened bj Moses Cook, lessee. 
Mr. Cook continued to run the house until October, 
1857, when Jonathan Able took charge of it. Vari- 
ous changes have been made, but in 1866 Joseph 
Dyas purchased the house, and has since continued 
its management. The house has a good reputation, 
well deserved 

The Park House, by F. M. Bell, and the City Ho- 
tel, by Mrs. Josephine Wilsey, also afford entertain- 
ment to many guests. 


















Early in 1856 .1 rompan) was organized for the 
ion ol a steam grist-mill. Almaron Gage do- 
nated the ground and work was soon commenced. 
In the fall of the year the mill was complete, and 

set in motion by Mr. Bennett, who secured the posi- 
tion of miller, receiving a share of the proceeds for 
his labor. It was furnished with three run of buhrs. 
Maikie *V Bell are the present proprietors. The mill 
:-. 1 stone structure, four-stories in height and has a 
capacity of 100 barrels of flour per day. Patent 
rollers have been introduced within the past two 
years, and the mill is now said to be one of the best 
in the State. 

Myrlin Carpenter is the pioneer blacksmith, com- 
mencing in the spring of 1854. He soon associated 
with himself, Chester Wilcox, the firm of Carpenter 
& Wilcox continuing in existence some years. The 
representatives of this trade are now John White and 
Erwin Bros. The wagon and carriage manufacturers 
also do general blacksmithing. 

Lansing & Williams were the first wagon-makers 
to locate here permanently. They were here within 
two years after the village was laid out. G. Walter 
and Kehl Bros, are now engaged in the trade, the 
former doing quite an extensive business, employing 
in busy seasons about 30 hands. The latter does a 
good business also. 

Jacob Hoff was the first to engage in the trade of 
shoemaking, commencing business in January, iS^fi. 
Mr. Hainas came next in the spring of 1856, and in 
the spring of 1857 G. Breeher opened a shop. The 
present representatives of this trade are Haupt Bros. 
and Mr. 01 sen. 

Thomas & Emmons established the first coal yard 
in January, 1856. In the spring following H. F. 
Winchester commenced the business. Cole & Treat 
opened a yard soon after. Geo. Whitcomb, Castle 
& Mosher, Thos. Hickey and E. Doan are the 
present dealers. 

Daniel Bishop was the lirst drayman. He com- 
menced in the spring of 1856. 

Among the first carpenters were A. L. Ismon, 
John Boyd, James Byers, John W. Dobbin, John 
Bentz, Robert Dixon, Thomas Orr, James Orr, 
Samuel Orr, Andrew Cole, Joseph Cole, Henry 
Stone, John H. Jones, S. L. Allen, Henry W. Amer- 
man, Riley Handy, Jerome Handy, Benjamin Mills, 
Frederick Carr, Charles Welch, Jacob Blitz. The 






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carpenters who are likewise contractors at present 
are E. Doan, William Beattys, F. E. Griffith. 






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The pioneer masons were John R. Brown, Al- 
pheus Rood, Stephen Westover, Marcus Doolittle, 
Charles Tracy, Elijah Lester, Lorin Tracy, James 
Gilford, Geo. Mitten, Cornelius Scouton, A. Munson. 
F. Webber is the only contractor at present. 

Hiram Severy, Walter Scott, Chas. Kinney, John 
Sibley, Daniel Boyd and William S. Piatt were among 
the first painters. Vennilye & Clark, Mr. Champlin, 
Norman Butterfield, John Hough, Frank Finch now 
represent the trade. 

Mrs. Jacob HofF opened the first millinery shop in 
the spring of 1856. Shortly after, Miss Jane Hicks 
opened a shop. Mrs. Gillett, Mrs. J. F. Douglas, 
Mrs. Atkins, Mrs. Butterfield, Mrs. Fonda, each 
have shops in the spring of 1885. 

The first representative of the legal profession was 
S, B. Stinson, who opened an office in the summer of 
1856. Mr. Stinson continues to reside here and is 
in active practice. W. W. Sedgwick, J. I. Montgom- 
^ ery and C. G. Faxon are also attorneys in active 
practice. 

The first representative of the medical profession 
here was Dr. Griswold, who was here in 1854. Dr. 
S. C. Gillett came soon after, and continued until 
the spring of 1857, when he removed to Aurora. In 
the summer of 1S55 Dr. Charles Winslow was 
associated with Dr. Gillett, and continued with him 
until the spring of 1856, when he removed to Sugar 
Grove. Dr. E. H. Lowe was next in the fall of 1855 
In the spring of 1856, Dr. N. E. Ballon commenced 
practicing here. In the summer following, Dr. A. 
L. Merriam, who previously had practiced in the 
neighborhood, returned and opened an office in the 
village. Dr. John Lowe came in the fall of 1857. 
V. Vermilye, N. E. Ballon, C. S. Dickson, J. C. 
David, F. P. Stiles, Thos. Armstrong, C. L. Misick, 
are the physicians here at present. 

The dental profession is well represented by Dr. 
V. R. David and Dr. Pomeroy. Dr. A. Hale was 
the first dentist. He is now in Minnessota. 

As the town increased in population, other 
branches of business were opened, and in addition to 
what has already been given as being in business 
here in the spring of 1885, there were the following 
lines represented by those named in connection : 

W. G. Adams, elevator and warehouse supplies, 







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doing a very extensive business, many articles in 
hjs line being the product of the Sandwich Man- 
ufacturing Co. 

Hall & Gilchrist, m irble works. A very large 
business is done by this firm. 

J. M. Hummel, and Henning & Ross, agricultural 
implements. 

A. W. Orr, Pearl Street Green-house. 

M. M. Jones, representative of the Board of Trade, 
Chicago. 

E. Latham, boots and shoes. 

William Hueske and Thos. A. Dean, harness- 
makers. 

C. Munch, tobacco store. 

E. B. Marrs, restaurant. 

H. C. Graves & Sons, nursery stock. 

Frank .Robinson, Will Dean, Ball & Co., barbers. 

H. A. Prentice, billiard hall. 

Sedgwick, Wallace & Dean, skating rink. 

G. H. Robertson, M. B. Castle & Son, Barnes & 
Douglas, printers. 

BANKS. 

M. B. Castle commenced the first banking business 
in Sandwich in 1856. His exchange business that 
year was small indeed. About 1859 Amos Shepard 
was admitted to a partnership in the business, and 
under the firm name of Castle & Shepard the busi- 
ness was conducted for three years. Mr. Castle then 
continued the business alone until 1866, when he 
formed a partnership with Capt. F. S. Mosher. The 
bank has always been known as the Sandwich Bank, 
having its president and cashier. In 1863 J. B. 
Castle was assistant cashier. At present M. B. 
Castle is President and F. S. Mosher, Cashier. In 
the 29 years in which the Sandwich Bank has been 
in existence it can boast that its doors have never 
been closed and the check of a depositor never 
refused. It must be remembered that the bank has 
I passed through the hard times of '57, the war period 
, and the hard times of 1873, and therefore its record 
is one of which any man might be proud. Mr. 
Castle is now one of the oldest bankers of the State 
in point of continuous service. 

Culver Bros, have also been engaged in the bank- 
ing business some years. 

EDUCATIONAL. 

The old red school-house is well remembered by 
the older citizens of Sandwich. It stood upon North 



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Main Street, between the present stores of Van Fleel 
& Smiiii .ml J M Hummel. It was erected liefore 
the village was surveyed or even contemplated, and 
used until 1856, when it was sold at auction and 
bought In Mr Saunders. 

In the winter of 1854-5 a company was organized 
for the purpose of erecting a building and maintain- 
ing a high school t>> In- known as the Sandwich 
Academy. 

The school was opened in the spring of 1855 by 
Prof. J. L. Hendrick, who continued it as a high 
school until the spring of 1856, when thedirectors of 
the public schools of this district pun based the 
building of the share-holders and continued Prof. 
Hendrick as teacher until the spring of 1857. In 
the fall of 1857 the directors graded them and 
placed Prof. H. F. Needham in charge as principal, 
with Miss H. D. Beardsley and Miss P. Morey as 
assistants. During that fall Prof. Hendrick and Miss 
A. M. Carpenter each taught a select school. 

The present system of grading, which consists of 
eight grades below the high school, was adopted in 
1S77. The schools are now in fine condition, under 
the superintendency of Prof. C. I. Gruey, assisted by 
James P. Houston, Fannie Schuebly, Ethel Gregory, 
Annie Cox, Mary McKindley, Anna Brown, Anna 
Paine, Dottie Winnie, Frances J. Stinson and Loe 
Hall. The school property is valued at $10,000. 
The principals since 1857 have been as follows: J. 
L. Hendrick, H. F. Needham, Delos Williams, Mr. 
Johnson, L. V. Wilmot, A. J. Sawyer, Harry Moore, 
A. E. Bourne, C. I. Gruey. 

RELIGIOUS. 

There are now nine religious denominations repre- 
sented in Sandwich — the Baptists, Methodist Epis- 
copals, Presbyterians, Congregationalists, German 
Baptists, Lutheran Reformed, Latter-Day Saints and 
Catholics. 

Methodist Episcopal. — As already stated, in 1836, 
Rev. William Royal organized a Methodist Episco- 
pal class at the house of Simon Price, composed of 
some half dozen sisters. This class met in private 
houses until the winter of 1837-8, when it assembled 
in the log school-house on section 22. At this house 
and at the Eddy school-house a little further north, 
it continued to meet until 1846, when the old red 
ol-house in the present limits of Sandwich, was 
erected. On meeting at this house the class was re- 



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inforced by a number living in the neighborhood. 
J M Hall was class-leader at this time. When the 
future of Sandwich was secured, steps were taken to 
build a church edifice. Almon Gage donated a lot 
for the purpose, and a neat frame church was erected, 
and some time in 1856 duly set apart to the service 
of Almighty God. J. M. Hall donated a lot for the 
parsonage, which was erected the year previous. 
The Church has had a prosperous career, though at 
times dark clouds hovered over it and the faith of 
some weakened. To-day it has a membership of 
200, with about 50 probationers, the result of a re- 
vival in the winter of 1884-5. 

Baptist Church. — On the 26th day of November, 
1842, a few members of the Baptist Church con- 
vened at the house of George Shannon, on the Som- 
onauk, to take into consideration the organization of 
a Church. The following named covenanted to- 
gether for the maintenance of the worship and ordi- 
nances of the gospel, with a view of being recognized 
as a regular Baptist Church : Almus Pratt, George 
Shannon, Alonzo Tolman, Joseph Oakley and Mary 
Buckingham, the two last relating their experience 
and receiving baptism. The next meeting was held 
Dec. 17, when David and Betsey Matlock united. 
On the 21st of May, 1843, it was voted to call a 
council to fellowship them as a Baptist Church. On 
the 3d of June the council was held and the Church 
was recognized as the Upper Somonauk Baptist 
Church. In December following the name was 
changed to Somonauk and Little Rock Baptist 
Church. Elder Norman Warriner was called to 
minister to the Church in June, 1843, and served it 
till 1846, when he was succeeded by Rev. Stephen 
G. Hunt, who remained four years. In 185 1 a pro- 
tracted meeting was held by Rev. John Higby, and 
18 were baptized. This was the first protracted 
meeting held by the Church. Mr. Higby remained 
with the Church about one year, when Rev. John 
Young was called. He was followed by Rev. Bela 
Hicks, Rev. Higby again and Rev. Nelson Alvord, 
all short pastorates. 

In 1852 it was decided to build a house of worship, 
if sufficient encouragement was given, and to locate 
near Deacon Pratt's. But little was done until the 
railroad was built and a station had been determined 
on at what is now Sandwich. Two lots were obtained 
from Jacob M. Hall, the original deed of which 



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' specifies lots 1 and 2, in block 3, of the village of 
Alraon, the name Sandwich not having been adopted 
at the time, March 1, 18=54. A rieat frame edifice 
was completed in December of the same year, at a 
cost of $2,100, and on the 23d day of January, 1855, 
it was dedicated, Rev. William Haigh preaching the 
sermon. An addition was made to this house in 
1874 at a cost of $600. With other improvements, 
the property is now worth $3,500. 

In 1857, the Pastor, Rev. William M. Bassett, was 
assisted by Rev. C. E. Tinker, of Annawan, in a most 
extensive revival. Fifty were baptized and became 
members of the Baptist Church. In 1859, Rev. 
Robert A. Clapp became pastor. He was followed 
after two years by Rev. E. L. Hunt, who served three 
years. Part of the time he was Chaplain in the army, 
and the pulpit was supplied by Rev. George A. 
Bishop The Church grew steadily, 27 being added 
by baptism in one year, under Rev. Hunt. After a 
short pastorate by Rev. C. E. Bailey, Rev. D. B. 
Gunn became Pastor, in 1865, and the following year 
30 were baptized. He was succeeded by Rev. War- 
ren Mason, who remained two years, and was fol- 
lowed, in 1870, by Rev. W. H. Card. During his 
second year 32 were baptized. He remained four 
years. The succeeding pastors have been Rev. A. 
L. Farr, six years; Rev. W. A. Bronson, one year; 
Rev. N. A. Reed, two years. The present pastor, 
Rev. E. W. Hicks, was called in April, 1883, and 
began April 15. 

The Church has had 18 pastors. The following 
have been licensed to preach by the Church: Cyrus 
F. Tolman, Gilbert E. Pratt, Henry R. Hicks, Ed- 
ward Sedgwick. Also Rev. W. H. Eddy, ordained. 
There have been, altogether, about 625 additions to 
the Church ; 286 by baptism. The present member- 
ship is 176. The officers of the Church in the spring 
of 1885 were Rev. E. W. Hicks, Pastor; Julius Ives 
and R. B. Jackson, Deacons ; Luther Kent, Frank 
Kent, O. S. Hendee, Seneca Culver, Dr. C. L. Misick, 
Trustees; R. B. Jackson, Clerk. 

The First Presbyterian Church of Sandwich was 
organized at the house of Charles Merritt, at Free- 
land Corners, Dec. 15, 185 1, with eight members. 
Milo Tuttle was the first elder. In December, 1853, 
the eldership was composed of Milo Tuttle, William 
T. Morey, Henry S. Langdon. H. T. Merritt was 
clerk of the sessions. The first regular minister was 



Rev. A. Johnson, who began his labors in the fall of 
1854, and occasionally preached until June, 1856. 
On the 26th day of May, 1856, a meeting of the 
Church was held at Freehand's Corners and a vote 
was taken on removal to Sandwich. Eleven voted 
to remove and two against. It was also voted that 
the Church be known as the First Presbyterian 
Church of Somonauk, which name was subsequently 
changed to First Presbyterian Church of Sandwich. 
At one of its first meetings in Sandwich, a com- 
mittee was appointed to confer with a like committee 
from the Church of South Somonauk, to secure the 
services of a regular pastor. Rev. L. P. Crawford 
was called and began his labors July 1, 1856. On 
the breaking out of the war, he enlisted and served 
for a time, but subsequently returned and served 
until the spring of 1865. In April of that year Rev. 
G. H. Robertson began his labors for the Church, 
continuing until the spring of 1867, when he resigned 
to accept the pastorate of the Second Presbyterian 
Church of Springfield. Rev. I. D. Henningivas the 
next pastor. He served but about six months, when 
Rev. R. M. Overstreet accepted a call in the spring 
of 1868, serving one year. In the fall of 1869, Rev. 
E. L. Hurd came and served three years. In Jan- 
uary, 1873, Rev. G. W. Crofts entered upon his 
labors for the Church. He was succeeded Feb. r, 
1875, by Rev. G. B. Black. In the fall of 1878, Rev. 
D. W. Fahs began his labors as supply, and in June, 
1880, was called to the pastorate. He still remains 
with the Church. 

On its removal to this place services were held in 
the old Academy. In the summer of 1857, steps 
were taken to erect a house of worship, and in the 
spring of 1858 a church edifice was completed and 
occupied. In 1866 an addition was built, and sub- 
sequently a fine organ costing $1,300 was put in. 
There has been a total membership of 297, with a 
present membership of 125. 

The Congregational Church. — The Congregational 
Church of Sandwich was originally organized at Little 
Rock, Kendall County, April 17, 1853. In addition 
to the articles of covenant usually adopted by such 
bodies, the Church adopted resolutions by which they 
refused to fellowship individuals or Churches that 
were guilty of holding their fellow men in bondage; 
and also one requiring total abstinence from intoxt- 
1 ating liquors as a beverage as a means of admission 
into the Church. 



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aftei ii - organization the- Church engaged the 
services of Rev. II. G. Warner, who preached for it 
one year. Eighteen persons were added under his 
ministration. From July, 1854, till the spring of 
1855, Rev. I. Mattison supplied the Church. For 
the next year no religious services were held. The 
village of Sandwich having come into existence, and 
several of its members having moved thereto, at a 
meeting Maj 10, 1856, it was unanimously re- 
solved that the " location of the Church be removed 
to Sandwich, De KalbCo., and the name changed to 
the Congregational Church of Sandwich." Two 
weeks later the first meeting was held in Sandwich at 
the residence of Deacon Hubbard. Subsequently 
and until the 14th of June, 1857, services were held 
in the Methodist Episcopal church. On the day 
mentioned, a small chapel having been completed 
the first services were held therein. 

In July, 1857, Rev. James Kilbourn commenced 
his labors with the Church. He served six years, 
during which time 84 persons were received into the 
Church. In August, 1863, Rev. C. A. Harvey entered 
upon his duties as supply, and on the 4th of Janu- 
ary. 1865, was called to the pastorate. Until now 
the Church had worshiped in the chapel, which had 
become too small for the congregations. It was then 
sold to the Lutherans, and the present neat and 
commodious building (exclusive of the lecture-room 
and transepts) was erected. It was dedicated Jan- 
uary 26, 1S65. During Mr. Harvey's pastorate, 
which terminated April 1, 1S66, there were 39 addi- 
tions. Soon after the Church invited Rev. John W. 
Cass to labor with them The invitation being ac- 
cepted, Mr. Cass began his ministry September r, 
1866, the pulpit being supplied in the meantime by- 
Rev. X. C. Clark. During that and the following 
year a parsonage was built, costing, with lots, $2,000. 
Mr. Cass served two and a half years, receiving into 
the Church 121 persons. On account of failing 
health he resigned, and June 1, 1869, Rev. C. A. 
Towle became the pastor, continuing as such until 
July 1, 1873. In that time 73 were added to the 
Church. In November, 1873, Rev. John L. Granger 
became acting pastor, and remained three years, 
with 43 additions. On the resignation of Mr. 
Granger Rev. G. W. Crofts was called to the pastor- 
ate. He served until March 1, 1885, during which 
time there were 114 added to the Church. The 
present membership is 208. 




German Baptist Church, composed of citizens 
speaking the German language, was organized Aug. 
16, 1855. 

SOCIETIES. 

Sandwich is well represented by secret and benev- 
olent societies. 

Meteor Lodge, No. 283, A. F. &• A. M., held its 
first meeting May 14, 1858. The petitioners for dis- 
pensation were N. E. Ballon, A. C. Frick, James 
Clark, Thos. R. Treat. John H. Lowe, Silas H. Town- 
send and A. J. Thomas. The lodge has had an un- 
usually successful career, with a membership in 
1885 of 94, with the following named officers : L. I). 
Woodruff, W. M.; C. H. Pratt, S. W.;~T. R. Polglase, 
J. W.; M. Carpenter, Treas.; Fred. S. Douglas, Sec. 

Sandwich Chapter, No. 107, R. A. J/., was granted 
dispensation December 21, 1866. A charter was 
granted October 4, 1867. Its first officers were Geo. 
W. Culver, H. P.; Jos. H. Furman, K.; B. C. Whit- 
comb, S. Its present officers are Ed. S. Johnson, H. 
P.; Van R. David, K.; Gustave Walters, S.; George 
H. Whitcomb, Sec; M. Carpenter, Treas. Present 
membership, 137. 

Excelsior- Lodge, No. 67, A. O. U. IV., was organ- 
ized March 23, 1877. Its first officers were C. D. 
Reed, P. M. W.; F. E. Griffith, M. W.; Jacob Burk- 
hart, jr., Foreman ; John A. Armstrog, Recorder. 
Few lodges in the State have had a more prosperous 
existence. It now numbers 80 members, and has 
lost by death five — Henry M. Rogers, December 7, 
r88r; H. F. Bloodgood, April 4, 1882 ; A. H. Hills, 
July 1, 1883; L. M. Shrewsbury, December 6, 1883; 
A. Brandenburger, December 28, 1883. The officers 
in March, 1885, were F. A. Howe, M. W.; R. F. 
White, F.; E. L. Ingersoll, Recorder. Those who 
have represented this lodge in the Grand Lodge are 
F. E. Griffith, T. W. Orr, Geo. Kleinsmid and M. 
Dickinson. 

Sandwich Legion, No. 40, Select Knights, A. O. U. 
W., was organized August 13, 1884, by Alex. Mc- 
Lean, Grand Commander of the State of Illinois. 
The Legion meets on the second and fourth Tuesday 
evenings in each month. The present membership 
is 32. M. Dickinson is the representative to the 
Grand Legion. The officers in the spring of 18S5 
were as follows: W. J. M. Fish, S. C.; Geo. Green- 
field, V. C; Thos. McNeice, L C; Robert White, 
Rec 

Sandwich Lodge, No. jp, I. O. M. A., was organ- 

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ized April 16, 1S79, by M. L. Ross, D. G. P. of the 
Stale <>f Illinois. The first officers were Thos. 
Wright, W. P. P.; A. P. Crapser.W. P.; J. M. Steel , 
w. V. P.; F. I). Bailey, K. S.; P. M. Wallace, Treas.; 
J. W. Allison, F. S. 

The lodge has been unusually successful, having 
enrolled 81 members, and having a present member- 
ship of 60. The present officers are W. J. M. Fish 
W. P.; E. A. Beardsley, W. V. P.; W. H. Van 
Fleet, R. S. ; J. M. Gates, F. S. ; G. J. Fish, Treas. 

Grand Prairie Encampment, No. ij8, I. O. O. F., 
was instituted at Onarga, Iroquois Co., 111., June 28, 
rSyj, and by order of the Most Worth) Grand 
Patriarch, Amos tCemp, was removed to Sandwich, 
111., March 7. 18S5, and has now a membership of 
40. The charter members numbered about 30. The 
order is progressing rapidly. Its officers in the 
spring of 1885 were E. E. Stebbins, C. P.; Chas. H. 
Pratt, H. P. ; J. A. Durbin, S. W. 

MANUFACTORIES. 

Sandwich Manufacturing Co. — Sandwich is noted 
for its manufactories. The Sandwich Manufacturing 
Co is the oldest as well as the most extensive. In 
1856 Augustus Adams, then living at Elgin, started 
a branch of his manufactory at this place. It was 
but a small affair, but like the acorn it has developed 
quite extensively. In 1S57 his advertisement read 
that A. Adams & Co. bad a foundry and machine 
shop in which they were prepared lo do casting of 
every description. But little was said about the 
manufactures that have given the linn its wide 
reputation. Still the idea was kept in view to de- 
velop a practical, portable corn-sheller. The first 
■ ngine blew up and was replaced by a larger and 
better one. In 1857 Mr. Adams moved his family 
here, and urged the work as fast as his means would 
admit. By 186 1 the reputation of the Sandwich 
Adams Corn-Shellei had so extended that calls for it 
came from all over the Northwest, and to supply the 
demand, gave employment to about 100 men. It 
might be well to say that in thai year a < ompany for 
the loth Regiment III. Vol. Inft. was raised here 
and about 70 of the company went from these shops. 
Just at the opening of the trade, in the face oi 
tb i tic reased demand, the shops were burned 
down, but with the charai teristic energ) of the pro- 
prietors, then A. Adams & Sons, the) were rebuilt. 
1 and better than before, and by working extra 




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men and time the trade was supplied. By this time 
it had been demonstrated that the Sandwich corn- 
sheller was a necessity and ,1 staple, and in 1867, 
1 apital at home was readily found to combine with 
the firm of A. Adams & Sons to increase the manu- 
facture, and the Sandwich Manufacturing Co. was 
organized. 

They soon found that there must be more shop 
room, men and machinery to supply the growing de- 
mand, and so they commenced to build, and from this 
commencement has grown the spacious and complete 
set of shops. These buildings, with the necessary 
yards adjoining, now cover about two blocks of 
ground, with railroad tracks running to every point, 
so that all material is unloaded from the cars just 
where it is needed, and all shipments are made 
direct from the store-rooms. The shops are fur- 
nished throughout with the latest improved machin- 
ery, much of which was designed and made at home 
for the specialties of their manufacture. The paid 
up capital of the company is $250,000. 

The Sandwich Enterprise Co. is the outgrowth of 
a business established by Kennedy Bros., and was 
incorporated under the general laws of the State, 
Nov. 5, 1868. The following named were the in- 
corporators: W. W. Sedgwick, M. B. Castle, Wan. 
Davis, O. S. Hendee, B. F. Latham, E. A. Kennedy, 
R. K. Howe. The capital stock was originally $50,- 

000, but was subsequently increased to $100,000. 
The buildings and grounds of the company cover 
more than two blocks and a half of ground, having 
a frontage on Main Street of 200 feet and on F.ddy 
of 140 feet, with a large warehouse. The manu- 
factures of the company are windmills, force pumps, 
cultivators and feed-grinders. The following named 
are the officers and directors in the spring of [885 : 

1. L. Rogers, President ; J. H. Culver, Vice-Presi- 
dent; Win. Radley, Secretary and Treasurer; T. R. 
Polglase, Superintendent ; I. L. Rogers, J. H. Cul- 
ver, O. C. Ainsworth, E. Doan, «'m. Davis, G. R. 

Wallace, H. Latham, directors. In ordinarily g 

times about 140 hands are employed. 

The Tile Works of Dieterich & Ebinger is one of 
the institutions of Sandwich, though situated about 
one mile west of the city. L. Dieterich had been man- 
fai lining brick some 12 years or more, and in com- 
pany with Mr. Ebinger commenced in 1NN2 the 
manufacture of tiling. The main building of the 



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ry is 36x93 feet, three stories hi'h, with two 
5, one 36 feet square and the other 24 x 69 feet. 
A large and increasing business is being done. 

Among the other manufactories in Sandwich are 

the wagon and carriage shops ofG. Walter and Kehl 

pump fai tory of I'. I < '< " >l. , and the i igar 

manufai tory of Thos. Emerson. 

W \ 1 IK WORKS. 

1 ' the -'Nth day of July, 1883, it was voted to ap- 
propriate $13,000 for a sysienti ol watet works. The 
lei and work commenced September 
28, and on the 12th of January, [884, everything was 
complete, a satisfactory test made, and the job 
cepted by the 1 ity. The stand-pipe rests upon a sub- 
stantial foundation, in the construction of which 42 
cords ol stone were used, .\i\<\ laid with great care, 
Milwaukee cement being 11 ed Thebaseol the wall 
is 2514 feet in diameter, and the top 15 feet. The 
stand-pipe is 12 feet in diameter and 100 feet high, 

of the best shell iron, with a tensile strength 
of 45,000. The pump is situated in the basement 
ol the engine-house, and draws the water from the 
well and forces it into the stand-pipe, or through the 

mains direct, at the will of the engineer. It 
has a steam cylinder 18}^ inches in diameter, and 
the water plungers are 9^ inches in diameter. The 
length ol the stroke is 10 inches, and it makes from 
100 to 150 strokes per minute without the least jar 
or noise. Its pumping 1 ipai it) is S50 gallons a min- 
ute, but it has made 1 .000 a minute. The engine- 
house is a substantial building of stone and brick, 
14X2S (eel, with a basement 9 feet dee)), and 14x14 
feet. The well is 29^ feet deep, 14 feet in diameter. 
Its tested inflow is 300 gallons per minute. I here 
are now three miles of main, with 32 hydrants. 

F1KI COMPANY. 
5 idwich Fire Co., No. r, was organized Jan. 22, 
1884. Samuel Mitten was appointed fire marshal 
b\ the Cit) Council. William Hickok was elected 
first, and W. A. William col d, assistant to the fire 
marshal. John Eberl) was made foreman, with Jo- 
seph Frani ; s first, and John Van Winkle second, as- 
sistant. At that time there were two hose carts, 
with 900 feet of hose, and one hook and ladder truck, 
with the necessary apparatus. New officers were 
elected in the spring of 1885. Samuel Mitten was 
ted chief, with William Iliekok first and 
John Eberly second assistant. W. A. Williams was 

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made foreman, with Joseph r'ra'n is firs*, and John 
Van Winkle s-cond, assistant. Charles Johnson is 
se< tei.iiy and Frank Moore treasurer. New hose 
carts have been provided and 500 feet of hose added. 
The company is composed of 30 men, having five 
offii ers, 17 men on hose and 8 on hook and ladder 
trui k. 

Hoe Co. No. 2 is composed of youths of 18 and 
under. While not subject to the city, yet in case ol 
fires it acts under direction of ths lire marshal. It 
was organized Sept. 2, 1884, with Norman Mattison, 
foreman, A. Shepard, Jr., first assistant and Daniel 
Dickinson, second assistant. The company was or- 
ganized at the request of the fire marshal. It has a 
hose cart, with 350 feet of hose. The company is 
composed of 1 7 men. 

IN THE WAR. 

The war record of Sandwich, and in fact the town- 
ship of Somonauk, is one in which the citizens take 
a just pride. On the 14th day of April, 1 861 , Fort 
Sumter fell, and on the 15th the President issued his 
proclamation for 75,000 men. On Thursday eve- 
tng following, a meeting was held for the purpose of 
giving expression to the views of the people upon the 
troubles. While the meeting was in progress, L. H. 
Carr, who had been a soldier in the Mexican War, 
walked in with a piper in his hand, which proved to 
be an agreement by which those who signed offered 
teii services to the Government. Mr. Carr had 
placed his name at the head of the list. He was 
quickly followed by others, and before Saturday night 
a company of 1 1 2 men was raised and accepted by 
tin Governor. On Sunday, the ladies of the village 
met for the purpose of preparing uniforms for the 
company. On Monday the company was on its way 
to Cairo. Thus within one week the little village of 
Sandwich raised, uniformed and sent i n its way to 
the front one of the first companies raised in the 
State. All honor to the brave men who, at their 
country's call, offered their lives for its sake. All 
honor, too, to the noble women, who, without a mur- 
mur, though doubtless with breaking hearts, bid the 
loved ones go, and with willing hands prepared them 
for the field. This company was assigned to the 
10th Reg. 111. Vol. Infantry, and did valiant service 
during the w ir. Mr. Carr was chosen Captain, and 
at Island No. 10 met his death from the bullet of a 
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F. W. Partridge soon after raised another compart) 
and was chosen Captain. This company was made 
a part of the 13th Infantry. Captain Partridge was 
twice wounded, rose to the command ot the regi- 
ment, and was brevetted Brigadier-General. William 
Patten also raised a company which became a part 
of the 156th Infantry- But these were not all. In 
other regiments were to be found the men of Sand- 
wich and Somonauk Townships, who were numbered 
among the bravest of the brave. From the township 



311 men went to the war. To meet necessary war 
expenses the township voted $27,843. 
SUPERVISI IRS. 
The following named have served the village and 
city as members of the Board of Supervisors: W. 
Walker, i860; George Culver. [861 ; W. Walker, 
1862: Perley Stone, 1S63: W. L. Simmons, 186} ; J. 
H. Cur, 1865; George W. Culver, r866; James II. 
Culver, 1867; \V. W. Sedgwick, 1868-70- J. P. 
Adams, 187 1-2. 





Railroads. 

HE County of De Kalb is well supplied 
with railroads, but unfortunately has none 
running from north to south, though at 
present writing, in the spring of 1SS5, one is 
being surveyed which strikes the county on the 
southwest corner, and leaves it in the north- 
east, passing through the cities of De Kalb and Syc 
amore. The new road, while ostensibly being built 
by the Illinois Coal Company, is supposed to be 
backed by the Northwes'ern Railroad Company. 

The citizens of De Kalb County were much inter- 
ested in railroad building even at an early day, and 
realized the necessity of using them for the develop- 
ment of the county. The Chicago & Galena Union 
Railroad Company was chartered in 1836 and au- 
thorized to build a railroad from Galena to Ch'cago. 
In 1838 a small amount of grading had been done on 
the prairie west of Chicago, arid active operations 
were suspended. In the latter part of 1845 the sub- 
ject was again agitated in regard to the road, and a 
new company organized which purchased the charter 



with the design of completing the work. A meeting 
was called at Rockford Jan. 7, 1846, to be composed 
of delegates from each of the counties along the line 
of the proposed road. De Kalb was represented in 
the convention by James S. Waterman. The road 
was subsequently built, but north of this county. 

In 1852 the Chicago, St. Charles & Mississippi Air 
Line Railroad was projected, to run through St. 
Charles, Sycamore, South Grove and Oregon to the 
Mississippi River at Savannah. James S. Waterman 
and Mr. Fordham, of Sycamore, first proposed the 
matter, and began correspondence with E. S. Litch- 
field, of the Michigan Southern Railroad, in relation 
to the matter. The latter favored the project, and a 
meeting was held at Sycamore in which $20,000 was 
subscribed in the stock of the new 1 ompany. The 
proposal to build this road alarmed the managers ot 
the Chicago & Galena Union road, and they were 
anxious to prevent its construction. They procured 
a charter authorizing the construction of the " Dixon 
Air Line" road, commencing at a point about six 
miles east of St. Charles and running 'Inc.! west to 
Dixon, through the county of De Kalb. This was to 






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de kalb County. 



be a branch of the Chicago & Galena Union Kail- 
road. The village of Sycamore was to have been 
made a point on the proposed line, but for some 
cause the survey of a line four miles south was 
adopted. The road was built and in successful oper- 
ation through the entire county in 1853. Entering 
the county on the east on section 25, township 40 
north, rangi - through the townships of 

Cortland, De Kalb and Malta. Three large towns 
have sprung up along its line in this county, each 
bearing the name of its respective township in which 
it is located — Cortland, De Kalb and Malta. Some 
years after the road was completed it passed 
into the hands of the Chicago cV Northwestern 
Railroad Company, bj whom it is now operated, and 
is known as the Council Bluffs & Omaha Line of 
the Northwestern Railroad. 

The Chicago, Burlington & Quincj Railroad Com- 
pany also completed its line through Somonauk 
Township, in this county, in 1853. On this line 
' sprang up the towns ol Sandwii h and Somonauk. 

The building of the Dixon Air Line, now the Chi- 
: cago & Northwestern Railroad, some four miles south 
of Sycamore, the comity seat, left that town "out 
in the cold." Its enterprising citizens, however, 
were determined not to be without railroad facilities, 
so a com pan) was organized to construct a road 
from Sycamore to Cortland, there to connect with the 
Dixon Air Line. The Sycamore & Cortland Rail- 
road was built and began operations-in 1859. Among 
the active promoters of this enterprise were lames 
S. Waterman, Chauni ey Ellwood and Charles Kel- 
lum. The road was operated by the home company 
until 1883, when it was sold to the Northwestern. 
The township of Sycamore appropiiated$i 0,00c to 
aid in its construction. 

The Chicago & Iowa Railroad was the next one 
constructed in and through the county. The com- 
pany was incorporated in 1869, and work almost im- 
mediately began. Francis E. Hinckley was elected 
President. The road was completed through the 
count)' in 1871. It enters the county on section 15, 
township 39 north, range 5 east, and runs through 
the townships of Squaw ( rrove, Clinton and Shabbona. 
The villages of Hinckley, Waterman and Shabbona 
Jt are upon this line. 

All sections of the county were now represented 
with railroads, save the extreme northern. The 



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old village of Genoa, whii h, in early days, had been 

verj prosperous, had aln I to exist, its trade 

virtuall) ruined. A railroad was a necessity, 
and this ii se< urcd in [875, when the Chicago & Mil- 
waukee Railroad Company constructed a branch of 
id which crosses the Mississippi at Savannah, 
id runs west through Iowa to Omaha. This line 
passes through the tow nships of Genoa, Kingston and 
Franklin. The village ol Genoa secured in its con- 
struction a new lease of life while the villages of 
Kingston, Kirkland and Fielding have sprung into 
being. 

Educational. 

,E KALB County is at present divided into 
165 districts, in which are 170 school- 
houses, and employs 215 teachers, 62 of 
whom teach in the 12 graded schools. The 
old log school-houses of the earlier days have 
all given place to frame and brick buildings. 
Many of the buildings are nuw, well finished and 
comfortable, some are really elegant. During the 
past year teachers and pupils have done a great 
deal toward making their rooms attractive by decor- 
ating the walls with pictures, mottoes and wreaths of 
autumn leaves. Many dictionaries, wall-maps and 
some reference books have been purchased by di- 
rectors, and there is, in many locations, a growing 
interest manifested in school matters. 

Directors are more careful in the selection of 
teachers and more liberal in payment of salary when 
the teac her is found qualified. By means of the an- 
nual institute and a system of teachers' meetings, 
together with a general dissemination of professional 
books and periodicals, the qualifications of the teacher 
have been raised to a much higher degree. 

During the past much time has been squandered 
in irregular, aimless work. To obviate this, a plan 
of work was arranged by the County Superintendent, 
printed in " The School-Room Guide, " and distrib- 
uted to ever) distrii t in the county, during the sum- 
mer of 188 |. The result has exceeded the most san- 
guine expect ations. Fully 80 per cent of the schools 
followed the plan laid out during the past winter, 
and 90 per cent, took the first ''general examination." 
Among the results attained are the following: In- 



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creased regularity of attendance : increased interest. 
in the work by both parents and pupils; following 
the suggestions of the " School-Room Guide," num- 
bers and language are taught to the children from 
their entrance to school, and writing is taught in all 
grades. The plan of work provides for the examina- 
tion of one grade in each school, each year, by the 
Superintendent in person. This part of the work 
will lie taken up next year. 

Among the obstacles to the school work are, irreg- 
ularity of attendance, frequent change of teachers, 
lack of proper books, and inefficient supervision. 
This latter is a serious drawback. The county em- 
ploys a Superintendent the majority of his time ; but, 
after examining 300 to 400 candidates for teachers' 
certificates, examining the books and accounts of 18 
township treasurers, making the necessary reports to 
the State Superintendent and other officers, arranging 
for and holding the annual institute and numerous 
teachers' meetings, apportioning and distributing the 
* public money, keeping the records of the office and 
answering the hundreds of letters received from 
teachers and school officers, but little time is left for 
the not less important work of visiting the 215 
school-rooms in the county. A number of counties 
have met this requirement by allowing the Superin- 
tendent an assistant in his office. De Kalb County 
will probably not be long behind in this matter. 

Altogether the outlook for the future is bright. 
The spirit of the " New Education "is abroad in the 
land, and its effects are beginning to be seen in 
beautiful school-rooms, good books and rational meth- 
ods in instruction and government. 



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Early Postoffices. 



t N the fall of 1884, Hon. John Wentworth 
was invited to deliver an address at the 
Farmers' Picnic at Sycamore. He could 
not attend. The following letter he wrote to 
Mr. Hix, editor of the City Weekly: 
I was prevented by unforeseen circumstam es 
from attending the Farmers' Picnic- in your county. 
A^ a sort of text to speak from and to converse upon 
in private conversation, 1 collected the following list 
of the early postma ters in De Kalb County, with 
their compensation. With every one of these gentle- 



men I was personally acquainted and at most of 
their houses I have visited. Probably not a half 
dozen of them are now living : 

Jno. Wentworth. 

■837- 
Sycamore Mark Daniels 

Somonauk Reuben Root 

Paw Paw Grove Asahel Baldwin 



Coltonville 

Paw Paw Grove 
Somonauk 



Genoa 
Hicks' Mill 
Kingston 
Ohio Grove 
Somonauk 
Sycamore 

Genoa 
Hicks' Mill 
Somonauk 
South Grove 
Sycamore 



Coltonville 

Genoa 

Hicks' Mill 

Kingston 

Shabbona Grove 

Sycamore 

Genoa 
Hides' Mill 
Kingston 
New Lebanon 
Ohio Grove 
South Grove 
Syi 1 move 

Blood's Point 

Coltonville 

De Kalb Center 

Genoa 

links' Mill 

Kingston 

1 ,,n r\ 

Line 

New Lebanon 

( thio Grove 

Ross Grove 



'5 34 
2 87 




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1839. 

Rufus Colton 
H. N. Perkins 

Wm. Rogers 
John F.astabrooks 

1 84 1. 

H. N. Perkins 
Henry Hicks 
Levi Lee 
Samuel Spring 
David Merritt 
John R. Hamlin 

1843- 

H. N. Perkins 
D. M. Gilchrist 
David Merritt 
James Byers 
Jesse C. Kellogg 

1845. 

Calvin S. Colton 
H. N. Perkins 
M. M. Mack 
Jonas Haight 
Wm. A. Langer 
Jesse C. Kellogg 

1S47. 

H. N. Perkins 
Martin M. Mack 
Jonas Haight 
Peter S. Pratt 
Homer Roberts 
Junes Byers 
Zelotes 11. Ma] 

1849. 

S. V. W. Scott 
Cab in I'. ( lolton 
Russell Huntley 
R. W . Waterman 
Moil: in Losee 
George H. Hill 
R. I'.. Tho 
|u-.e[>h Shaw 
John A. I >.ikley 
Homer Roberts 
Wheeler Hedges 

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s 3 2 84 
23 84 
13 84 
22 52 

$17 4<5 
7 72 
4 31 
2 22 

28 93 
• 59 °° 



39 9' 
9 93 

61 09 
2 64 

43 OI 



$8 


47 


27 


6r 


No returns 


4 


53 


13 


65 


9' 


45 


$34 


r6 


'9 


48 


'4 


56 


7 


1 1 


9 


'9 


7 


16 


92 


46 


$10 


3' 


7 


28 


1 


18 


21 


°3 


'4 


35 


S 


58 


1 


-4 


7 


48 


I 2 


9' 


1 ! 


59 


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Shabbona Grove 
Somonauk 
South Cirove 
Syi amore 






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Bui k's Bran< h 
De K..1II1 Center 
Dorset 
Genoa 
Hicks' Mills 
Kingston 
La Clare 
Line 

Lost Cirove 
New Lebanon 
Nej 

( Ihio ( rrove 
Ross Gro 
Shabbo 1 
Somonauk 
more 
Williamsburg 



Blood's Point 
Busk's Branch 
De Kalb Center 
I lorset 
Genoa 
Mu ks' Mills 
Kingsti "I 
Line 

Lost Grove 
New Lebanon 
Ney 

North Kingston 
i (hio Grove 
Ross Grove 
Shabbona Grove 
Somonauk 
South Grove 
Squaw Gri 
more 
Van Buren 
Williamsburg 



l',lood\ Point 
h Point* 
Cortland Station 
De Kalb Center 



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Dorset 

it 

Paw Paw 

Genoa 



DE KALB COUNTY. 



Win. Marks 
1 1 a\ id Merritt 
fame B; 
/. P. Mayo 

t8 S i. 



i- ;s 
7° 95 

'95 32 



S \ W. ! 


S'7 85 


C. B. Rhod 


'- 33 


Russell Huntlej 


27 81 


Win. Robinson 


1 1 64 


Norman Durham 


"5 29 


s. P. Harrington 


34 °7 


Gro, II Hill 


10 S8 


Dan'l Robinson 


19 06 


Joseph Shaw 


8 69 


Chauncey Luce 


20 17 


Allen Bigelow 


17 61 


C. Goddsill 


No return- 


Homer Roberts 


17 09 


Moses Bartlett 


25 09 


Wm. Marks 


61 71 


David Merritt 


81 45 


|. ( '. Waterman 


250 61 


John F. Snow 


3 57 


1853- 




R. W. Humphrey. 


S" 5 6 


C. B. Rhodes 


21 07 


Russell Huntley 


25 10 


Wm. Robinson 


8 63 


John H. Ball 


48 27 


S. P. Harrington 


18 62 


Geo H. Hill 


'3 ol 


S. Baker 


8 59 


Chauncey Luce 


'5 53 


Allen Bigelow 


'5 '5 


I. P. Kellogg 


3 °9 


Chas. W. Branch 


84 


Homer Roberts 


9 99 


Geo. V. Miner 


19 90 


Samuel Curtis 


59 '3 


Alex. Patten 


57 74 


lame- Byers 


1 2 64 


Wm. C. Tappan 


2 55 


Wm. P. Dutton 


"74 3' 


Jeremiah Mulford 


14 55 


John F. Snow 


4 34 



1855- 

John Lee 
Harrison M u kc\ 
( 'hauncey Luce 
Smith D. Baldwin 
Elijah Gilford 
Wm. Robertson 
Alex. Mi Nish 
A. B. Breese 
Wm. A. Allen 



$15 20 
6 99 

37 ' 6 
32 12 

104 23 

5 68 

5 6 3 

59 6z 

73 °4 



, '' !, in ell July I, 1854 



to Som 



Hicks' Mills 

King-ton 

LaCl 

New Lebanon 

Nej 

North Kingston 



1 , A. Gillis 
George II. Hill 
James Rowin 
Timothy Goble 
Allen Bigelow 
L. P. Kell 
Chas. W. Branch 




North Pii 01, discontinued Jan. 3, 1855 



. e 
ville 
Ross Grove 

Sandwich 
Shabbona < rrove 



Somonauk 1 lep il 
South Grove 
Squaw Grove 
S\ 1 amore 
\ in Buren 
Williamsburg 



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Homer Roberts 15 38 

Hill 10 64 

Charles Davis 2 1 67 

H. H. Clark 7 90 

Robert Patton 104 06 

Geo. W. Kittell 45 7 1 

Wm. Marsh, jr. 42 51 

Samuel Curtis 22 17 

Uex. R. Patton 69 25 

Henry Safford 23 40 

Wm. C. Tappan 23 52 

W. P. Dutton 391 14 

Jeremiah Mulford 17 84 

John F. Snow 4 27 

To the foregoing the editor of the City Weekly ap- 
ded the following: 

" It will be observed that in giving the list of early 
postmasters in this county with whom he was ac- 
quainted, he expresses the thought that probably not 
half a dozen of them are now living. Well, we have 
taken some pains to inquire, and are able to say that 
from fifteen to twenty still survive. We personally 
know that the following are alive: H. N. Perkins, 
Peter S. Pratt, Geo. H. Hill, S. P. Harrington, Rich- 
ard W. Humphrey, Leander P. Kellogg, W. P. Dut- 
ton, Moses Hill, John Lee. Wm. A. Allen, James 
Rowen and Henry Safford. We will add one more 
name to Mr. Wentworth's list, which he doubtless 
overlooked — that of Dr. 1. W. Garvin, of this city, 
who at quite an early day was postmaster at New 
Lebanon. Those whom we do not know among the 
survivors, but are informed that they still live, are 
Geo. \V. Kittell, Moses Bartlett, N. Durham and Rus- 
sell Huntley. Still others of them may be alive, and, 
presumably, are, but they are very few. The names 
and location of the list of offices are familiar, with 
the exception of Line and Williamsburg. 

"A reference to the compensation received by the 
several postmasters named would indicate that sonic 
of them served out of a pure love of country, the 
same a- the soldier who fought to save the 
Union. There was James livers, of South Grove, 
who, owning more land than he could look over from 
point, consented, in consideration of the 



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BE KALB COUNTY. 



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magnificent sum of $2.64, to perform the duties of 
postmaster for the year 1S43. Peter Pratt, who lives 
on the interest of his money, was willing to be post- 
master for $7. ri in the year 1847. We suppose the 
reason that the North Pierce postoffice was discon- 
tinued in 1855 was l ' lal tni ' postmaster wrote to 
Washington saying that if he couldn't get more than 
a 66-cent salary he would be obliged to resign ; and 
did resign. At the same time, when you get over at 
Ney and down to Hicks' Mills, you are confronted 
with the startling announcement that there were ab- 
solutely no returns ; but in the lace of this, poor Mr. 
Goddsill and poor Mr. Mack worked right along, 
fortified, doubtless, with the hope of reward in the 
hereafter, if not here. They must have been good 
men. We suppose they all voted for ' Long John ' 
for Congress, and that if they had not he would have 
removed every last one of them, even those who 
looked and hoped and prayed for a salary which, 
alas, never came." 



Census Reports. 

The following statement shows the population of 
tin- county, according to the United States Census 
Reports, from 1840 to 1880, inclusive: 

1 840 1 ,697 

l8 5° 7.S4o 

i860 1 g, 086 

1870 2 3,2°S 

18S0 26,774 

The following is the report by townships for the 
year 1 880 : 

South Grove 774 

Sycamore, exclusive of city r,o8i 

Sycamore city 3.030 



Malta 



1,227 



Milan 895 

Shabbona 1,385 

Paw Paw 906 

Franklin 1,283 

Kingston 1,156 

Mayfield 870 

De Kalb, exclusive of city 854 

De Kalb city *L5 92 

Afton 850 

Clinton 1,167 

'Doubtless an error. According to the school census of that year 

there were 2,780 in the city . 



Victor 8 37 

Genoa I)2 8g 

Cortland Ii40 s 

Pien e 00 6 

Squaw drove 1212 

Somonauk, exi lusive of Sandwich. . 1,512 

Sandwich 2 K2 



.... 



Matrimonial. 



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: J "'[ &^j!} ANY y.-ars aguil was written that " it is 
;!i&lLap&, not good for man to be alone. The truth 
liT' 1 of the proverb is acknowledged, and men 



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J^ v \ have from time immemorial been seeking 
*,'■• mates. Previous to the organization of the 
county licenses had to be obtained from the 
County Clerk of Kane County. The first license 
granted in this county was in October, 1837. Dur- 
ing that and the following year there were made one 
fifteen couples, as follows . 

Henry B. Barber and Rachel Spring, October 5, 

1837, by Rufus Colton, J. P. 
Zalmon Young and Sarah Brown, Oct. 5, 1837, by 

Geo H. Hill, J. P. 

John Luckett and Nancy Riddle, Dec. 27, 1837, 
by Geo. H. Hill, J. P. 

William C. Parsons and Rachel Brown, Jan. 14, 

1838, by Geo. H. Hill, J. P. 
Daniel W. Lamb and Julia Maxfield, March 16, 

1838, by Eli G. Jewell, J. P. 

John K. Root and Sarah M. Bryan, June 6, 1838, 
by Rev. John Beaver. 

William Dresser and Sarah Jenks, July 27, 1838, 
by Rev. S. S. Walker. 

Watson Y. Pomeroy and Ann Eliza Kellogg, Aug. 
1, 1838, by Levi Lee, J. P. 

Jeremiah Burley and Emily Thompson, Aug. 3, 
1838, by Rufus Colton, J. P 

Lyman Barber and Cornelia Spring, Sept. 2, 1 838, 
by Eli G. Jewell, J. P. 

Timothy L. Pomeroy and Alzina Hough. Sept. 12 
1838, by Rev. Burton Carpenter. 

Erastus H. Barnes and Elizabeth Ban.es, Sept. 30, 
1838, by Rufus Colton, J. P. 

Russell Huntley and Selina A. Goodell, Sept. 25, 
1838, by Ruins Colton, J. P. 

John Brody and Elizabeth Brody, Oct. 11. 
by George II. Hill, J. P. 

M$4£ — ^€S^ 



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/>/■ KALB COU.\ ■■/■) 



I in: I I i >icr and Betsey Townsend, Nov. 6, 
1 838, bj Rev Elihu Sprin| 
From 1 >< tober, 1837, to ! nuary, 1885, tl 
id 4,91 mai 1 ia| licen 
int) ('Ink. from the records it is learned 
that hard times and the war have had a depressing 
effect upon the matrimonial market. "When Johnny 
came marching home " there was a perce] 

in the n 
with the pre> ious four _\ ears. 



- :;- 



Statistical. 






r ,Q',k<>M Hu I n K_»k -; in 1 h< office of the County 
the following int items are 

,„•;. ■■ ' : In 1 re in t he 

v t ',v c-onni \ \'i<>. 7^7 acres of improved lani 
•^v by the local assessors in thi townships 

I >-. 18,4*6. The County board ol Equal- 

ount less than $2,000, but the 
$5,010,744 The local as- 
sessors rated the town lots ;it ([, 280,753. I'his was 

not changed by the County Board, but the : 




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24,580. The personal prop- 

6 bj 1 he loi al assessors. 
The 1 ced I he amount to $2,1 [9,- 

iv iunl « as not 1 hanged by the 
I, The total asses local asses- 

sors, exclusive of railroad property, was §0,240,237. 
State Board reduced the amount to §8,154,710, 
road properly amounting to 
(76, giving a total \ of $8,6 0,086. 

I property - I were 

the following: Horses, 14.315 ; cattle, 45,324; mules 
, 307; sheep, 7,473: ho 797; steam 

engines, 53; lire and burglai prool safes, 105; bill- 
iard tables, 35 ; carriages and wagons, 5,424; watches 
and clocks, 4,325; sew : knitting machines, 

2,89c : is, 291 ; melodei • 02 1 . The 

. 
§210,963; materials and manufactured articles on 
hand..- ; manufacturers' tools,$35,5 16 

tural implements, §54,695. There were estimated this 
of wheat ; 1 1 _\; t6 I com; 61,976 of 
oats; 80,051 of meadow; 5,606 other field prod 
119,116 enclosed pasture; 4,503 of orchard; 13,131 
ol woodland 



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Reminiscences of J. C. Kellogg. 

HE I he pen 

of Hon I C Kellogg, ind were published 
in the Republican-Sentinel 'in the spri 
1 85 5 : The territory now embraced in this 

county poor to the sp: i [835 w as in 

.1011 of the Pottawatomie tri ol tin 
ibability few, if any. white men had ever 

1omIc.iI upon the unsurpassing beaut) ol its island 
d fertile prairies, until ab of the 

defeat of Gen. Stillman's army by the Indians, on 




the Kishwaukee, near the northwest corner of this 
county, in 1832. Volunteers from the central and 
southern portions of this State, and others engaged 
in the Black Hawk War, were the first, no doubt, to 
portray in colors "the right smart chani 

in this 1 harmin But the 

"fullness of times "had not as yet arrived. True, some 
adventurous interloj lerer, "with desire may 

if civilization " over 

here lying and 

being" on the banks of the " roaring Kishwaukee ;" 

but then he knew that he was sure to be driven off 



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DE KALB COUNTY. 



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by the ever watchful Indian agent, Thomas J. V. 
i (wen, backed by two companies of United States 

troops from Fort Dearborn. 

There were several Indian villages, under subor- 
dinate chiefs, within the limits of this county. One 
was near the residence of Hon. George H. Hill, in 
Kingston; one near John Waterman's, in Pampas 
[Cortland]; one near Calvin S. Colton's, in DeKalb; 
one near the old farm of John Eastabrooks, in Squaw 
Grove; and near the Grove in the township of Shab- 
l>ona was the village of Shabbona, one of the head 
chiefs of the Pottawatomie nation. From this place, 
after the surrender of Gen. Hull and Fort Mackinaw, 
and the Chicago massacre, Shabbona and his braves, 
accompanied by Wabansia and his warriors, sallied 
forth to join the forces of Tecumseh and the Prophet, 
in aid of the British in the War of 1S12. 

Poor Shabbona, warned by the prophets of the 
Great Spirit of the encroachments of "Young 
America," — no wonder that he should have sought to 
avert the calamity and crush the younggiant before his 
sacrilegious march should triumph over his venerated 
dead, or before, over-awed by superior power and over- 
come by " fire-water," in a moment of weakness, he 
should give the homes and hunting grounds of his 
fathers to satisfy the all-grasping avarice of Che- 
mo-ko-man. 

It having been noised about in the spring of 1835 
that the Indians had agreed to remove west of the 
Mississippi the ensuing autumn, farther restraint was 
entirely out of the question. Although the monot- 
onous song of the surveyor, "stake, stuck and tally," 
had not yet broken the solitude of nature in these 
regions, nevertheless the impetuous 'Sons of Ja- 
piielh," like hounds " straining in the slips," were .ill a 
tip-toe to "dwell in the tents of Shein." Having 
learned that "delays are dangerous in claim-making 
and pre-emption fixins," in making their first debut 
in Chicago, where it is said they were severally 
charged one shilling for the privilege of leaning up 
isl a sign post over night, .nnl two shillings for 
the "soft side of a white-oak puncheon," down came 
the settlers upon the newly acquired pur. hase "like 
.1 thousand of bricks," each carving out and appro- 
priating to his own special use and benefit a most 
bountiful slice ol verj fat prairie with an abundant e 
ii "1 limber with which to 1 00k it. 

Soon after the Indians had done up their sugar- 



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making, when the groves began to grow leafy and the 
pr.uries grassy, .is the sun sank low in the west, and 
the prairie wolves began to howl, and the sandhill 
cranes to scream and " poke, poke" along the ponds 
and sloughs for their evening meal of crawfish, a 
close observer might have espied afar off on an In- 
dian trail, SUSpii ions looking canvass, supposed to 
be the " sail " of a settler's wagon, evidently nearing 
some grove, and in a strait to gel " somew liar " before 
nightfall. Presently, emerging from the dusky- 
prairie, the settler's wagon, propelled by some fouror 
five yoke of oxen, canopied by sundry bolts of sheet- 
ing; within, containing the family bedding, clothing 
and provisions; without, implements of cooking and 
husbandry, chickens in coops and pigs in pens, 
backed by a drove of cows, 1 alves, colts and other 
young stock on foot, would loom up plainly to view, 
"fetching in " near some point, bay or plum thicket. 

It was no uncommon thing in those days for the 
careful mistress of the wagon to " pail the keows " in 
the morning and place the milk where, by the inces- 
sant motion of the wagon, it would "churn itself." 
In this way the family were provided with a constant 
supply 'of good fresh butter; and old chanticleer 
and his dames in the coop behind, never caught 
napping when hens should be awake, would keep up 
the laying process ; so that with other supplies from 
the wagon, a settler's wife could usually "scare up" 
a pretty good meal on short notice. In this hitherto 
neglected spot, where " full many a flower was born 
to blush unseen, and waste its sweetness on the 
desert air," the weary, yet blithe and happy groups, 
might have been seen to alight, strike a fire, prepare, 
and, after > raving Cod's blessing, eat their frugal 
meal; when, guarded 1>_\ a watchful dog. and a still 
mote watchful Providence, all would retire for need- 
ful repose into the inmost recesses of the wagon 
home. And, at early peep of dawn, one might have 
seen the anxious settler reconnoitering, with hu 
steps, grove and prairie, when, after being " detached 
here " — " < oiintermanded there " — bothered almost to 
death for fear that among so many good chances he 
should fail to secure the best — at last he would bring 
himself to the " stic king point," sci/.e the a\ and 
" blaze the line in the timber," ad<\. anon, hitch the 
team to the prune plow and " mark out the fur- 
n >W on the prairie." 

" In those days, there being no king in Israel, every 



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888 



DE KALB COUNTY. 















man did that which seemed right in his own eyes." 
The size of claims t! varied from two 

"eighties" of prairie and one of timber, to a half 

m of timber and a tract of prairie two miles 
square. Some assumed the right to make and hold 
claims bj prow, being thereunto authorized by some 
brother, sister, uncle, aunt, cousin or friend. Mean- 
while new settlers poured in apace, astonished and 
perplexed to find t lie choice timbei and prairie Mazed 
and furrowed into claims, whose ample acres the 
claimant, with all his children, un< li -, a ints and 

ins, " to the third and fourth generations " would 
never be able to till or occupy. The new settlers, 
perplexed, baffled, and becoming more and more 

desperate on rinding "God's green earth" thus 

ii opolized, would approach his more fortunate 

neighbor, with the spirit of Abraham to Lol : " Now, 
1 have come a great waj to get some of this timber 
and prairii i thing is certain ; I am going to 

have some. There is enough for you and me, and 
our boys. Now don't let us quarrel; you turn to the 
right and I will turn to the hit. 01 ../." Some- 

times this good Scripture and consequently good 
common sense logi« would win; but in other cases 
cis ping spirit of the borderer would >tave off all 
kinds of division or com promise ; and, laying his hand 
upon his title, he would bluster and threaten in " 
swelling words." and drive away the " Stranger from 
his right." 

Hereupon arose innumerable disputes and wrang- 

•n ing the si/e, tenure and boundaries of 

reflet tin:; among the settlers saw 

a dark cloud, big with the elements of strife .mil 

social disorder, gathering in the not very distant 

horizon, whose torn. I threatened >oon to lay 

all that was of value in the rising community. 

There was no municipal law reaching these cases, 

and if there had been the settlers probably would 

have I le the betterfor it, for it is believed that 

at this time there was neither a justice nor a statute 

book north of the Illinois River and west of Fort 

unless we except Ottawa and Chic ago.* 

Wrongs and o 6t v\ hit h i hei • wa - no km iwn 

redress "en- being multiplied. Blackened eyes, 

bloody noses and chewed cars were living realities, 

while the dirk, pistol, title, with something like cold 

lead were significantly talked of as likel) to bring 



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about si .in.- " realities " which might not be "living." 
Wli.it could be done to insure domestic: tranquillity, 
promote the general welfare and secure to each 
settler his rights? Evidently but one thing. Happily, 
some had seen something in the New Testament 
about those who are " without law, being a law unto 
themselves," and settlers found themselves in this fix 
i vm tly. It was therefore apparent both fromScripture 
and reason that the settlers must become a law unto 
themselves, and, " where there was a will there was 

i way." A " settlers' meeting," at a given time and 
pi, H e, therefore, came to be a watchword from shanty 
to wagon, until all wen alarmed. Pursuant to this 
proclamation a "heap" of law and order loving 
citizens convened on the 5th of September, 1835, at 
the shanty of Harmon Miller, then standing on the 
the east bank of the Kishwaukee River, in the town 
ol Kingston. 

Happily, the best possible spirit prevailed. The 

Hoosier from the Wabash, the Buckeye from Ohio, 
the hunter from Kentucky, the calculating Yankee, 
Brother Jonathan's "'fust bom "and the "beginnings 
of his strength," impelled by a sense of mutual 
danger, here sat down in grave council to die tale 
laws to Kishwaukee and " the region lying round 
about throughout the coasts thereof." Hon. Levi 
Lee was chosen to preside over this august assem- 
blage, where the three great departments of free 
government — the executive, the legislative and the 
judicial — were most happily united, and Capt. Eli 
Barnes was appointed secretary. Gently glided the 
sometimes turbid waters of that ancient river, the 
sonorous Kishwaukee, as speech after speech setting 
forth the wants and the woes of the settlers, the kind 
of legislation demanded by the crisis, went the 
rounds. Even those who were not used to "talkin' 
much 'fore folks " evinced their cordial approbation 
and readiness to co-operate by doing up an amount 
of cheering, which no doubt really did "astonish the 
natives." At last, ripe for immediate action, a com- 
mittee was selei t' >l to do iti and present to the meet- 
ing a constitution and by-laws by which the " settlers 
upon the public lands " should be governed. Alter 
some little deliberation back of the shanty, around 
the stump of a big white oak, which served as a 
writing desk, said committee reported a preamble, 
constitution and by-laws, which for simplicity, 
brevity and adaptation to nee essity, it would be hard 
for any modern legislation to beat. The self-evident 



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DE KALB COUNTY. 






889 



truths "proclaimed by Jefferson in the immortal 
Declaration," it is believed were, for the first time, 
reiterated on the banks of the Kishwaukee ; and had 

there been a little more time for reflection and prep- 
aration, the top of some settler's wagon would have 

been converted into a Star-spangled banner and 
thrown to the breezes of heaven from the tallest tree 
top in the grove. The common sense, law and logii . 
as well as patriotism, contained in thie constitution 
and by-laws, were instantaneously recognized to be the 
very things demanded by the crisis, and were adopted 
with unparalleled enthusiasm, each subscribing 
his name thereto with his own hand, thereby pledg- 
ing his "life, fortune and sacred honor" to carry out 
the provisions of the code. As nearly as can be re- 
collected, its provisions were somewhat as follows : A 
prudential committee was to be then and there 
chosen whose duty it should be " to examine into, 
hear and finally determine all disputes and differ- 
ences then existing, or which thereafter might arise 
between settlers in relation to their claims," and whose 
decisions, with certain salutary checks, were to be 
binding upon all parties, and to be carried out at all 
hazards by the three departments of government 
consolidated in aid of the executive, in what jurists 
sometimes denominate the "posse comitatus." Each 
settler was solemnly pledged to protect every other 
settler in the association in the peaceable enjoyment 
of "his or her reasonable claim as aforesaid ; " and 
further, whoever, throughout all Kishwaukee, or the 
coasts thereof, should refuse to recognize the author- 
ity of the aforesaid association and render due 
obedience unto the laws enacted by the same from 
time to time, should be deemed a heathen, a publii ,111. 
and an outlaw with whom they were pledged to have 
no communion or fellowship. Thus was a wall 
affording protection to honest settlers built in 
troublous times. Hon. Levi Lee, Hon. George H. 
Hill, Captain Eli Barnes, James Green and Jesse C. 
Kellogg were chosen to lie the settlers' committee, 
and who, as may well be supposed, had business <>n 
hand for some time in order to restore and " insure 
domestic tranquillity " and " promote the general 
welfare." The thing worked like a charm, and the 
value of these asso ( iations in Northern Illinois, to the 
infant settlements, has never been over-estimated. 
Similar associations were formed and maintained in 
Somonauk and other portions cf the county until the 
land came into market in 1843, when a " ' >c KLalb 

— ^^ — ^-^ ; n ti s 






County, except the north tier of townships, was sold 

In the highest bidder, thai is, so fat .is terra firma 
was concerned. The moral as well as the physical 
power of settlers' associations was mi great thai if .1 

speculator presumed to bid on a settler's claim he \-t 
was certain to find himself "knocked down and 
d out ;" and had the laud officers showed the 
leasl sympathy or favor to the rascal, there can be mi 
doubt but that an indignant and outraged yeomanry 
would have literally torn the land office to fragments 
in almost " less than no time." 

After a period of unexampled peace and prosperity, 
it was found that this living in a " state of nature 
was liable to evils for which the late session of the 
legislature at Miller's shanty had provided no ade- 
quate remedy. The case was this: A had a 
promissory note against B and wanted his pay. 
B was not exactly prepared to "fork over," ami 

being nettled that he should be dunned, had the 

. . . . . / 

audacity to intimate to A that " tt might trouble him - 

to get it anyhow." Kishwaukee was then, as well ' 

as other portions of the county, attached to La Salle * 

for civil purposes. This was a real poser. Claim 

jumping had been provided for, but tin's appeared to J 

be a novel case. Finally the settlers concluded if 

they had come to share the inheritance with the . 

" Suckers " they must do as the Suckers did, and have 

some one who knew something about the Justinian 

code, the commentaries of Blackstone and the 

statutes of Illinois. So, in the summer of 1835 (1836), 

the exigency of the case having been duly made 

known, the County Commissioners of La Salle laid 

off by proper metes and bounds Kishwaukee precinct, 

wherein Joseph Collier and Stephen Morey were 

duly elected justices of the peace, who, in due time, 

were inducted into office before Joseph Cloud, Clerk 

of the County Commissioners' Court in Ottawa. 

Whether these worthy " squares " ever " got to see " a 

copy of the Illinois Statutes is much to be dou! 

it may be supposed, however, with more certainty. 

that they were "clever men." and withal "right 

smart, and calculated to do 'bout what's right." The 

best of all is that Mr. B. on hearing the "squares" 

had got back from Ottawa, put over to Mr. A's in a 

" giffin," laid down the "spelter" and took up his 

note to save cost. 

The Indians were still lingering among the set' 

rather loth to leave anyhow, and Mime, taking ad- 



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i their " spiritual infirmities," were mean 

gh to fill li awa) his pony, rifle ami even the 

last blanket in exchange for whisky, or "good-ne- 

tosh." As Nebui had i ing tin ned out 

to grass awhile. "< ame to himself again," so a poor 
Indian, after a drunken debauch, will sometimes 
.onie to himself again and recoil upon those who let 
the snake out to bite him. In niau\ things shrewd 

discriminating, they know when, where and how 
to render " tit for tat." One instance, in illustration, 
wdiere they came it over " c he-mo-ko-man," will he 
given: A half Yankeefied Frenchman, who will he 

d Peter [Lamois], had made a claim upon the 
east side of the Kishwaukee, and had engaged a 
half civilized Indian hoy. called Shaw-na-neese, to 
drive his breaking team. Now, as ill luck would 
have it, or " somehownother, " it came in their heads 
tli. n for just about one barrel of good-ne-tosh, each, 
on his return to Walker's drove, in Will County, 

ii astonish the settlers with a nice Indian 
The temptation to play upon the Anglo-Saxon was 
too strong. Shaw-na-neese, who had a mother and 
sister living in the Big Woods, near where Aurora 
now stands, was supposed to be well acquainted 
with the Indians, and could talk either Indian or 
English. So, off goes Peter for the whisky, never 
once " linking " of the foolish settler, who, for fun, 
set a fire on the prairie that burnt Up his own M.i< k-. 
In due time the barrel of good-ne-tosh was regularly 
set up in the cabin of the settler, and "where the 
carcass is there will the eagles be gathered to- 
gether." Shaw-na-neese talk — Indians talk — ponies 
plenty — good-ne-tosh plenty — so m uch pony, so m uch 
good-ne-tosh. Yes, humph ! the " doping " begins ; 
the che-mo-ko-man adding Kishwaukee at the bung 
by night to supply the deficit made at the lam et by 
day, until there was a moral certainty of perfecting 
the contract as to measurement. After the barrel 
prettj much delivered of its contents and the 
sharpsters began to hint that it was time for them to 
" walk up," — that is, it they could — to the captain's 
and settle, the Indians being really drunk or 
appearing to be, began to grumble about Peter 
ing them, selling no good good-ne-tosh. Ex- 
planation was attempted, but the thing could not be 
explained: expostulation was used, but in vain; 
"you cheat poor Indian," and they grew madder 
and madder. Peter and his comrade began to have 



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fears for their personal safety. There was no white 
man near, and if there had been they could not have 
expected that they would be sustained in 
such an enterprise. All on a sudden the terrific war- 
whoop burst from the whole group, and, drawing 
their long knives, they rushed upon the liquor deal- 
ers liki i many fiends from the pit. Just at this 
moment another Indian snatched Shaw-na-neese on 
nil ponj behind himself and galloped off at the top 
of his speed, for what has since been called Chartres' 
drove. But, alas, and well a I la j . for unfortunate 
Peter, when he cried "there was none to de- 
liver!" He had a good pair of legs, and "it came 
into his heart" that "jess now," if ever, was the 
time to use them; and bounding somewhere about a 
rod at a jump, he " cut for the bush," and the In- 
dians after him, pell-mell. As good luck would 
have it, however, he managed to conceal himself in 
the thick brush and elude their grasp, until at last, 
giving up their chase, they returned to Peter's shanty. 
Here they soon made a finish of the remainder of 
the poor whisky, and, appropriating for their own 
" special use and benefit " Peter's bag of flour, fry- 
pan and new broadcloth coat, they vamoosed, cut- 
ting up those dreadful antics which savages thirst- 
ing tor blood alone know how to perform. Peter's 
predicament was by no means enviable. He knew 
that he was in the wrong. He had time to think 
and he did " t ink.' He had time for thought and he 
"tought " if he ever lived to get out of the scrape he 
was " sure to quit te tarn liquor business anyhow." 
Afar off, from the bosom of the thicket, he had be- 
held the plunder of his shanty, and the subsequent 
withdrawal of his enemies. He had no doubt but 
wh it they had gone for reinforcements and would 
soon return and murder him. Perhaps they were 
still lying in ambush " to let the life out of him." 
Still thinking discretion the better part of valor, he 
kept still till it began to grow dark, when what 
should he hear but the friendly voice of his old coni- 
imI. , Shaw-na-neese, cautiously calling to him from 
the plundered shanty, and saying to him that he had 
just got away from the Indians, who were intending 
to come and kill him as soon as it was dark, and he 
idvised further by the red-skin not to make his 
whereabouts very public — was assured that he would 
get up the oxen, " gather up the fragments that re- 
mained," hitch on to the" truckle trackles," and 






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join him with all possible dispatch in the grove. 
Peter and his comrade were at last under cover of 
the night, plodding their way over old logs, sloughs 
and brush, to the west side of the grove, from whence, 
in a cold rain-storm, and Peter in his shirt sleeves, 
they made good their retreat towards Walker's 
Grove, which they had the good fortune to reach the 
next day, drenched with mud and water; and where 
Peter, starved, cold and hungry, was prepared to do 
up any quantity of muttering and swearing about the 
"tarn Injins." Here, among the simple children of 
nature, behold the faint dawnings of a more perfect 
day! We are not only indebted to them for the 
knowledge of succotash and hominy, but for what 
they have taught us in "getting shut " of the liquor 
dealer. 

[After referring to the attempt to build a town by 
the New York Company, the desire of the people to 
form a county organization, and the call for an elec- 
tion for county officers, Mr. Kellogg continues:] 

The day of election for county officers at last ar- 
rived. The settlers, " by the grace of God free and 
independent," from " Norcutt's to Driscoll's" and 
from Somonauk to the farthest verge of Franklin, 
were seen flocking to the house of Frederick Love, 
and certain big trees thereunto belonging — for it 
soon became apparent that all could not begin to get 
in at once. Let it not be understood, however, that 
there is any design to speak disparagingly of the old 
cabin of Judge Love, for it was a very respectable- 
looking shanty for those days, and within and with- 
out betokened more than usual thrift, means and 
hospitality. There were some — alas! the truth may 
.is well be told— too many for the security of well 
disposed and honest settlers, who affected utter con- 
tempt for all claim associations, calling them "land 
monopolies," declaring that one settler had just as 
good right to cut down Uncle Sam's timber and fence 
up his prairie as another. This might have been true 
in the abstract, and yet the first claimant and occu- 
pant was entitled to the preference, to just so much 
as was needful to him and no more. All pre-emption 
laws are based on this principle, — " first come, first 
served." It was clearly seen by the more reflecting 
that if the contrary doctrine should prevail, all 
security to property in claims would be at an end; 
" domestic tranquillity could not be ensured," nor 
could the " general welfare be promoted." Claim 



associations must therefore be maintained and their 
authority respected, or society would be resolved into 
original chaos, each defending himself and his by 
his own right arm — that is, if he was able. In what 
way can the reasonable claim of the settler be best 
secured until the lands shall be surveyed and 
brought into market, was then the all absorbing ques- 
tion. Compared with this, the question whether the 
"hero of Tippecanoe," or the "foxy Dutchman of 
Kinderhoof " should come to the Presidential chair 
was of no consequence. As a "tariff for revenue," 
or a " tariff for protection," the settlers were in for 
one that should insure both. In a word, they found 
themselves divided into two parties, denominated 
"Claim Jumpers " and " Anti-Claim Jumpers." 

After the whittling, log-rolling, caucusing and 
liquoring had been done up, the respective parties 
rally their hosts at the polls and quietly await the 
issue. On counting the voles, it was found that the 
Anti-Claim Jumpers' ticket was elected by a very 
handsome majority. Levi Lee, Rufus Collon and 
Robert Sterrett were elected County Commissioners ; 
Joseph C. Lander, Sheriff; Jesse C. Kellogg, Re- 
corder. The County Commissioners elect at once 
repaired to the house of Rufus Colton, where " each 
administered the oath to the other," as authorized by 
the act to create the county of De Kalb. The Com- 
missioners appointed Jesse C. Kellogg Clerk of the 
County Commissioners' Court ; Eli Barnes, County 
Surveyor; and Lysander Darling, County Treasurer; 
ordered a special term to be held in a few days at 
the same place to lay off the county into justices' 
districts and election precincts, and before the "guns 
of the glorious Fourth came booming over ' the land 
of the free and the home of the brave,'" De Kalb 
was a " sis " in the sisterhood of counties in the 
Prairie State. Of the County Commissioners, Hon. 
Levi Lee, now a citizen of Walworth Co., Wis., a 
member of the Legislature, alone survives. [Lee 
has since died.] That kind-hearted, worthy old set- 
tler, Lysander Darling, County Treasurer, and, it is 
believed, Joseph C. Lander, the first Sheriff, have 
gone down to the grave. Rufus Colton, the County 
Commissioner in the central portion of the county, 
was a native of New England, and a son of a Con- 
gregational minister. Much of his early life was 
spent in a printing office, where he acquired that 
business tact and readiness of the pen for which he 






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was so justly celebrated. For several years he con- 
ducted a weekly journal, called the Woodstock Ob- 
server,\x\ Windsor Co., Vt ; was the first Probate 
Justice, the first Clerk of the Circuit Court of De 
Kalh Count) ; a warm-hearted friend, and, if from lo- 
cal < ause, over .in enemy, still a generous one. During 
the 1 lsi years of his life a member of the Congrega- 
tional Chun h .it Sy< imore, and sympathizing deeply 
in the down-trodden and oppressed, he has gone 
down to the grave, and his remains repose in hope 
in the Methodist burial ground in Sycamore. Robert 
Sterrett, the County Commissioner from Somonauk, 
« i by birth a lVnnsvlvanian, a man of uncom prom- 
integrity, and one always knew where to find 
him. He was shrewd and discriminating ; in politics 
.1 Democrat; in religion, a Calvinistic Baptist; in 
claim matters, as true a man as ever ''broke bread." 
lie lived respected and died lamented. His re- 
mains sleep quietly in his own loved Somonauk. Of 
the fust County Clerk and County Surveyor, nothing 
need be said, as they are still "living characters, 
known and read by all men." [Both have since 
passed away.] 

The day for the special term of the County Com- 
missioners' Court having at length fully come, self- 
made and constituted attorneys, men having business 
at Court, boys and lawyers, curious to "see the ele- 
phant," and "how the thing worked," were seen 
pouring into the village of Coltonville from all direc- 
tions. This village was a common center between 
Levi Lee and Robert Sterrett, really in advance of 
must of the prospective paper towns of those days, 
the powerful competitor of Centerville, Brush Point 
and Sycamore, or Orange, as Sycamore was then 
called; for the "county seal " then consisted of a 
neat hewed-log cabin with ample " linters " and fix- 
tures, standing on the bluff southeast uf the present 
residence of C. S. Colton [in 1885 the residence of 

], overlooking the " rapids" on the west fork of 

the south branch of the Kishwaukee, on or near the 
site of the old Indian town, and containing under 
one roof a dwelling-house for a large family, a store, 
a postoffice, a tavern, a justice, a physician and an 
attorney's office. In addition to the ordinary busi- 
ness, it so happened that on this memorable day, 
some two or three sharply contested lawsuits were 
pending before Justice Colton, and attorneys, parties, 
constables, jurors, witnesses, men wanting "license 




to keep a quiet and orderly house," where they could / 
get theil neighbors dnu k " in pursuance of law," -• 
were soon seen in patient " waiting upon court," 
anxious to have their business done up. The Count) 
Commissioners from the north and from the south Sr 
countr) had arrived. The Count)- Commiss'oner 
from the interior, as may well be supposed, had an 
unusual pros of business. The Clerk, having the 
records of the former court in the top of his hat, 
half a quire of foolscap, sundry articles of stationery, 
and some of "Rogers' best cutlery" in his pockets, 
was already seen standing at the door — there being 
no room for him in the inn, when the whole multitude 
within and without. 



" Began to feel, as well they might, 
The keen demands of appetite." 

It was readily perceived that if the good landlady 
was to get dinner for 75 or 100 " hands," that she 
would need what little elbow-room could well be 



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1 iii the kitchen, and how she did it must ever be * 
to some an incomprehensible mystery, and yet she- 
did, and " behold, it was very good." One thing is 1 
quite certain : in those palmy days the prairie grass i 
did not grow under the feet of that landlady. Busi- 1 
ness being urgent, however, it was thought best to \y 
locate a spare table in the shade on the 1.01th end of * 
the house, and open court out of doors. Sheriff Lan- ( >.' 
der, with the assistance of the by-standers, having 
set the table and given it a business-like aspect, and 
Hon. Levi Lee having produced and laid thereon a 
" bound book," a cast of merchant's ledger with the 
accounts torn out, the best that could be produced, 
it was proi laimed in stentorian tones, at last, that 
"the County Commissioners' Court of De Kalb county 
was in session and read)- for business." The Court 
having taken a recess for dinner and again resumed 
business, applications for merchants' and tavern 
licenses were presented and granted, of course on 
condition that the applicant file a bond, pay a cer- 
tain sum into the treasury, together with the sum of 
one dollar for the use of the clerk, agreeable to the 
statute in such cases made and provided. [In divid- 
ing the county into election precincts] one would 
think the line here and another there; but it was 
universally conceded that the east line of the county 
began "somewhat-" near the big slough bridge east of 
Winslow Norcutt's, or where Homer Roberts now 
lives; consequently, quite a portion of Kane County, 





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DE KALB COUNTY. 



893 



sometimes called " Upper Canada," and sometimes 
" Arab Settlement," were " bone of our bone and 
flesh of our ilesh." 

In relation to the names of the groves, Somonauk 
takes its name from the creek bearing the same 
name, and in old times could be safely spelt any way 
that first came to hand. Squaw Grove has its name 
thus because it was much frequented by the squaws 
when the men were gone on their hunting excursions, 
and Pappoose Grove, because pappoose may be a 
little squaw. Ross Grove from Joseph Ross, the first 
settler. Johnson's, from Johnson, the first settler. 
Paw Paw, from Paw Paw in Michigan, or some other 
place. Lost Grove, becauseit seemed to have strayed 
away from all the rest of the groves, and to have got 
lost, and there stopped. The chain of groves south- 
west of Sycamore, united by isthmuses, and perhaps 
by a common sympathy, of course would be called 
Union Grove. Most of the early settlers in the grove 
southeast of Sycamore, having come from Ohio, what 
more natural than it should receive the name of Ohio 
Grove? The beautiful little grove, a little northeast 
from Sycamore, was so named because a Norwegian 
doctor by the name of Norbo first settled there. 
The grove further northeast, Charlres', because a 
Frenchman by that name was its first settler; and the 
grove northwest of Sycamore Big Grove, because, 
when compared with other groves, it was big. Hick- 
ory Grove, north of Genoa, is so called because hick- 
ory was so abundant there. Last of all, Driscoli's 
Grove took its name from the far-famed Driscolls, one 
of whom had seltled here, from whence he was kid- 
napped and taken to a little grove in OgleCountv by 
a band of lynchers, where he, with his father, after 
undergoing the mock forms of a trial and conviction, 
wen- shot down like dogs, and tumbled into a com- 
mon grave. Humanity shudders at the thought of 
this bloody transaction. In truth it might be said, 
however, that the horse-stealing, robberies and mur- 
ders of the " banditti of the prairies" had become, as 
: t was thought, intolerable. Yet t cannot be safely 
argued that the end justified the means. None of 
the old neighbors of the Driscolls who resided at this 
grove, believe him to have been connected with any 
of these enormities, though his father and relations 
might have been. The old Scripture principle that 
" the son should not bear the iniquity of the father," 
it seemed, was of no avail to him. After the mas- 



\2) 




■i'~ '•"••■ 



-*®^- 



sac re of the Driscolls, this grove took the name of 
South Grove, because it lies south of the main body of 
timber on the Kishwaukee. 

Major Evans Wharry's Reminiscence. 

f'r^/iilll. lollowing reminiscence was given by 
J pl|l| Major Evans Wharry to V. Hix, in March, 
jPfsP l8 79> :lr >d by the latter prepared for the 
v(5 City Weekly. Leaving out the introdui tory 
clause, we copy as follows : The Major and | 
a Mr. Sharer, both members of the New York 
Land Company, came here in 1836, with the view of 
taking up a large tract of land in the interest of the 
company. They landed in Chicago in May, 1836, 
and after remaining in that city for a couple of 
weeks started for Galena, by way of Rockford. 
Reaching this locality, they met with Dr. Madden, 
formerly a resident of Brush Point, Mayfield, and at 
that time a member of the Illinois General Assembly. 
The project of the formation of De Kalb County, 
then a part of Kane County, was being talked up, 
and the Doctor, being favorably impressed with the 
Major and the mission upon which he was bent, pre- 
vailed upon him to stop here and assist him in a 
scheme which he had in view, which was no less 
than to locate a shire town for the new county. The 
Major, thinking favorably of the project, consented, 
but did not think the selection of a site for the new 
county seat which the Doctor made, a good one. 
The site in question was what is now the Thomas 
Wood farm, half a mile north of the river bridge, and 
formerly well known as the ('lark Wright place. The 
land there is comparatively low and level, and as 
the Major's eyes took in the elevated situation south 
of the river, and upon which the city of Sycamore 
now stands, he was at once of the opinion that it 
should have been selected. Hut the Doctor was al- 
lowed to have his own way, and the Major at on. e 
commenced improvements on the quarter section 
chosen, a portion of which the Doctor was to have 
for his influence in the legislation needed to In. ate 
the 1 apital town of the * ountj . In fa< t, the Do, tot 
and M.ij >r were mutually interested, and both hoped <£ 
to i llize handsomely outoftheir venture in a pecun- 
iary way. The Doctor, by agreement between the ,-/ 



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8 94 









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DE KALB COUNTY. 






: 



two, was to have 50 of the 160 acres. He returned 
to Springfield to see to the appointment of a Hoard 
of Commissioners to locale the county seal, and the 
M ijor went to work in the interests of the new town, 
and had the same platted ami placed on record at 
va. He purchased Norwegian Grove, lying a 
little to the east, paying for the same the sum of 
$400, and removed Dr. Norbo, a Norwegian, who 
gave the name to the grove, to Geneva ; purchased 
two or three teams of oxen, erected a store on the 
premises now owned by Roswell Dow. He also 
brid ;ed the river, 1 onstructed a dam, cut a mile race 
hem a point near the southwest corner of Nor- 
i] Grove, through the lowlands just north ol the 
1 >ridge, traces of which remain to this day, and 
erected a saw-mill, and sought to make the place a 
prominent one for those days. At that time the old 
State road, running west from Geneva to the Missis- 
sippi, ran along the north side of Norwegian Grove, 
and tliis fact may have had something to do with the 
selection of Dr. Madden as a member of the 
Legislature. 

While the Doctor was busy in the Legislature the 
Majot was busy at home. Commissioners favorable 
had been selected by Madden and things promised a 
happy termination. The Doctor, however, had a 
deeper purpose in view than the Major had at first 
suspected, but which soon showed itself. Madden 
came back in advance of the < Commissioners and in- 

1 th it he mast have more than the 50 acres at 
(irsl agreed upon. At this the Major was taken 

what aback, but finally consented to increase 
the number of acres to 75. the amount of land the 
Doctor thought he ought to have. 'This would have 

willingly ac ptiesi ed in by the Major; but just 
u] the eve of the selection of a site by the Com- 
missioners the DoCtOI bei nue still more greed) and 
demanded 100 acres. Then the Major's ire was 
thoroughly aroused, and in the height of his indig- 
nation he vehemently told the Doctor to go to 

iiia : that he would never give him that amount 
of land. The two were now at sword's points, and 
the Docto iboul t" secure the location 

of the county seat at Brush Point. Apprised of his 
purpose, the Major quietly bul ac tively began to be- 
stir himself to defeat the Doctor, and al once hired 
riders to traverse the county to enlist the citizens in 
his behalf. The Commissioners came, two of them, 



and 150 men from all parts of the county met them 
upon their arrival. The place of meeting was at the 
Major's store. The day was spent in consultation. 
There were several parties in this part of the county 
who had a location for the county seat in view, 
among them Captain Eli Barnes, who then owned 
what is now the John Burke farm, on the De Kalb 
road. There was where the Captain wanted it lo- 
cated. Then there was Mr. Calvin Colton, of Col- 
tonville, who desired its location at his place. And 
it was wanted by a party from Genoa. 

On the next day, the interest increasing, there 
were 200 men assembled at the Major's headquar- 
ters. The party was mounted on horses, and finally, 
in company with the Commissioners, they all started 
out to inspect the different competing localities for 
the county seat. They crossed the river and halted 
first upon the site the Major had all the time fav- 
ored and which, after his quarrel with Madden, he 
determined to secure, if possible, and that was where 
the city now stands. Here the Major pointed out in 
eloquent teims the natural advantages of the place, 
after which the party took up the line of march. It 
was a jolly crowd and a jolly occasion. There was 
running of horses, whooping and all manner of fun 
afloat. Reaching the Captain Barnes place they lis- 
tened to a stump speech from that redoubtable indi- 
vidual and then struck for Coltonville. This locality 
was soon inspected and away they broke for Brush 
Point. After reaching there the Major invited the 
party to ride to the west for a distance of about 60 
rods, which was done, and they found themselves in 
the middle of a large flat covered with water. This, 
the Major said, was the place the Doctor had selected 
for the county seat, for the reason that it would 
never lack a supply of water! Then a derisive shout 
went up at the expense of the Doctor and the party 
took up the line of march for Genoa. From Genoa 
the) finished the circuit by bringing up at the 
Major's store. Here a further confab followed until 
finally one of the Commissioners, Mr. Walker, told 
the part) to go home, but to return on the morrow, 
h h 11 the county seat would be located. 

The eventful day arrived and so did the crowd. 
The party mounted and again visited each and every 
plai e they had gone to the day previous, with the ex- 
ception of Genoa. The Commissioners said that 
Genoa was a nice place but too near the north line 



$ 



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■^^ — e^nnami^A^- 






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of the county to be available. Then Commissioner 

Walker spoke and informed the crowd that with the 
concurrence of the other Commissioners (one of them 
was absent in St. Louis) he should designate the 
place selected by Major VVharry for the capital of the 
county. The other Commissioner, Mr. Thurston, who 
was in close confab with Madden at the time, re- 
fused to concur with Walker, and advised that the 
absent Commissioner be summoned. He was asked 
if he would be present providing the absent man 
could be got here, and replied that he would not — 
that he would never come there again. This exas- 
perated the Major and his friends, and they finally 
made him say as to which of the different sites vis- 
ited he preferred; and, being considerably frightened 
by the demonstration made, said that if he must, he 
would say that Wharry's selection seemed the most 
favorable. The matter was ended by Walker, who 
stuck a stake, painted red at the top, near where the 
court-house now stands, and the crowd drove it four 
feet into the ground. Afterwards a hickory pole 
about too feet high was raised on the spot by the 
Major and his friends, where it stood with colors fly- 
ing from the top. 

Madden continued to fight against the location 
with all his might, bj.it the people of the county came 
forth winners. The friends of the Major here were 
aided by the settlers at the southern extremity of the 
county on condition that the former should aid them 
in their desire to be set off and become a part of the 
county adjoining them on the south, which was 
agreed to. The support given to the Half-Shire bill 
some years ago by the people here is said by the 
Major to have been in consequence of the agreement 
spoken of, but how this may be we do not pretend 
to know or to say. 

The land tract located by Major Wharry and Mr. 
Sharer in the interest of the Land Co., after the 
agreement first entered into by Madden and the 
Major, embraced two square miles of land with the 
boundaries as follows : Commencing about one-quar- 
ter of a mile north of the Roswell Dow place, the 
west line was run to the south two miles, thence to 
the east, taking in a portion of Ohio Grove, and which 
also included the old Indian village, on what is now 
known as the Tyler farm; thence north two miles, 
running to the north of Norwegian Grove, and taking 
^ in the same, and thence west two miles to the place 






I 

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of beginning. It will thus be seen by those famil- , 
iar with the section of country embraced within the 
lines, that the tract included the quarter section upon 
which the county-seat was to be located, and which 
is now the Thomas Wood farm. The Major tells us * 
that the tract was marked out with a plow, four yoke 
of oxen being used and four days being consumed in 
the undertaking. 

Of course theold town north of the river was soon 
abandoned after the site for the county seat was final- 
ly determined upon. We have already spoken of 
Captain Eli Barnes. The Captain is accredited with 
building the first house in Sycamore, the same being 
the present City Hotel, then known as the Mansion 
House. Although the first constructed, the Barnes 
tavern was not the first house on the ground. A lit- 
tle wooden building had been moved here from the 
old Hamlin place, south of here, and was occupied 
by a Dr. Bassett, the first physician of the piace. 
John P. and Charles Waterman were the first mer- 
chants. This was in 1839. This year the old court- 
house was built, which stood nearly opposite the 
present one, and was a very primitive affair. The 
next year — 1840 — the village consisted of about a 
dozen houses. Among others resident at the time, 
and whose names are familiar to many of our readers, 
were E. S. Jewell, D. Banister, Jesse C. Kellogg, 
Carlos Lattin, L. D. Walrod, Jos. Sixbury, F. Love, 
and Marshall Stark. The Mayos and other early 
settlers did not come until a year or two later. 

By the way, we asked the Major how he got his 
title. We supposed he had seen actual military ser- 
vice; participated, perhaps, in the Black Hawk or 
some other memorable war, and were anxious to hear 
him recount his military exploits. But in this we 
were disappointed. He was only Major of a company 
organized in the earliest days here for protection 
against the raids of the banditti of the prairies, who 
infested this portion of the VVest. In the same way 
Marshall Stark got to be Colonel and Eli Barnes Cap- 
tain. Many now living remember seeing Captain 
Barnes at the head of Fourth-of-July processions 
in Sycamore, dressed in uniform, with sword and pis- 
tols, and mounted on his clumsily caparisoned steed. 
We remember him well, and it was with a feeling of 
awe that we gazed upon his stern features, and heard 
the severe orders as they issued from his lips to those 
under his command. He has long since been dead. 

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BIOGPJpEr}I<gpLr. 










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Adams, Hon. Augustus 473 

Adams, H.A 324 

Adams, J. 1 555 

Adams, John 23 

Adams, John C^uincy 39 

Adams, J . P 390 

Adams, Thomas 442 

Adams, W. G 271 

Adee Wm. T ,344 

Alden, Jesse 682 

Alden, P. M 375 

Alexander, G. M 667 

Allbee, B. C 498 

Allen, Joseph 732 

Allen, M . V 639 

Allen, Reuben 607 

Ames, Ezra M %qS 

Archer, Samuel 434 

Aikills, J. W 727 

Armstrong, S . T 212 

Arnold, Alford 636 

Arnold, I. M 744 

Arthur, Chester A 99 

Ash craft, Albcrl 635 

Ashelford, Abraham 722 

Ashelford, George .622 

Atchison, W. D 670 

Atherton, B. F ... 503 

Athcrton, Charles 623 

id, J. E 250 

A nit, Matthias 412 

Aurncr, Leonard 403 



Bailey, Asa 510 

fj^ Bailey, Cyrenius 561 

Ballou, v 1 ,,M. D., Ph. D.421 
'^w Barber, Clark 1 738 

Barnes, W. i: 391 

'M v V-><v^ 



Barringer, Edward 368 

Bartlett, Joseph -S I 5 

Bartlett, M. A 548 

Bartlett, Moses 566 

Bastian, August 507 

Bates, Wm. J . . .707 

Bander, John H 452 

Baxter, James 623 

Bell, Henry G 751 

Bend, Lewis 653 

Betz, John : .278 

Be ve ridge, J . H 325 

Beveridge, John L 171 

Beveridge, Wm. G 328 

Bishop, C A 495 

Bissell, Wm. H 151 

Blanchard, Prof. A. J 399 

Boardman, Hon. H. M 568 

Boies. H . L 216 

Bond, Shadrach in 

Bowers, Wm 529 

Boyland, Edward 547 

Boynton, C. -465 

Bradt, C E 748 

Brechbiel, J 732 

Broughton.C. W 489 

Brower, A. W 228 

Brown, C. A 325 

Brown, I>. S 294 

Brown, 1>. 1) iqq 

Brown. G- W. L 308 

Brown, James P 269 

, J . 1 481 

Brown, J. W 386 

Brown, Russell R 605 

Brown, Wm 536 

1 , Win . W 74Q 

. O.M., M . ]) 73fi 

Bryant, W. W., M. D 251 

Buchanan, James 75 

Buckingham, J - M 41 1 

Bud trdt, John 725 

Burke, 1 C 583 

Burkhart, J 745 

1 ell, Elmer 476 

1 II, Wm. J 574 

Butler, S. F 6 2 8 

Butterfield, Edward 691 

Butterfield, S. V 629 



Byers, A. B 565 

c 

Cain, John 546 

Calhoun, A. H 426 

Calkins, A. M 486 

Cameron, James ....469 

Carl in, Thomas 135 

Carnes, D. J.... 417 

Carnes, Frederick S 210 

Carpenter, Wni 357 

Carson, D. G 746 

Carter, C !' . M D 210 

Carter, James 428 

Carter, Orlando 324 

Castle, Hon. M. B 335 

C hall and, Henry 640 

Challand, Reuben 610 

Chamberlain, C. H 191 

Chamberlain, W. G 218 

Chambers, E. S 572 

Chapel, George 667 

Chapman, Julius 685 

Christopher, C 547 

Clapsaddle, Andrew 566 

Clapsaddlc, Frederick (jto 

Clapsaddle, Geo. H 567 

Clark, A . H 41Q 

Clark, Alva 327 

Clark, James I, 360. 

Cleveland, S. Grover... . 103 

Colby, F,. R 440. 

Cole, Marcus E 361 

Cole, Walter 1 39 o 

Coleman, Hector H 311 

Coles, Edward nc 

Colton, William 555 

Conde, T . J . 687 

Cone, William $jq 

1 ongdon, George G 584 

Connart, Louis 699 

Conrad, CasSlUS M 277 

Coolidgc, Porter S 709 

Cooper, George C 591 

Cooper, Thaddeus W 420 

Corey, Wm. H 66a 

Corson, Henry 603 

nn;>^-^ — 



Corson, Peter N 230 

Coster, Joseph C 443 

Coulson, William D 477 

Cox, Joseph 730 

Coy, Charles P 433 

Craig, Robert 300 

Crane, Frederick S 210 

Crapser, George W 435 

Crawford, Alexander . . .262 

Crego, Lewis H 597 

Crill, Isaac 332 

Cristman, Henry 515 

Crist man, John.... 299 

Cromwell, Philip L, M. D....675 

Cruise, Charles 460 

Cullom, Shelby M 175 

Culver, John N 320 

Curtis, Elijah 539 

( urts, J. L 712 

Cutts, Samuel 478 

D 



Darnell, James 482 

Davis, Rev. Levi H 648 

1 1. 1 vis, William 272 

Dayton, James M 262 

Dean, Erastus 598 

Dean, Moses 302 

Decker, Wm 334 

Dedrick, Martin C 676 

Dee, Richard . .715 

De Forest, Lansing 727 

Deily, Jacob 630 

Delavergne, Nelson 309 

Dennis, Wm. A 385 

Denton, Joseph H 502 

Depue, Ephraim 545 

Dettmer, George J 362 

Dickinson, H . S 498 

Dictcrich, Lewis 740 

Divine, R. L 621 

Dixon, John 572 

Dodge, Thomas. 194 

Dodge, Thomas W 677 

Douglas, Fred. S 384 

Douglas, Ira 323 

Downer, Asher 528 



I 



( 



' v v Xifc' 



898 






TNDEX. 






J 






) 



A 






V 

!) 






Driscoll, 1 he od ore D 354 

W 27° 

. Joseph 

W 259 

1 let H .aoa 

Dustin, 1 589 

1 . I 35 8 

foseph 5 18 



ooks, James 1 459 

Easterbrook, George 549 

r, Valentine — ,- ... .754 

.11 ir.un 317 

rds, W ini.in 119 

. ton, M rs. ' 'live A 434 

1 I ollel I -17" 

M 202 

Elliott, Tappan K 609 

tarn .261 

lonzo 33 J 

Ellwood, Hon. Chauncey. ..241 

Ell wood, Hiram 577 

id, Isaac L 633 

1 ones E 4 ! 5 

i I id, Hon. Reuben 189 

Klton, Adolph 211 

rd, Rev. L. A. R 700 

Estabrook, Benjamin S 409 

. Evan 585 

* 720 

Evans, Lorenzo L) 701 

. Harry 221 

, W. L. D 127 

F 

Farley, Lawrence 427 

. Benjamin K 483 

I twin H 504 

Fay, Herbert W 669 

I rj , Wells \ 469 

Fillmore, Millard 67 

Firkins, Asahel 578 

Ford, 'l'h otnas 139 

Foster, Joseph W 401 

Fraser, Win 747 

Frecland, Albert N 404 

French, C 14; 

French E. C 741 

French, George B 738 

Fulkcrson, James C 680 

Fullc, John. B 610 

Fuller, Harvey L 541 

Fulton, James 548 



t 



v--x 



G 



Gandy, Henry H 215 

. Joseph 249 

Garfield, James A 95 

Garland, Wm. H 312 

Gathei nd 435 



Gerlach, David 530 

( ribbons, Wm 617 

Prol 1 1 - M 307 

t, Eli B 275 

Gilchrist, War re n 333 

t; ill is, George A 392 

n, < lark 412 

Glidden J amea B 731 

207 

1 rletty, Jacob 7*6 

227 

m . \ adrew 736 

' ii: .in, James R 353 

Gi int, Ul ysses S 87 

Graves, Abraham 1 ' 352 

Greek, Joseph B 432 

1 486 

tries F 280 

■■;■■ n 1 1 612 

Grim, Henry 612 

Gi "i , I lenry P 302 

Gurler, Benj 507 

Gurler, George II 685 

r, Henry B 721 

377 



H 

Hager, C ... 753 

Hailc, Nathaniel \ 278 

11 aish, Adam 498 

1 1 aish, Jacob 415 

Hall, Jacob M 740 

■ tierm tn \ 193 

Hall, Stephi n \ 466 

Hallam, Charles 541 

Hamilton, .1 ames 1 669 

Hamilton, John M 179 

ll impton, Robert V 655 

Hampton, Hon. Robert 561 

Harned, F.dmond B 737 

Harper, James 599 

Harper, Fami s 1 : 524 

Harper, Robert H 571 

Harper, Thomas 573 

I ii :n 1 568 

Harper, William . .562 

1 -eorge 600 

Harrington, Henry H 687 

Harrington, James, M . D 285 

Harrington, Rufus 490 

Harrington, Samuel H 370 

Harrington, Sidney P 307 

Harrington, Wipple A 344 

Harris, Rev. Benoni 642 

Harris, Lei I C 220 

Harrison, William Henry.... 51 

Hart, Pati ick M 482 

Hartman, 1 'avid W 260 

Hartman t EHas 432 

ns, Horace 225 

Hatch, John 357 

Hayes, Asahel K 466 

Hayes, Rutherford B 91 

Heath J ohn 291 

Heck man, Philip 418 

Hecox, Wm 655 

Hclmer, Peter H 323 

He men way, Henry B 726 



H : ban, John 679 

Henderson, James 635 

394 

1 1 Hand, Jackson 707 

Hill, George ' l 351 

Hinds, Albert 606 

l . II 316 

II 485 

Hix, Albert E 686 

Hix, Volaski 318 

ii , 1 1 -.. ii * 491 

H ' irge E 705 

Holbrook, 1 h imas I ; 509 

I I ul-, 1 1 Irani 676 

Holcbmb, Sylvanus .710 

Holdridge, Wayne 251 

ibert .219 

Hollembeak, Aramont N. ...249 
Holmes, George R .. ■ .523 

I [ommersand, O. A 517 

Hopkins, Cyr us I • 200 

Hopkins, Herbert 1 1 ;.-448 

Hopkins, John C 474 

Hopkins, I nomas M 688 

Hotchkiss, Nelson 433 

Houghtby, John 568 

II ison, Wm — 599 

M ■ v, Edward 269 

Hughes, I tavid . . ..' 530 

Hummel, Mrs. B. \ 753 

Humphrey, Robert 586 

Hum, Charles S 716 

Hunt,I>- D 630 x 

Hum, James 627 

Hurst, Levi 592 

Husk, Henry 565 




Irwin, William W . . . . 
I 1 rtin I 



...47c 
...368 



. in.' ii arles I ' 731 

Jackson, Andrew 43 

Jackson, ( leorgc 556 

Jackson, William 449 

I ■ I : -2-J 

Johnson, Andrew 83 

Johnson, And/ew H 44S 

Johnson , Andrew J 647 

Johnson, Horace B 402 

Joiner, Cyrus S 367 

Jones* Harvey V 36s 

loncs, John D 411 

.711 

Joslyn, D. W. C 261 

. I tarry \ 432 

Joslyn, Phineas 

Joslyn, i'. v 

K 

Keene,* William H 646 

Kellogg, H, \ 553 

5, Jesse C 692 



Kellogg, I.cander P 226 

Kellum, Hon. Charles 197 

King, Philip 294 

1 in . ^ illiam 222 

Kingsley, Henry 409 

1 B ev - 1 'avid N 316 

■ i . .253 

Kinyon, Stacy P 378 

Kcsler, George H 228 

Kittelson, Charles 458 

Kirk, Elisha A 350 

Kirk, i >eorge W 

Kirk, James K 310 

ECirkpatrick, Hiram 627 

Kirk pa trick, Isaac 508 

Kirkpatrick, Smiley 518 

Klein, 1 heodore 689 

Kleinsmid, George 295 

Klemm, Nicholas 419 

Knight, Samuel 404 

Kunes, Jacob 529 

Kuter, John 523 

L 

Lake, Almon W 604 

Lanan, Henry 661 

Lanan, Nicholas .293 

Lane, David T 221 

Lane, James 475 

Lang, William 618 

Laporte, Alonzo M 554 

Larson, John H 606 

Lattin, Carlos . .668 

Lattin, Nathan 293 

Latham, Thomas F 743 

Lawyer, Peter H 728 

Leifheit, Henry W .556 

Leifhcit, William 455 

Lewis, Edward -747 

Lincoln, Abraham 79 

I ittle, Abijah, Jr 517 

Little, Krastns B 385 

Little, Henry H 393 

Lloyd, Hon. A. W 712 

" Lloyd, EH W 646 

Lloyd, John 343 

I obdell, Benj 584 

Lock, James 629 

1 ,ondon, L. I * 705 

i is, William 691 

Lord, Rob rl D 237 

Losec, Morgan 343 

Lott, Frank VV 280 

Loucks, Hon. Hiram 304 

Love, Frederick 680 

Low, Charles H 559 

I 'hnson 580 

W illiam R 408 

Lowell, Hon. Luther 410 

1 1 ipi Tl imas B 586 

1 7 10 

1 uther, t apt J ohn 11 679 

Lyons, Joseph B 618 

M 

Mackcy, Harrison 342 

ies 31 









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INDEX. 









:> 



I 

f 

> 
(9 



& 



Marsh, ( harles W 283 

Marsh, William W 288 

Martin, Harry 311 

Martin Henry =35 

Mas l leorge F 47° 

M Rsor , Horatio H 267 

Matteson, Joel \ M7 

1 !, Gilbrrt \ 672 

Maxwell, George N 54- 

Mayo, Hon. E I 754 

Mayo, 1 dward 1 755 

McAllister, James W 580 

m, Vlpine, Wm. J 7 21 

Mc< leery, fames 59 1 

Mc( lellan, Peter C 39 2 

McCormick, J. A 554 

McDolc, James A 698 

Mi Donald, W. W 623 

Mel >owell, John 193 

McDowell, John N 354 

McDowell, Wm. B 336 

Ml wen, Lewis M 718 

McFarland, James 567 

McKeague, Norton 376 

M 1 Queen, Hugh 353 

Merrill, Henry T 374 

Merritt,John H 546 

Miller, Christian 743 

Miller, George E 296 

Miller, Henry .--384 

Miller, Henry 735 

Miller, Irving W 296 

Miller, Marshall 540 

Miller, Peter 468 

Miner, Charles .304 

Miner, Isaac N 317 

Misick, Dr. Charles 1 318 

Moliter, Edward, M . D 605 

Monroe, James 35 

Montgomery, J. Ivor 381 

Morey, Ariel S ... . . .636 

Morey, Pawling A 518 

Morris, G - W 253 

Morsch, Jacob 630 

Morse, Isaac F 457 

Mosher, Edwin I jo^ 

Mosher, Fred S 3 20 

Mull ins, Robert 436 

Mutton, John .... 640 

N 

Nelson, Lewis 562 

Nesbitt, * leorge W., M. D 286 

Newhall, John P 624 

Newsham, Charles, 665 

Newsham, John F 469 

Nichols, Clark 497 

Nichols, P. H 573 

Nichols, Reuben 729 

Nicholson, Thomas 047 

Nicholson, Kcv. Wm .6*30""" 

Nilson, Benj 234 

Nisbet, Mathew 68r, 

Norton, I 'avid.... 444 

Norton, Orrin M 491 



< I'I'.ricn, Michael 434 

O'Connor, Michael J 524 



Oglesby, Richard J 163 

Olmstead, Mberl V 23 8 

Ol m stead, Indrew H 218 

Olmstead, Caleb 31 ' 

< tlmstead, I tenry N 210 

1 -Irnste id, I . Lewis 

Olmstead, Mathew W 508 

I Hmsted, Coleman »i 

Olmsted, Daniel D 475 

I >rr, I tavid 545 



Pabst, Martin 697 

Paine, Harmon 678 

Palm, Adam 546 

Palm, John 501 

Palmer, Charles S --443 

Palmer, Hiram 285 

Palmer, John M 167 

Park, Ira 516 

Park, George F 579 

Parke, Almon F 719 

Parker, Henry N 408 

Parks, Mathew 618 

Parks, Richard 686 

Pasley, Sylvester 708 

Patch, Charles D 643 

Patten, Wm 383 

Patterson, Henry 252 

Patterson, John 268 

Peas, I>an F 671 

Peck man, Ernest 478 

Perkins, Horatio N 389 

Perry, Frank H 567 

Phelps, Wm. C 484 

Pierce, Daniel 504 

Pierce, Franklin 7" 

Pierre, Orrin 194 

Pii e, Wm. L 192 

Plapp, Jacob F 522 

Polk, James K ... 59 

Pond, Charles C 218 

Pond, Wm. L 691 

Pooler, Henry 233 

Pooler, John. 447 

Posson, Martin L 611 

\. F 562 

Potter, George S 466 

Potter, Isaac 528 

Powell, James T 271 

Powers, Edward B 616 

Powers, Norman H 

Pratt, Burton E 750 

Pratt, Charles H 743 

Prestegard, Ole J 604 

1 '1 "i 5 ton, J usi us. 277 

Preston, Norman 215 

Pritchard, Ethan A 516 

Puffer, Alanson R 42S 



Quilhot, Peter V. 



-585 



K 

Ramcr, ( Icorge 504 

Ramer, Henry 615 

Rand, Henry 1 662 

Randall, 1 r.i V 695 



Pay, John 603 

Kay, William H 617 

Raj mond, Wm 287 

Read, George H 571 

Reynold . fohn '. 133 

Ri ■ . I >rson W 299 

Ri< hard ■■■. I Line ■ 373 

Roberts, Humphrey 516 

I 11 H ■ --252 

Robertson, ( I H --416 

Robinson, Hon. George S 654 

B rs, Klthom 238 

Rompf, Georg< 744 

Root, Horace 5 22 

Rose, Chaunccy ■ 687 

Rose, Edwin P 7'9 

. t ■ E 75 1 

Rote, Amos H 386 

Rote, Frances 403 

Rowen, Boyd D 362 

Rowan, Harley B.... 200 

Rowen Stephen G • • 35° 

Rowley, Richard R 5 8 4 

Rowen, Wm. H 199 

Ruby, Dr. Basil 722 

Russell, James S 226 



Sanderson.. Charles 456 

5a nderson, Henry A 49 2 

San tee, Stephen 690 

Savory, George W. 717 

Schermerhorn, H. A 5:0 

Schmoldt, Oscar 400 

Schoonmaker, G. F 291 

Schoon maker, John M 341 

Schule, Hartman 600 

Schweitzer, Rev. J. C 426 

Seaman, James P .209 

Sebree, John S 45° 

I 1 e, Wm. M 444 

1 k, Hon. Westel W. .. 257 

Seelcy, Wm. D.... 668 

Seibert, Jacob 192 

Severy. Henry A 728 

. John M 373 

Sh ibbona, Indian Chief 533 

Shackelton, M G 574 

Shoop, Thomas 510 

Shurtleff, Calvin 235 

Siglin, Jacob 678 

lit. G. M 222 

Sixbury, Joseph 301 

Sladc, Joseph 43 1 

Slater, Henry H 246 

. Philo 485 

Smiley : 65° 

Smith VdolphuS G 54» 

Smith, I 'avid 458 

Smith, Edwin P 1 s 

Smith, Joseph 460 

Smith, John P 260 

Smith, Nathaniel 598 

Smith, Spafford 5 21 

Solon, Timothy 682 

Southern, Alex 642 

Spansail, Jacob 643 

Spickerman, George 716 

Spiers, Dr. Richard B 334 




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Stafford, i 22 7 

Stark, Arthur M 7'7 

Stark, David W 2 9« 

St.irk, Jefferson <> =5" 

Stark, Marshal] 7>5 

as, Joseph B 624 

Jti phens, ia niuel 295 

I, \rum.i 605 

Stevens, Franklin O 599 

Stevens, Jonathan 49° 

1 lijah 275 

iamuel H 349 

Stimpson, George 641 

Stinson, Hon. Stephen B 339 

5, Vnton 653 

Wei 1' 7*o 

Stone, Jacob 47° 

Storey, Septimus 5 2 7 

Story, Amos 7° 2 

I. I 74t 

Suydam, S. I! 75 2 

Suydam, Simon 75° 

Swift, Samuel M 600 

Syme, I lavid A 753 

Syme, John 74 2 

T 

Talbot, George 1 697 

Tanner, Oscar M 468 

Taylor, Charles H 456 

Taylor, Zachary 63 

Terry, Thomas S 455 

Terwilliger, George 686 

Thomas, Henry M 368 

Thomason, Thomas 574 

Thompson, Augustus C 749 

Thompson, ArthurJ 368 

Thompson, W. R 699 

Thorp, Henry M 73° 

Till, Henry 616 

Tindall, Thomas J 634 

Tomblin.LeeE 467 

Tower, David 391 

Towne, Ed mond 579 

Townsend, Edwin 326 

Townsend, Frederick B 271 

Townsend, Wm. H 367 

Treat, G i 2 7 

Troeger, Frederick T 457 

T tittle, William C 333 

Tjler, John 55 

T\lcr, Sanford A 7>9 

Tyrrell, D. W 450 

u 

plir "i . I ihn 394 

V 

Buren, Martin 47 

burgh, H. G 370 

\ an Deusi n, \. V 49 2 

Van Dusen, James 688 

Van Galder, F. 5 2 7 

Van I llinda, Mrs. E. C 745 

Van Velior, Madison 44 - 

Van Voorhis.M. P 696 

Silas O 739 

Veale, M.irwood 47S 






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900 



INDEX. 



Vincr, Varnum V 236 

1 in. Christian 739 

tlen, Henry.. ,74.* 

745 

w 

1 l 211 

Waite, I lantel 706 

Walrod ' D 217 

Walsh, Michael 702 

Walter, Gustave 731 

Ward, I ohn 279 

W 407 

1 , James 191 

320 

Warren, Luke A 748 

Warren, M. F 725 

Wash in 19 

Waterbury, John 234 



1 ames S 254 

1. in, John C .315 

II, ( harles V 580 

II, William D 611 

tin 54° 

W 729 

W. 11 .. 1 apt. \. 1 evi 665 

Welty, Levi I , 328 

■ . Nil. is 1 > 752 

I 'avid 659 

Westlake, Morris H. 394 

Whalen, John I! 230 

r, Win. P 508 

\\ li ipple, Benj . F 237 

Charl. 11 378 

White, Edward F 701 

White, John 259 

White, ' > van do W 567 

Whitmore, Enos 671 

Whit more, Henry O 427 



Whitmore, Howard 436 

w bitney, Charles 666 

Whitf more, I lenry C 201 

. i dward H 310 

Wild, 1 ieorgc P.. .- 276 

Willard, How a W 708 

Willis, Seneca H 233 

Wilsey, Benj — . . ■ 746 

U iltbi 1 r, w - 11 417 

Wirick, Jacob 5^9 

\\ in- H 698 

Withurspoon, Rev. F. . 459 

Wood, l>avid • - 212 

Wood, Hon. Henry 439 

Wood, John 155 

Wood, Lester P 229 

Woods, J. uncs H 361 

Wi mil worth, I . J 727 

Wormley, Henry W 482 

Worthier, Prentiss D. 402 



Wright, George 483 

Wright, George M - D 279 

Wright, James C 292 

Wright, Stephen I ' 385 

Wrigbti Thomas 477 

Wright, Thomas 592 

Wylde, Wm W 300 

\v ) 1,1 .hi, Byron F 689 

Y 

Yates, Richard 159 

Young, Elsey 1' 292 

Young, Philip G 328 

Younggren, Emanuel 484 

z 

Zeigler, Michael 604 

Zellar, Edwin R 615 



f 



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v£ 



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A 






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Adams, Augustus 47 2 

Adams, John « 

Adams, John Quincy 38 

All. :n, Capt. M. V 638 

Arthur. I 98 

Ballon, N E., M. l> 4" 

Bend, Lewis 650 

! Mrs. Jane 65" 

licveridgc, John 1 17° 

Bishop, C. A 494 

Bisscll, Wm. H M" 

Blanchard, Prof. A.J 396 

„«i. Mrs Vbbie \... 397 

hadrach no 

Boynton, C. O 4°= 

Boynton ' ,,: ' '" 403 

1 W 488 

Brown, J. 1 480 

Bryan, I >r. <>. M 734 

Buchanan, James. ... 74 

Burke, L. C S** 

\ B 564 

1 nomas *34 

Chapman, Julius 084 

„.l, S. Grover >o' 

Coles, Edward i"4 

Corscn, Henry 602 

I H 594 

• I II 595 

Cristman, Henry 5 12 

Cristinan, Mrs. Louisa 513 



3 fr » " i 



Cristman, John 298 

Cromwell, Dr. P. I .674 

Cullom, Shelby M 174 

Curtis, Elijah 538 

. Epbraim 544 

Divine, R. L 620 

l luni an, George 130 

D us tin, Gen. Daniel 588 

! rds, Ninian 118 

Elliott, T. K 60S 

Eli wood, Alonso 330 

El I wood, Chaunccy 240 

Ellwood, n 11 .mi .576 

1 II wood, I. 1 632 

Fill wood, J. E 414 

Fill wood, Reuben 188 

. Wm. L. I » 126 

Fillmore, Millard 66 

Ford, Thomas 13S 

French, Augustus C 142 

Candy, H. H 214 

Garfield, James A 04 

Pro! f>- M 306 

Gilbert, E. B 274 

n , J . F 304 

J . I 205 

86 

Gurler, l>enj 506 

Hamilton, fohn M 178 

Harrison, Wm. H 50 



Haskins, Horace 224 

Hatch, John. 356 

Hayes, Rutherford B 90 

Heath, John 290 

Hobbs, G. E 704 

Holli mbeak, \ N 248 

ns, C. B — 200 

Jackson, Andrew 42 

Jefferson, Thos 26 

Johnson, Andrew 82 

Jones, H. A 364 

1 1 \ 550 

Kellogg, Mrs. Ida M 551 

Kcllum, Charles 196 

Kirkpatrick, Hi .626 

Leifheit, Wm 454 

Lincoln, Abraham 78 

1 I harles H 558 

11 James 30 

Marsh, C. W 282 

Mason, H. H 264 

Via n. Mi Eliza 265 

m, Joel A 154 

Monroe, James 34 

Montgomery, J. Ivor 380 

hard J 162 

Palm, John 500 

Palmer, John M 

i .11. \ 388 

Pierce, Franklin 70 



Polk, James K 5 8 

Pooler, Henry 232 

Pooler, John 446 

Randall, Ira V 694 

Read, G. H.. 570 

Reynolds, John 122 

Richard*, James 372 

1 k, W, W 256 

Shabbona, Indian Chief 532 

Slade, Joseph 430 

Smith, Spafford 520 

Spansail, Jacob 644 

Stark, Marshall 714 

Stiles, S. H 346 

Stiles, Mis. t ' harlot te 347 

Stinson, S. I! 338 

Storey. Si ptimus 526 

Taylor, Zachary 62 

Tyler, fohn 54 

11. Martin 46 

Ward, I W 406 

Warren, M. F 724 

Washington, < leorge 18 

Ml, I. C 1 I 

Wells. A. I 664 

West, David 658 

Wood, Henry 438 

Wood, John 150 

Vates. Richard 158 

Zellar, E. R 614 



i 



11 




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(h 



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INDEX. 



-7$$k :■ XA'^ 



goi 







v§) 



INTRODUCTORY 



761 



Value of Local History 762 

How Our Fathers Lived 763 
Character of the Pioneers 7 64 

THE INDIANS 766 

FIRST SETTLEMENT 768 

TOPOGRAPHICAL 769 

ORGANIZATION 770 

Location of the Co. Seat 77 1 

County-Seat Contests 771 

ACTS OF THE COUNTY 

COMMISSIONERS 772 

Board of Supervisors 

COUNTY BUILDINGS 

Court- House 

Jail 



Poor-House 
JUDICIAL 
THE BAR 

CRIMINAL RECORD 
POLITICAL 

Count) Officers 

WAR FOR THE UNION 

AGRICULTURE 

Agricultural Societies 
Union Agric'l Institute 
De KalbCo. Ag. Assoc. 

THE PRESS 



772 
774 

774 
775 
775 
776 
778 

7S1 
786 
788 

789 

791 

791 
792 

793 

7 94 



Republican Sentinel 794 

True Republican 795 

People's Press 795 

Prairie Home and Adver- 
tiser 795 
Sandwich News 796 
Sandwich Gazette 796 
De Kalb County Farmer 796 
City Weekly 796 
Sandwich Free Press 797 
Somonauk Reveille 798 




Shabbona Express 798 

Malta Mail 798 

Hinckley Review 798 

Argus 799 
De Kalb Co. Chronicle 799 

De Kalb Review 800 

Genoa Index 800 

INVENTIONS 801 

TOWNSHIPS 805 

Afton 805 

Clinton 806 

Cortland 810 

De Kalb 813 

Franklin 815 

Genoa 8t8 

Kingston 822 

Malta 824 

May field 827 

Milan 828 

Paw Paw 829 

Pierce 832 

Shabbona 834 

Somonauk 845 

South Grove 839 

Squaw Grove 841 

Sycamore 850 

Victor 852 

CITIES AND VILLAGES: 

Cortland 811 

De Kalb 863 

Platting the Village 864 

Incorporation 864 

Banks 865 

Water Works 866 

Fire Department 866 

Religious 866 

Societies 867 

Cemeteries 867 

Manufactories 868 

Supervisors 869 

Fielding 817 

Genoa 821 

Hinckley 843 

Kingston 824 

Kirkland 816 



Lee 839 

Malta 825 

Sandwich 870 

Postoffice 87 1 

Incorporation 872 

Business Interests 873 

Banks 875 

Educational 875 

Religious 876 

Societies 878 

Manufactories 879 

Water Works 880 

Fire Company 880 

In the War 880 

Shabbona 836 

Religious 838 

Societies 838 

Somonauk S47 

Religious 848 

Societies 849 

Sycamore 853 

Incorporation 854 

City Officers 854 
Commercial Interests 855 

Postoffice 855 

Educational 855 

Religious 857 
Secret and Benevolent 

Organizations 859 
Fire Department 860 
Banking S60 
Manufacturing Inter- 
ests 861 

Waterman 805 

Religious 809 

Schools 809 

MISCELLANEOUS 881 

Railroads 881 

Educational 882 

Early Postoffices 883 

Census Reports 885 

Matrimonial 885 

Statistical 886 

REMINISCENCES 886 



By J. C. Kellogg 886 

By Major Evans Wharry 893 



9 

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